Eryk Anders

Eryk Anders (born April 21, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division for the UFC, and a former college football player for the Alabama Crimson Tide.[4]

Eryk Anders
Born (1987-04-21) April 21, 1987
Clark Air Base, Pampanga, Luzon Islands, Philippines[1]
Other namesYa Boi[2]
NationalityAmerican
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
DivisionMiddleweight (2015–2018, 2019–present)
Light Heavyweight (2018–2019)
Reach75 in (191 cm)
StyleKickboxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Fighting out ofBirmingham, Alabama, U.S.
TeamSpartan Fitness
RankBrown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu[3]
Years active2012–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total18
Wins13
By knockout8
By submission1
By decision4
Losses5
By knockout1
By decision4
UniversityUniversity of Alabama
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Background

Eryk Anders was born on a U.S. Air Force base in the Philippines, where his mother was stationed at the time.[1] When Anders was a sophomore in high school he moved to San Antonio, Texas, where he played football for Smithson Valley High School.[1]

After graduating from Smithson Valley High School Anders started at the University of Alabama in 2006.[5] From 2006 to 2009, Anders played for the Crimson Tide as a linebacker, starting 14 games in his senior season.[6] His career at Alabama culminated with a victory in the 2009 BCS National Championship against the Texas Longhorns, a game in which he led the Crimson Tide with seven tackles and a forced fumble.[7]

After college he signed a free agent contract with the Cleveland Browns of the NFL. He also had stints in the Canadian Football League and the Arena Football League before beginning a career in mixed martial arts.[1]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Anders began his mixed martial arts career in 2012 as an amateur, participating in 22 amateur bouts, although his official record is listed as 13-3-1[8][9] before his professional debut against Josh Rasberry on August 22, 2015 for Strike Hard Productions.[10] He defeated Rasberry in just 40 seconds via TKO.[11]

In his second professional fight he defeated Demarcus Sharpe by unanimous decision.[12]

Anders defeated Garrick James by TKO.[13]

Anders next defeated Dekaire Sanders by submission via rear naked choke.[14]

For his fifth professional fight he defeated Jesse Grun by TKO due to punches.[15]

Bellator MMA

Anders made his Bellator debut on October 21, 2016, defeating Brian White by TKO in 23 seconds.[16]

Legacy Fighting Alliance

Anders next joined Legacy Fighting Alliance. He defeated Jon Kirk by TKO at LFA 6: Junior vs. Rodriguez on March 10, 2017.[17]

On June 23, 2017, Anders fought for the Legacy Fighting Alliance middleweight championship. He defeated Brendan Allen via a 49-46 unanimous decision to gain the championship.[18]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Anders made his UFC debut against Rafael Natal at UFC on FOX 25, as a late replacement for Alessio di Chirico who was forced to withdraw due to a neck injury.[19] He won the fight via knockout in the first round.[20]

Anders was expected to face John Phillips on December 9, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 123.[21] However, Phillips was removed from the card and was replaced by promotional newcomer Markus Perez Echeimberg on December 9, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 123.[22] Anders won the fight by unanimous decision.[23]

Anders faced Lyoto Machida on February 3, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 125.[24] He lost the fight via controversial split decision.[25] 16 of 23 media outlets scored the fight for Anders.[26]

Anders faced Tim Williams on August 25, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 135.[27] He won the fight via knockout due to a head kick in the third round.[28] This fight earned him the Performance of Night award.[29]

Anders was tabbed as a short notice replacement for Jimi Manuwa, and he faced Thiago Santos in a light heavyweight bout at UFC Fight Night 137.[30] Anders lost via referee stoppage TKO when Anders collapsed and failed to make it to his corner at the conclusion of round three.[31] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.[32]

Making a quick turnaround to the Octagon, Anders returned to middleweight to replace Antônio Carlos Júnior in a bout against Elias Theodorou at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018.[33][34] He lost the fight via split decision.[35]

Anders faced Khalil Rountree on April 13, 2019 at UFC 236.[36] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[37]

