Cortes-Acosta earned a UFC contract via Dana White’s Contender
Series in August and showed some potential as a bit more than the
typical heavyweight slugger. A former baseball prospect, “Salsa
Boy” showed enough athleticism and cardio to outmaneuver and
outlast his opponents, along with the requisite heavyweight power.
Cortes-Acosta made his UFC debut against Jared
Vanderaa just three weeks ago and came out victorious, but that
is about all there is to say in terms of positives. Cortes-Acosta
connected a lot over three rounds but also showed little urgency,
as Vanderaa constantly chopped down his legs. Perhaps he will show
a bit more here against Sherman, who is riding some career momentum
for the first time in two years. A raw but talented prospect upon
hitting the UFC in 2016, things never quite came together for
Sherman. He showed some striking potential but mostly gave up his
gains due to a lack of feel for his defense, resulting in a lot of
extended beatings where Sherman was too durable to quickly get
knocked out. After sliding out of the UFC in 2018, Sherman was one
of the first calls the UFC made when it needed to fill out some
cards during the coronavirus pandemic; and while Sherman was
obviously an improved fighter, things eventually wound up in much
the same place, with the added wrinkle of his obviously having some
mental struggles once things started to turn against him. Sherman
was actually released in April, but the UFC immediately needed a
late-notice replacement and brought him back into the fold. His
bout against Alexander
Romanov did not go particularly well, but Sherman managed to
gut through and score a third-round knockout of Vanderaa that
served as a huge point of catharsis. He could make it two straight
wins here. There is honestly less separating these two fighters
than there should be, and Sherman has a level of speed that could
make Cortes-Acosta pay for his lackadaisical nature. However, the
Dominican has not been knocked out yet, and the bet is that, over
three rounds, he can find something to suddenly turn things around
in what should otherwise be an ugly fight. The pick is
Cortes-Acosta via third-round knockout.
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