Damien Anderson got the call for his UFC debut on just a few days’ notice, a short-notice opportunity that came loaded with obstacles from the start.
Beyond skipping a full training camp, Anderson had to move up from his usual bantamweight division to face featherweight opponent Ezra Elliott.
The challenge grew closer to fight night when Elliott missed weight, coming in at 147.5lbs instead.
Anderson agreed to proceed at the adjusted catchweight, taking 20% of Elliott’s purse as compensation, but still gave up a real size advantage.
Even so, Anderson would typically be favored against most UFC debutants given his elite grappling and unbeaten record on the regional circuit.
Elliott brought his own credentials into the fight, also undefeated with five submission wins to his name.
Anderson had the better of the striking in the first round, but Elliott landed several takedowns that may have swung the round in his favor had Anderson not nearly locked up a guillotine late.
Elliott built on that in the second round, adding more takedowns and controlling Anderson on the ground more effectively while working submission attempts of his own.
The third round followed a similar pattern, with Elliott continuing to break through Anderson’s takedown defense and stack up control time and submission looks, even without finishing the fight outright.
When the scorecards were read, Elliott had his hand raised.
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