Anders faced Vinicius Moreira, replacing Roman Dolidze, on June 29, 2019 at UFC on ESPN 3.[38] He won the fight via knockout in the first round.[39] This fight earned him the Performance of the Night award.[40]

Anders faced Gerald Meerschaert in a middleweight bout on October 12, 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 19.[41] He won the fight by split decision.[42]

Anders was scheduled to face Krzysztof Jotko on April 11, 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Harris.[43] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was eventually postponed[44] to May 16, 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris.[45] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[46]

Personal life

Anders and his wife Yasmin[47] are married and have two sons, Israel and Noah.[48]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
18 matches 13 wins 5 losses
By knockout 8 1
By submission 1 0
By decision 4 4
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 13–5 Krzysztof Jotko Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris May 16, 2020 3 5:00 Jacksonville, Florida, United States
Win 13–4 Gerald Meerschaert Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Joanna vs. Waterson October 12, 2019 3 5:00 Tampa, Florida, United States Return to Middleweight.
Win 12–4 Vinicius Moreira KO (punches) UFC on ESPN: Ngannou vs. dos Santos June 29, 2019 1 1:18 Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States Performance of the Night.
Loss 11–4 Khalil Rountree Jr. Decision (unanimous) UFC 236 April 13, 2019 3 5:00 Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Loss 11–3 Elias Theodorou Decision (split) UFC 231 December 8, 2018 3 5:00 Toronto, Ontario, Canada Middleweight bout.
Loss 11–2 Thiago Santos TKO (referee stoppage) UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Anders September 22, 2018 3 5:00 São Paulo, Brazil Light Heavyweight debut. Fight of the Night.
Win 11–1 Tim Williams KO (head kick) UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick August 25, 2018 3 4:42 Lincoln, Nebraska, United States Performance of Night.
Loss 10–1 Lyoto Machida Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders February 3, 2018 5 5:00 Belém, Brazil
Win 10–0 Markus Perez Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega December 9, 2017 3 5:00 Fresno, California, United States
Win 9–0 Rafael Natal KO (punches) UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum July 22, 2017 1 2:54 Uniondale, New York, United States
Win 8–0 Brendan Allen Decision (unanimous) LFA 14 June 23, 2017 5 5:00 Houston, Texas, United States Won the inaugural LFA Middleweight Championship.
Win 7–0 Jon Kirk TKO (punches) LFA 6 March 10, 2017 1 1:35 San Antonio, Texas, United States Catchweight (190 lbs) bout.
Win 6–0 Brian White TKO (punches) Bellator 162 October 21, 2016 1 0:23 Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Win 5–0 Jesse Grun TKO (punches) Valor Fights 37: Grun vs. Anders August 27, 2016 1 3:18 Cleveland, Tennessee, United States
Win 4–0 Dekaire Sanders Submission (rear-naked choke) V3 Fights: Sanders vs. Anders June 18, 2016 1 0:33 Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Win 3–0 Garrick James TKO (punches) Strike Hard Productions 42 May 14, 2016 3 4:07 Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States
Win 2–0 Demarcus Sharpe Decision (unanimous) SFC - Southern Explosion 1 October 20, 2015 3 5:00 Montgomery, Alabama, United States
Win 1–0 Josh Rasberry TKO (punches) Strike Hard Productions 40 August 22, 2015 1 0:40 Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States Middleweight debut.

[50]

