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Sean O’Malley (c) vs Merab Dvalishvili – No question Merab is the next challenger, everything makes sense. O’Malley dethroned his teammate Aljamain, Merab refused to fight Aljo, but redeemed himself by thrashing Cejudo (after beating everyone else). Merab can’t be denied, Sean O’Malley won’t refuse, this is endless striking vs endless wrestling. Who wins?
Marlon Vera vs Petr Yan – Stylistically perfect. Rankings-wise, perfect. Vera vs Yan is a great bantamweight bout between two world class strikers who put on entertaining fights, but who are currently short of being immediate title contenders having both lost to O’Malley. The winner could find themselves in new realms of contendership, though, if Merab beats Sean.
Dustin Poirier vs Islam Makhachev (c) – Unfortunately it’s going to get political. The same man that manages Islam also manages Gaethje. While Gaethje would normally be front of the queue, I just think Dustin ends up getting the shot. The UFC booked Charles against Arman, Justin is set to fight Max, so I think the next step is Islam vs Dustin. All of it favours Ali Abdelaziz, of course, but I don’t really see an alternative route right now for a high level fight in (quote) June.
Benoit St Denis vs Rafael dos Anjos – RDA got out-wrestled tonight by Gamrot, BSD recognised what the levels are in MMA, and both end up in ideal spots to fight each other. BSD is the much younger man, very physical, but massively inexperienced. RDA is massively experienced, much older, but potentially less physical. Book this war. People will overlook it, but it will be awesome!
Michael Page vs Wonderboy Thompson – Wonderboy stopped Holland in R4. MVP won by 3RDEC. Realistically, they could have achieved the same feat in the same round, as Holland was getting hit time and time again. Since MVP is here, and ranked, and Wonderboy is still here, and still highly ranked, I don’t know how this isn’t the first choice. Two of the best at-range-strikers to ever do it.
Kevin Holland vs Elizeu dos Santos – Elizeu, in his last 3 fights, has beaten Benoit St Denis (admittedly a lightweight) and drawn with #15 ranked Rinat Fakhretdinov, a nightmare opponent stylistically. While Elizeu might need another win to get a ranked opponent, I personally think that’s unfair, and I want to see him fight Holland next. He’s more than good enough, but the fact he’s 37 might prevent him getting the fight. That would be a shame because that’s just politics in my view. Elizeu absolutely could win this fight right now.
Jack Della Maddelena vs Shavkat Rakhmonov – It was Jack’s call out, and I love it. I don’t like JDM’s chances, I thought he was losing tonight, but if he can finish Shavkat with another come-from-behind win, who cares?! That would be AWESOME. Shavkat either finishes Jack, or he will have to defend himself sooner or later!
Gilbert Burns vs Colby Covington – You know you’re getting this fight. Colby doesn’t do risk, he doesn’t take fights against up-and-comers, and the UFC won’t make him. So he’s going to fight Gilbert Burns in a battle of the also-rans.
Petr Yan vs Marlon Vera – (see above)
Yadong Song vs Umar Nurmagomedov – Look, we all know Umar is going to inch closer and closer to a title shot with minimal opposition, so giving him Song makes all the sense in the world. He probably will beat Song, somehow launch immediately into the top 3, and instantly challenge the champion. Just get it over with! We see you.
Curtis Blaydes vs Tom Aspinall (in England) – Let’s run this back! With Jones and Stipe tied up forever, and I’m voted for Gane vs Pavlovich in Paris, Curtis Blaydes is the most interesting narrative opponent for Aspinall’s interim title! He smashed Jailton after getting out-wrestled for the entire first round, and his power is NASTY. He is the only guy in the UFC who holds a ‘win’ over Aspinall – which must hurt Tom!
Jailton Almeida vs Sergei Spivac – Don’t rule out the young Moldovan, Spivac is just 29 and while he looks to wilt under heavy artillery from the massive behemoths of the UFC heavyweight division, Jailton Almeida is not that. But Almeida is a monster in terms of his wrestling and grappling, which is also Spivac’s forte. So you know, let’s run this, let’s see who gets back on the horse, and the winner of two of the most mobile heavyweights comes out smelling of roses IMO.
Maycee Barber vs Erin Blanchfield/Manon Fiorot Winner – Let me explain… This is a contender eliminator that seems a little crazy considering Blanchfield/Manon is already a contender eliminator, but the news broke this week that Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko were coaching TUF. That puts them out for an age, and they’re probably fighting afterwards, so… yeah. Unfortunately WMMA 125 is at the stage where they probably need to eliminate multiple contenders before anyone actually gets a shot. On the plus side, the winner is a bonafide beast!!
