Hakeem Dawodu vs. Julian Erosa
Featherweight division encounters Hakeem Dawodu and Julian Erosa close out the preliminary roster on Saturday in what should be an entertaining matchup from start to finish.
Dawodu has been on the verge of breaking into the rankings for the past two years, but has never quite succeeded. A five-fight winning streak after dropping his promotional debut brought him closer, but a loss to Movsar Evloev slammed the door. He bounced back with a good win over Michael Trizano last time out, and he’s looking to build on that effort here against Erosa.
Erosa is one of the best UFC “feel good” stories of the past two years.
A member of Team Faber on Season 22 of The Ultimate Fighter, he won his fight in the finale, lost his next fight, and was released by the promotion. Two years later, he picked up a second-round knockout victory in Dana White’s Contender Series, but was denied a contract, only to receive a short-notice recall, resulting in three straight losses and a second release.
A third chance to compete on the big stage came in the summer of 2020 and Erosa took advantage of it, posting a 4-1 mark in his last five fights, including stoppage wins over Sean Woodson, Nate Landwehr and Charles Jourdain.
Dawodu is a polished, technical striker who likes to work clean, keep things upright and look for openings to exploit, while Erosa is the opposite – a ‘keep feeling’ type of fighter who carries his hands low, will take one for land one, and never saw a small opportunity he wasn’t ready to chase after.