References
  1. "Fight Path: Football at Alabama helped shape Eryk Anders' budding MMA career". MMAjunkie. October 31, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  2. "Fighter Page for Eryk Anders". tapology.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  3. Eryk Anders (@erykanders) (June 9, 2018). ""Ya boi got that brown belt"". Twitter. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  4. "Former Alabama linebacker Eryk Anders set to make UFC debut". AL.com. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  5. "Former Smithson Valley football star Eryk Anders now fighting for pay in MMA". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  6. "Eryk Anders College Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  7. "BCS Championship - Texas vs Alabama Box Score, January 7, 2010 | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  8. "No pay for 22 fights? Ex-football pro Eryk Anders explains his MMA start". MMAjunkie. August 21, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  9. https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/30666-eryk-anders
  10. Sherdog.com. "Eryk Anders MMA Stats, Pictures, News, Videos, Biography - Sherdog.com". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  11. Sherdog.com. "SHP - Strike Hard Productions 40". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  12. Sherdog.com. "SFC - Southern Explosion 1". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  13. Sherdog.com. "SHP - Strike Hard Productions 42". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  14. Sherdog.com. "V3 Fights - Sanders vs. Anders". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  15. Sherdog.com. "Valor Fights 37 - Grun vs. Anders". Sherdog. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  16. Sherdog.com. "Bellator 162 - Shlemenko vs. Grove". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  17. Sherdog.com. "LFA 6 - Junior vs. Rodriguez". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  18. Sherdog.com. "LFA 14 - Rivera vs. Sanchez". Sherdog. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  19. "Alessio Di Chirico out at UFC on FOX 25; LFA champ Eryk Anders to debut vs. Rafael Natal". MMAjunkie. July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  20. "UFC on FOX 25 results: Eryk Anders dominates, knocks out Rafael Natal in UFC debut". MMAjunkie. July 22, 2017. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
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  26. "MMADecisions.com". MMADecisions.com. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  27. DNA, MMA. "Eryk Anders treft Tim Williams tijdens UFC Fight Night Lincoln". mmadna.nl. Retrieved June 5, 2018.
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  29. "UFC Lincoln bonuses: Justin Gaethje earns fifth bonus in four fights". MMA Fighting. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  30. "Jimi Manuwa injured, Eryk Anders now fights Thiago Santos in UFC Sao Paulo main event". Bloody Elbow. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  31. "UFC São Paulo Results: Santos vs Anders". MMAFighting.com.
  32. "UFC Fight Night 137 bonuses: Charles Oliveira's submission record comes with extra cash". MMAjunkie. September 23, 2018. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
  33. Mike Bohn (October 1, 2018). "Jimi Manuwa vs. Thiago 'Marreta' Santos, Eryk Anders vs. Elias Theodorou added to UFC 231". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  34. Riggs, Drake (October 1, 2018). "BREAKING: Max Holloway vs Brian Ortega on for UFC 231 plus Jimi Manuwa vs Thiago Santos and Elias Theodorou vs Eryk Anders". BJPenn.com.
  35. "UFC 231 results: Holloway vs. Ortega". mmafighting.com. December 8, 2018.
  36. Lee, Alexander K. (February 23, 2019). "UFC 236 adds Eryk Anders vs. Khalil Rountree, Ovince Saint Preux vs. Nikita Krylov 2, more". MMA Fighting. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
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  40. Stephie Haynes (June 30, 2019). "UFC Minneapolis bonuses: Ngannou smashes dos Santos in POTN win". bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  41. Redactie (August 20, 2018). "Eryk Anders returns to the Middleweight division against Gerald Meerschaert during UFC Tampa". mmadna.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  42. Evanoff, Josh (October 12, 2019). "UFC Tampa Results: Eryk Anders Edges Out a Game Gerald Meerschaert". Cageside Press. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  43. "UFC on ESPN+ 30 adds middleweight clash between Eryk Anders and Krzysztof Jotko". MMA Junkie. February 19, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
  44. Nolan King and John Morgan (March 15, 2020). "UFC postpones three events amid growing coronavirus outbreak". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  45. Martin, Damon (May 1, 2020). "UFC reveals full fight cards for May 13 and May 16 events". MMA Fighting. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  46. "Eryk Anders vs. Krzysztof Jotko Results and News - UFC FIGHT NIGHT: Overeem vs. Harris - MMA Fighting". www.mmafighting.com. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  47. Alexander K. Lee (September 25, 2018). "Eryk Anders talks grueling UFC Sao Paulo main event: 'I've never been so exhausted in my life'". mmafighting.com.
  48. Solomon Crenshaw Jr. (July 27, 2017). "Former Crimson Tide football star Eryk Anders storms the UFC". alabamanewscenter.com.
  49. Simon Samano (January 4, 2018). "MMAjunkie's '2017 Under-the-Radar Fighter of the Year': A champion before joining UFC". mmajunkie.com.
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