I am a known Steve Erceg hater. I have no idea how he is ranked as high as he is. The win that got him a title shot was a KO over Matt Schnell who is literally t the chinniest guy in the division. Then the win that finally dug him out of a career death spiral was a close decision over Ode Osbourne who has the worst takedown defense in the division and had Erceg knocked stupid. So seeing him as a -400 favorite against someone as tough as Tim Elliott hurts my soul. But with that being said, this is a favorable matchup for him. Tim is very tough and a very good wrestler, but they wil have the exact same gameplan and unfortunately for the hater in me, I think Steve is the better grappler and more technical striker. Steve should win this fight, especially if he looks anything like the version of himself that fought Pantoja. If I'm Tim's coach I actually tell him not to wrestle, just get in this dudes face and create chaos on the feet… But a tiger cant change his stripes and Tim will wrestle which will give Erceg the fight he wants.

Tim Elliott

Tim Elliott is the definition of grit. He constantly comes forward and makes every fight dirty. He puts on tons of pressure has tons of volume and will stay in your face the entire time, even if he is on the wrong side of the exchanges. His striking is not technical but it can be effective for him because of his forward movement. His best asset is definitely his grappling. He moves really well on the ground and has submissions from everywhere. He is coming off the underdog win over Kai Asakura

Steve Erceg

People like to call Steve Erceg a striker, but the reality is that he is an accomplished wrestler who completed at a high level. I personally categorize him as a grappler and a slick grappler at that. His striking is quickly improving and he does have nice calves kicks with solid volume but he has a very wide stance with limited head movement. He moves very fluidly and seizes opportunities on the ground. He is coming off the bounce back win over Ode Osbourne where he was almost finished 6 times but still managed to get the takedowns and squeak it out.