One of the prelims at UFC on FOX 14 is a three-round heavyweight bout between Konstantin Erokhin and Viktor Pesta. According to the current betting lines available at Several Bookmakers, Erokhin is a -340 favorite (bet $340 to win $100) while Pesta is a +280 underdog (bet $100 to win $280). MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened up Erokhin at -260 and Pesta at +180 and the betting public has come in on Erokhin. I agree with Erokhin being a sizeable favorite here as I think he wins this fight. Here’s why. Erokhin (9-1) is one of the top heavyweight prospects in MMA. The 33-year-old Russian is currently riding a nine-fight win streak on the European regional circuit with wins over the likes of Dave Huckaba, Richard Odoms, Brett Rogers and Sokoudjou. He is a power boxer with huge knockout potential, having taken eight of his nine career victories via T/KO. While he is only 5’11”, he packs a massive punch for his size. He has finished eight opponents inside the first round and the only man who made it the distance with him was Rogers, who is a tough heavyweight. Erokhin isn’t proven in the other areas of MMA and he has been knocked out once himself before back in his debut in 2012, but all things told he is one of the most promising prospects the division has seen in a while and even at 33 years of age he has the opportunity to make a sizeable impact in the UFC, and it all starts with a win over Pesta. Pesta (9-1) is a solid heavyweight prospect. The 24-year-old Czech Republic native — the only fighter in the UFC from his country — is 0-1 so far in the UFC with a decision loss to Ruslan Magomedov, but prior to his UFC debut was undefeated fighting on the European regional circuit. Pesta is primarily a grappler. He chooses to take his opponents down to the mat and get them in a mounted crucifix position and do damage from there. He has good submission skills (three career T/KO wins) and solid ground and pound (four career T/KO wins) and is overall extremely dangerous on the mat. His striking isn’t great, but it is improving and he showed some nice power against Magomedov, rocking him with a huge knee from inside the clinch. He also showed in the Magomedov fight that he has a good chin on him, although his striking defence left much to be desired. Pesta is definitely someone to keep an eye on going forward, but this fight against Erokhin is a tough matchup and unless he is able to get the takedowns and get this fight for the mat — which will not be easy — he is going to have to stand and bang with Erokhin, and that’s not a place anyone wants to be. I have been very impressed with Erokhin from the tape I have seen on him, and I expect his knockout streak to continue here with a devastating victory over Pesta. This should be an entertaining fight for as long as it lasts but I just think Erokhin’s power boxing attack will be too much for Pesta to handle. The line is steep for a UFC newcomer, but I believe it’s warranted, and I expect Erokhin to win this fight impressively with a knockout to make a statement in his UFC debut.
