Preview: UFC 314 Prelims

Featherweights

Julian Erosa (30-11, 8-7 UFC) vs. Darren Elkins (29-11, 19-10 UFC)

ODDS: Erosa (-355), Elkins (+280)

Elkins cut down to 145 pounds in 2011, only a few fights after his UFC debut, and immediately established himself as an underrated grinder. Bettors didn’t seem to have much faith in Elkins, but he strung together ugly win after ugly win until seemingly finally hitting his ceiling. Chad Mendes was the rare man with the power to crack Elkins’ legendary chin, but he also got stalled out in losses to Jeremy Stephens and Hacran Dias. Elkins figured to head back to a gatekeeper role from there, which was true for a bit, but he just kept winning—he even developed a credible striking game in the process—to the point that he got to the fringes of a title shot until Alexander Volkanovski clearly closed that door. That Volkanovski loss started a four-fight losing streak that suggested Elkins might be completely done as a fighter, but he has rebounded enough to remain a tough out. His reflexes have slowed enough that he’s now mostly back to being a pure grinder, but his durability and aggression have held up enough that he has been able to gut out some surprising wins, including his last two fights and five of his last seven. Erosa is the next to step up and take on “The Damage,” and his own story is a lesson in the value of persistence.

It took Erosa three stints with the UFC to finally stick, as he had a game built to succeed at the regional level but fall short otherwise for the first decade or so of his career. Erosa could do a lot of things but depended on a defensive slickness that could get past less athletic or technical competition. It mostly got him hit hard against the type of athletes who typically make it to the UFC. By the time he started his third stint with the promotion, Erosa had enough experience to avoid those tough starts more often than not. He will still get absolutely nuked by a hard hitter from time to time, but he’s now coasting out decisions and scoring late submissions by outlasting the type of opponent that used to be able to destroy him. After two rough losses, 2024 was a big rebound year for “Juicy J,” who found guillotine chokes on Ricardo Ramos and Christian Rodriguez, and he could certainly make it three in a row in a fight that figures to be wrestling- and grappling-centric. Erosa doesn’t have the type of power or general approach to freeze the Indiana native out of his usual fight, so this matches up as another pairing where Elkins can somehow once again march through hell and grind out another win. The pick is Elkins via decision.

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