Julian Erosa isn’t the type of fighter who likes to sit around. He’s usually hovering around 3-4 fights per 12 month period, but the last year hasn’t been so busy. After fighting Melquizael Costa in 2025, he’s been on the shelf for about 10 months. Some of that is due to that very fight.
“I fought Darren Elkins in April of last year, and then I took a pretty quick turn around and fought Melky [Costa] at the Apex in May, and during that fight, I broke my orbital about halfway through that fight,” Erosa explained. “After it, I had to take about, I would say maybe three and a half to four months before I was fully back into training.”
However, it wasn’t just the injury. Towards the end of 2025, he started looking to get back in there. As he was itching to get back in there, some full cards and a temptation of a home fight held back another booking.
“I still wanted to get one in last year, but it kept getting pushed back a little bit, and then I heard about them going to Seattle, which Washington’s my home state,” he said. “I was born in Seattle, so if I have to wait till March 28th, I’ll do it if it’s for that Seattle card, and I would just cross my fingers and hope my management could get me on that card.”
Washington is more than just a home fight for Erosa, but the chance to complete a full circle moment for him. Having started on the regional scene out there, throwing down in the big arena is a dream come true.
“I started fighting on a regional scene in Tacoma, Washington, 10 minutes away from Seattle,” Erosa said. “So being able to fight under the UFC banner has been a dream of mine in Washington State, and on March 28th, it’ll happen.”
While he didn’t care who they put in front of him, a willing newcomer like Lerryan Douglas is a fun matchup. He not only likes that he isn’t going to have to go looking for a fight, but also thinks he has some hole to exploit.
“I think if the fight goes the way I think it’s gonna go, I think I can get a stoppage in the later of the second round or the third round,” he said. “Either a TKO or some sort of front headlock choke, because obviously that’s my favorite thing to do.”
You can catch his fight with Lerryan Douglas as part of the UFC Seattle main card. The fight card begins at 5pm EST this Saturday on Paramount+.
