The Apex Center in Las Vegas was the battleground for UFC Vegas 88, featuring a thirteen-fight card. Among the notable matchups was the bantamweight bout between Charalampos Grigoriou and Chad Anheliger.
Fight Odds: +140 Anheliger vs. -170 Grigoriou
Weight Class: 135lb. (Bantamweight)
Chad Anheliger and Charalampos Grigoriou stand on opposite ends of their career trajectories. This was the last bout on Anheliger's contract, adding extra stakes to the fight.
Grigoriou, entering as the favorite, is a younger fighter fresh off a win on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series, where he knocked out Cam Smotherman in the first round. As the sole Cypriot on the UFC roster, Grigoriou aimed to defeat the seasoned veteran, Chad Anheliger.
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Anheliger, however, is a proven competitor against UFC-level opponents, while Grigoriou is still gaining experience within the promotion. Anheliger dispatched Smith via guillotine choke in the second round, while Grigoriou lost to common opponent Josh Smith via UDEC. If Grigoriou could land his powerful and explosive strikes early, he might be the first to knock out Anheliger. However, the Canadian’s resilience, veteran savvy, and mat experience could prove decisive.
Grigoriou tends to tire as fights progress, while Anheliger has a history of comeback knockouts, submissions, and decisions. Chad Anheliger of Canada punches Charalampos Grigoriou of Cyprus in their bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on March 16, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Anthony noted that Anheliger seemed like a favorable draw in Grigoriou's debut as the veteran seemed to be on his way out. After hitting a stride late in his career and winning nine straight, Anheliger had now gotten bested in consecutive fights. He was moving up from flyweight now at age 37 no longer capable of making the drastic weight cut. While Anheliger could always make fights interesting by grappling and wearing on opponents, he would struggle to close the distance against an opponent like Grigoriou. We had seen fast hands on display before from Grigoriou and I expected him to tough up Anheliger here on the feet. Although I considered Grigoriou relatively unproven he still felt like the safe play here as I fade Anheliger. The resume for Grigoriou was not very good but he had a good build for this weight class and a great team around him at Serra Longo in New York.
Nick noted that Chad Angeliger was 37 years old, so if he was going to make any noise in the UFC he’d need to secure some wins in a hurry. He was 1-2 in the UFC, most recently falling via submission to Jose Johnson back in November of 2023. He was decent everywhere, with seven of his twelve professional wins coming via KO and three coming via submission, but he really hadn’t found any success against UFC level opposition. Charalampos Grigoriou was making his UFC debut here, coming off an impressive KO win over Cameron Smotherman in the Contender Series. He was 8-3 professionally, training at a quality gym via Longo And Weidman MMA. He was 31-years old and 8-3 professionally. He was on a four fight win-streak, all via KO, and he’d taken on a generally decent level of regional opponents. This was a very low level match-up, which makes it a difficult fight to predict. I did expect Grigoriou could work behind his jab here as he edges this one out on the scorecards.
Ultimately, Anheliger planned to show “how good I really am. I think he’s the right dance partner. He’s tough, he fights exciting, those are the fights that just get me going. It’s a key fight for the 37-year old Canadian, who will fight out his contract at UFC Vegas 88. He’s 1-2 to date, dropping back-to-back fights after a debut win over Jess Strader. “This is my last fight on the current contract, so 100%, I don’t pretend that’s not a real thing. I need to win this fight, and I need to win it decisively,” he stated. “But I preform under pressure. That’s when the best comes out of me. I know it will be in this fight as well. No denying, I need to win this fight to keep my job, I’m pretty confident about that. And I use that to fuel my training, and I’m not done, man.