Katlyn Cerminara vs Natalia Silva – Katlyn edges further and further from a title shot, and now needs to defend her ranking against the surging Natalia Silva. If Silva can also get the job done, she probably joins the log jam at the top of the 125 division (see above). It’s a tough fight for Natalia, even tougher for her to shine in this spot, but hey. Let’s play this rankings game fairly and see what happens.
Mateusz Gamrot vs Dan Hooker – Let’s be honest, Gamrot isn’t getting a top 5 opponent after a gruelling but largely unentertaining victory over a very tough opponent. He’s beaten a lot of the guys beneath him in the rankings, though, with Hooker being an exception. Hooker deserves to fight upwards after 2 straight wins over Claudio Puelles and Jalin Turner, so I think this makes a lot of sense right now.
Rafael dos Anjos vs Benoit St Denis - (see above)
Kyler Phillips vs Rob Font – Font should defend his ranking after going 1-4 in his last 5, all against top opposition of course, but at 36, can he keep it going? Kyler Phillips having earned Pedro Munhoz’s #13 spot is a prime candidate for the chance to fight Font, who has great hands but might just be susceptible to Kyler’s all-round striking arsenal. Or he might just halt Kyler’s momentum and prove he still belongs – let’s find out!
Pedro Munhoz vs Aiemann Zahabi – Zahabi might be 36, but his win over Javid Basharat is no joke! That’s a statement from the Canadian, who has now won 4 straight. In terms of a ranking for Aiemann, it’s now or never, against a fellow veteran who has tested them all in his time. Munhoz may be slowing, but he’s still a huge handful and good everywhere. A great test for Aiemann to see if that streak has real legs.
Philipe Lins vs Ryan Spann – Lins moves to 4-0 in the light heavyweight division, and I’d like to see him face #11 Ryan Spann. Spann has lost 2 straight fights against Nikita Krylov and Anthony Smith but is a dangerous finisher who can sometimes get guys out of there early – just as he did to Ion in 2022. Lins, though, has earned a dangerous opponent and a chance to break into the top 15 in my opinion at the ripe old age of 38.
Ion Cutelaba vs Mingyang Zhang – Ion Cutelaba has lost 4 of his last 5, but a win over Tanner Boser probably ensures he keeps his job for just a little bit longer – but he needs to start winning, and quick! Mingyang Zhang is a huge unit from China who looks a kill-or-be-killed type, which could make for an extremely fun fight against Ion. Ion is tough as nails, so it will be impressive if Mingyang can get him out of there early!
Michel Pereira vs Chris Curtis – Michel Pereira appears to be finding life at 185 way easier than 170! That’s insane, and his striking and finishing ability is really starting to shine. It has to be a ranked opponent next, and #14 Chris Curtis looks ideal. Curtis can hang back and look to counter, which is exactly how he likes to fight, but good luck against Pereira!
Michal Oleksiejczuk vs Brunno Ferreira – Is it mean to line up another powerhouse Brazilian striker for Oleks? Nah, of course not, that’s the sort of firefight that gives Michal the best chance to shine! He’s beaten Chidi Njokuani, Shamil Gamzatov, and Modestar Bukauskas, so you can bet he wouldn’t back down against another aspiring heavy hitter!
Robelis Despaigne vs Martin Buday – Realistically this is a fast-track opportunity, yes, the same questions that existed pre-fight still exist now, but let’s see how many people this Cuban freight train can run through. Buday isn’t an easy opponent, yes, the guy is 4-1 in the UFC, but he’s kinda slow and Robelis might just be able to treat him in a similar way as he treated Parisian, considering none of Parisian’s experience counted at all! Although I completely understand people baulking at this one. To those, I’m sorry! I just didn’t want to pick Thomas Petersen or Lukasz Brezski… A UFC debutant would also be acceptable!
Josh Parisian – CUT! 3 defeats in a row, and just ran into a monster who finishes fights early… early in the fight.
Asu Almabaev vs Allan Nascimento – As far as two of the better grapplers outside the flyweight rankings go, this would be a doozy. The winner almost certainly gets someone in the #12-15 spots in my opinion, especially with a statement finish. Allan is super high level, so if Asu gets the W, that’s a major coup – if not, Allan rolls on and makes it 3 in a row. Allan does need to address the multiple pull outs, though.
