A light-heavyweight match-up between Eryk Anders and Darren Stewart will go down in the preliminary card of the UFC 263 pay-per-view this weekend. The pair previously clashed in March on a UFC Fight Night card. Much like the main event of that card, the fight between Anders and Stewart ended in a no-contest because of an illegal knee by the former.

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Nevertheless, they have been matched up again. But, the fact that this fight is scheduled in the light-heavyweight division this time might favor ‘Ya Boi’ as he has previously competed at 205. On the flip side, UFC fans consider Stewart somewhat undersized even for the middleweight division.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 13: (R-L) Eryk Anders lands an illegal knee against Darren Stewart of England in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on March 13, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

‘The Dentist’ has won only 2 out of his last 5 fights inside the Octagon. Apart from the no contest in his last fight, he has dropped decisions against Kevin Holland and Bartosz Fabinski recently. A submission over Maki Pitolo is his last win in the promotion.

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Anders doesn’t hold a very impressive record in recent times as well. His current professional record stands at 13-5.

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‘Ya Boi’ has 9 finishes (8 T/KO and 1 submission) under his belt; Stewart has a record of 12-6 with 8 finishes (7 T/KO and 1 submission)

Eryk Anders vs Darren Stewart: Analysis

As seen in their previous fight, Anders was clearly winning the early exchanges. Also, Stewart was actually rocked by the illegal knee. So, it’s surprising to see him back in action within 3 months after being knocked out.

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – AUGUST 08: Darren Stewart of England reacts after his submission victory over Maki Pitolo in their middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on August 08, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

Anders might be able to take advantage of his size over Stewart. As he knows the game plan to actually dismantle ‘The Dentist’, it’s all about applying that once again for him. ‘Ya Boi’ might just do that to earn himself a first-round finish.

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Final Prediction: Eryk ‘Ya Boi’ Anders by first-round T/KO

Also Read: UFC 263: Drew Dober vs Brad Riddell: Prediction and Analysis

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Apratim Banerjee

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Apratim Banerjee is a senior UFC author for EssentiallySports and has been writing professionally for almost a year. Before his current gig, Apratim worked as a UFC writer for Sportskeeda. A long-time MMA fan, Apratim has developed a critical eye for the sport that has helped him transfer his vast knowledge to his copies and give hardcore and casual readers a detailed insight into the fights and fighters. Dan Henderson’s brutal knockout against Michael Bisping at UFC 100 in 2009 is one of his earliest memories of the sport. He has never missed a UFC PPV or a Fight Night since, which speaks volumes about his wealth of MMA knowledge. Israel Adesanya, Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, Conor McGregor are some of his favorite fighters. Apart from this, Apratim plays soccer in his free time and loves scoring long-distance goals.

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