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Fighter Statistics
Here's a look at the tale of the tape for both fighters:
Chad Anheliger
- Nickname: The Monster
- Birthplace: Consort, Alberta, Canada
- Fighting Out Of: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Team(s): Champion's Creed Martial Arts
Past Fights:
| Date | Event | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 2, 2024 | UFC Fight Night | Cody Gibson | Loss (Decision) |
| March 16, 2024 | UFC Fight Night | Charalampos Grigoriou | Win (Decision) |
| November 18, 2023 | UFC Fight Night | Jose Johnson | Loss (Rear Naked Choke) |
| September 10, 2022 | UFC 279: Diaz vs. Ferguson | Alatengheili | Loss (Decision) |
| February 19, 2022 | UFC Fight Night | Jesse Strader | Win (Counter Left to Ground & Pound) |
| September 7, 2021 | Contender Series 2021 | Muin Gafurov | Win (Decision) |
| November 30, 2019 | Rise FC 5 | Brady Hiestand | Win (Punches) |
| Craig Maclean | Win (Punches) | ||
| November 30, 2018 | Rise FC 2 | Terrence Chan | Win (KO/TKO) |
| February 23, 2018 | Modern FC 1 | Eric Wilson | Win (Decision) |
| November 10, 2017 | Wreck MMA: Gatineau | Randy Turner | Win (Submission) |
| March 17, 2017 | Hard Knocks 54 | Josh Smith | Win (Guillotine Choke) |
| December 2, 2016 | Havoc FC 11 | James Mancini | Win (Guillotine Choke) |
| May 28, 2016 | Saturday Night Fights 11 | Cory Chambers | Win (Punch) |
| June 13, 2014 | Hard Knocks 37 | Rick Pfeifer | Loss (Armbar) |
| January 17, 2014 | Hard Knocks 34 | Mike O'Neill | Loss (Rear Naked Choke) |
| October 26, 2013 | Rumble in the Cage 48 | Noah Ali | Loss (Triangle Choke) |
| June 15, 2012 | Hard Knocks 25 | Adam Imhoff | Win (Strikes) |
| January 20, 2012 | Hard Knocks 19 | Chantha Bun | Win (Doctor Stoppage) |
| May 27, 2011 | Hard Knocks Fighting | Marc Savoie | Loss |
| December 10, 2010 | Pure Fighting | Mitchell MacPhee | Loss |
Charalampos Grigoriou
- Nickname: The Ferocious
- Fighting Out Of: Long Island, New York
Past Fights:
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| Date | Event | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 10, 2024 | UFC Fight Night | Toshiomi Kazama | Loss (Triangle Choke) |
| March 16, 2024 | UFC Fight Night | Chad Anheliger | Loss (Decision) |
| August 15, 2023 | Contender Series 2023 | Cameron Smotherman | Win (Straight Right to Ground Punches) |
| February 10, 2023 | Combat FC 3 | Chris Disonell | Win (Leg Kicks) |
| April 15, 2022 | CFFC 107: Bilder vs. Carvalho | Joey Crisostomo Jr | Win (KO/TKO) |
| October 2, 2021 | CFFC 101: Nkuta vs. Diaz | Efren Escareno | Win (KO/TKO) |
| March 11, 2021 | CFFC 92: Trujillo vs. Nkuta | Christian Rodriguez | Loss (KO/TKO) |
| November 19, 2020 | CFFC 89: Hafez vs. Savoie | Josh Smith | Loss (Decision) |
| November 16, 2019 | CFFC 79: Sabatini vs. |
Anheliger's pre-fight interview sheds light on his mindset. He acknowledged the importance of the fight for his UFC future, stating, “This is my last fight on the current contract, so 100%, I don’t pretend that’s not a real thing. I need to win this fight, and I need to win it decisively,” he stated. “But I preform under pressure. That’s when the best comes out of me. I know it will be in this fight as well. No denying, I need to win this fight to keep my job, I’m pretty confident about that. And I use that to fuel my training, and I’m not done, man.
Anheliger also expressed excitement about the striking matchup, saying, “I just know he fights exciting, he fights hard. The striking match-up is what has me really excited, because I feel like I can get what I want out of a high-level striker. Get him to feel comfortable on the feet, because I still think I have the advantage there. But I have the advantage everywhere.” The includes in the experience department, with Anheliger noting that he has “almost double” the MMA fights that his opponent has.
Grigoriou secured an impressive win via submission over Daniel Barez. He is 30-years old and 15-3 professionally, with nine of those wins coming via submission. This is a linear fight in that Osbourne will likely win if he can keep this fight standing, but he’ll be in big trouble if Filho can take him down. I slightly prefer the grappler here in what should be a fun matchup for however long it lasts.
Early in his career, he struggled to get fights at flyweight even though it was an option; in the UFC, he feels there are better match-ups and more opportunities at bantamweight. “135 just has so much more to offer. For the couple pounds difference it is, and it really isn’t big for me, I don’t care, 35 or 25.
Anheliger is riding a four-fight win streak heading into UFC Edmonton. He’s 11-2 as a professional fighter (5-2 in UFC) and takes on Pedro Munhoz with hopes to make it five in a row at 135 pounds. Both athletes bring excellent striking; for Zahabi, it’s his counters and knockout power.
UFC Vegas 88: Charalampos Grigoriou vs Chad Anheliger PREDICTION
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