After a lighter than normal weekend of MMA last week due to the Fourth of July holiday in the United States, a full slate of competitive violence returns this weekend, starting on Friday night. A promotion that MMA fans are accustomed to seeing on Sundays gets the schedule underway.
Slightly less than four weeks removed from Fury FC‘s last card, the Texas-based promotion returns to San Antonio for what can only be described as a Texas-sized card. As the old saying goes, “Everything’s bigger in Texas.” How big is Fury FC 93, you ask?
Absent of any postponed fights ahead of Friday’s event, counting amateur and professional contests, Fury FC 93 will feature a whopping 22 contests on the slate. Live coverage of Fury FC 93 begins with the undercard on the Fury FC Facebook and YouTube channels at 6:30 pm ET/ 3:30 pm PT before moving to UFC Fight Pass with the main card at 9 pm ET/ 6 pm PT. If there are any fights left over from the undercard, they’ll take place as postlims after the main event.
Featherweights Clash in Nontitle Main Event Friday
Highlighting the big night of action is a battle at 145 lbs. in the Fury FC 93 main event. Lorram Esteves (8-2 MMA, 6-1 Fury FC) meets Alfred Walker (12-7 MMA, Fury FC promotional debut.) As with all main events in Fury FC, this one is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close the show.
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Fury FC 93 Main Event Fighter Comparison
Heading into the Fury FC 93 main event on Friday night, Lorram Esteves stands as the taller man at 5-foot-10, compared to the 5-foot-8 frame of Alfred Walker. The latter owns a 70 1/2-inch reach, with no such information accessible for the former at press time.
Currently, the oddsmakers have not made money lines available for Fury FC 93 on Friday night. If you plan on betting on this or any other fight happening this weekend in combat sports, please wager responsibly.
Esteves Gets New Adversary in Walker
Lorram Esteves enters the Fury FC 93 main event on Friday night having gone 4-1 in his last five fights. At present, he’s on a three-fight winning streak. Last time out, he scored a unanimous decision victory over Gabriel Macario (8-9 MMA, 3-7 Fury) on March 24. Macario is set to return next Sunday versus Darien Robinson in Fury FC 94.
Esteves was not, however, originally booked to fight Alfred Walker on Friday during the Fury FC 93 main event. Initially, he was to be paired up against Solo Hatley Jr. before he bowed out. Esteves discussed this change in opponent with Christopher de Santiago on the MMA Islander YouTube channel recently.
“Three weeks ago, I got the call [that] he [would] not be able to fight,” Esteves began. “They worked to find an opponent, so Alfred Walker jumped in. He’s a better fighter, I think it’s going to be a better challenge because he already beat Solo. For me, whatever guy I’m going to get there, I’m going to show what I’m made of.”
Esteves is a man who never took time off from training camp in the aftermath of his March victory against Macario despite nursing a broken foot. Will he score a fourth straight win on Friday night?
“Freight Train” Looking to Get Back in Win Column
In the other corner, Alfred Walker has gone 3-2 in his last five fights. Back in February, he saw a three-fight winning streak snapped at the hands of Elijah Johns (10-2, 1 NC MMA) in LFA 176.
That night’s contest was for the promotion’s featherweight championship. Much like in the OTX 9 main event, a key statistic to pay attention to is the difference in age between Esteves and Walker. Lorram Esteves is 30 years old, having just celebrated his birthday in late April, while Alfred Walker is 36 years of age.
Missing out on a championship is one of the toughest pills to swallow for any fighter, so it’s going to be interesting to see how well Alfred Walker will rebound on Friday night. At 36 years of age, could this be among his last fights in MMA?
Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction
The Fury FC 93 main event looks to be another strength versus strength affair. Walker is a knockout specialist, while Esteves’ ground game is something to behold due to his status as a jiu-jitsu practitioner.
Esteves Brutal With Guillotine Chokes
As previously stated, Lorram Esteves is extremely adept when a fight goes to the mat. One need look no further than his fight in the Fury Challenger Series last November vs. Luis Luna.
During the first round of a scheduled three, Esteves connected on a kick to the body to stun Luna. After Luna failed to finish an arm-in guillotine, Esteves landed a knee to the body.
From there, he took Luna down and applied the torque to finish his opponent with a guillotine. One takedown is all that it’s going to take in the Fury FC 93 main event.
Watch For Alfred Walker’s Fists
In the other corner, Alfred Walker can punch his way to a victory, like he did last year during his fight with Daniel Carey. Right after the command to fight was given in round one, Walker scored with a hook, which would prove to foreshadow what was to come later on.
Upon absorbing a kick to the body, Walker landed some knees in the clinch before the fight was momentarily halted amid an eye poke, although it wasn’t severe enough to warrant the fight getting called off. Not long after the fight’s resumption, Walker struck with a combination, including a straight left, to sit Carey down.
The referee stepped in and called an end to the fight after a brief burst of ground and pound shots. If “Freight Train” can land a vicious shot right on the button it’s a done deal.
Final Thoughts
Even though no title is at stake on Friday night, get your popcorn ready ahead of time. You may not have time to pop it during the Fury FC 93 main event.
Prediction: Lorram Esteves by First-Round Submission.
