Preview: UFC 287 Prelims

Heavyweights

Karl Williams (8-1, 1-0 UFC) vs. Chase Sherman (16-11, 4-10 UFC)

ODDS: Williams (-475), Sherman (+380)

It still may not translate into many wins going forward, but it has been nice to see Sherman turn a bit of a corner. Things never quite came together for Sherman in his first UFC stint. He flashed some tools as an athletic striker, but a lack of defense mostly doomed him to a lot of one-sided beatings. After he spent some time on the regional scene and pivoted to bareknuckle boxing, Sherman was one of the UFC’s first calls when it needed to fill out cards during the coronavirus pandemic, and from there, it was more of the same story. Sherman was a bit more diverse offensively but wound up once again getting undone by his lack of defense and one-shot knockout power. To make matters worse, Sherman seemed to obviously hit a mental wall once an opponent would not quickly go away, limping to enough flat losses that the UFC cut him once again roughly a year ago. However, that lasted only a matter of days, as the UFC needed a late-notice heavyweight replacement almost immediately and Sherman got tabbed. His third stint with the organization has seen him rebound a bit in his last two fights. He laid on enough offense to eventually knock out Jared Vanderaa in July, and while his last bout was a decision loss to Waldo Cortes-Acosta, it was good to see Sherman keep his composure and put together three consistent rounds. Even so, he still probably faces an uphill battle against a late replacement here. Williams’ fights thus far have not been particularly pretty, but they have been effective, as he mostly looks to swing his way into a grinding wrestling game. That is enough of a change-up at the heavyweight level to find consistent success, and this looks like another pairing where Williams can keep his approach up for 15 minutes without much issue. The pick is Williams via decision.

Jump To »
Curtis vs. Gastelum
Pinheiro vs. Waterson-Gomez
Pyfer vs. Meerschaert
Williams vs. Sherman
Godinez vs. Calvillo
Bahamondes vs. Ogden
Nuerdanbieke vs. Garcia
Amorim vs. Hughes