CJ Vergara vs Brad Katona – That’s right, a fight at bantamweight, because no way does CJ deserve another crack at flyweight after 3 failed attempts. Katona is the TUF 31 winner but lost his first non-TUF fight back in the UFC against Garrett Armfield, which kinda shows you his level despite all that experience. I think they match up well, good opportunity for both to bounce back with both 3-3 in the UFC overall.
Joanne Wood – RETIRE! Full credit to Wood for going out with such a strong third and final round, that must have been exactly how she envisioned it. She also got the nod.
Maryna Moroz vs Luana Carolina – Where do you go from here when you’ve just been beaten by an unranked fighter who announced their retirement? Moroz just hasn’t quite put it all together, perhaps lacking the athleticism to go further. All I can really give her now is another unranked opponent in a sink-or-swim fight – and Carolina has beaten a decent grappler in Loopy Godinez and also recorded a split decision defeat to Joanne Wood. Seems about right, but only Luana is threatening to climb the ranks here in my opinion.
Marlon Vera vs Petr Yan – Stylistically perfect. Rankings-wise, perfect. Vera vs Yan is a great bantamweight bout between two world class strikers who put on entertaining fights, but who are currently short of being immediate title contenders having both lost to O’Malley. The winner could find themselves in new realms of contendership, though, if Merab beats Sean.
Dustin Poirier vs Islam Makhachev (c) – Unfortunately it’s going to get political. The same man that manages Islam also manages Gaethje. While Gaethje would normally be front of the queue, I just think Dustin ends up getting the shot. The UFC booked Charles against Arman, Justin is set to fight Max, so I think the next step is Islam vs Dustin. All of it favours Ali Abdelaziz, of course, but I don’t really see an alternative route right now for a high level fight in (quote) June.
Benoit St Denis vs Rafael dos Anjos – RDA got out-wrestled tonight by Gamrot, BSD recognised what the levels are in MMA, and both end up in ideal spots to fight each other. BSD is the much younger man, very physical, but massively inexperienced. RDA is massively experienced, much older, but potentially less physical. Book this war. People will overlook it, but it will be awesome!
Michael Page vs Wonderboy Thompson – Wonderboy stopped Holland in R4. MVP won by 3RDEC. Realistically, they could have achieved the same feat in the same round, as Holland was getting hit time and time again. Since MVP is here, and ranked, and Wonderboy is still here, and still highly ranked, I don’t know how this isn’t the first choice. Two of the best at-range-strikers to ever do it.
Kevin Holland vs Elizeu dos Santos – Elizeu, in his last 3 fights, has beaten Benoit St Denis (admittedly a lightweight) and drawn with #15 ranked Rinat Fakhretdinov, a nightmare opponent stylistically. While Elizeu might need another win to get a ranked opponent, I personally think that’s unfair, and I want to see him fight Holland next. He’s more than good enough, but the fact he’s 37 might prevent him getting the fight. That would be a shame because that’s just politics in my view. Elizeu absolutely could win this fight right now.
Jack Della Maddelena vs Shavkat Rakhmonov – It was Jack’s call out, and I love it. I don’t like JDM’s chances, I thought he was losing tonight, but if he can finish Shavkat with another come-from-behind win, who cares?! That would be AWESOME. Shavkat either finishes Jack, or he will have to defend himself sooner or later!
Gilbert Burns vs Colby Covington – You know you’re getting this fight. Colby doesn’t do risk, he doesn’t take fights against up-and-comers, and the UFC won’t make him. So he’s going to fight Gilbert Burns in a battle of the also-rans.
Petr Yan vs Marlon Vera – (see above)
Yadong Song vs Umar Nurmagomedov – Look, we all know Umar is going to inch closer and closer to a title shot with minimal opposition, so giving him Song makes all the sense in the world. He probably will beat Song, somehow launch immediately into the top 3, and instantly challenge the champion. Just get it over with! We see you.
Curtis Blaydes vs Tom Aspinall (in England) – Let’s run this back! With Jones and Stipe tied up forever, and I’m voted for Gane vs Pavlovich in Paris, Curtis Blaydes is the most interesting narrative opponent for Aspinall’s interim title! He smashed Jailton after getting out-wrestled for the entire first round, and his power is NASTY. He is the only guy in the UFC who holds a ‘win’ over Aspinall – which must hurt Tom!
Jailton Almeida vs Sergei Spivac – Don’t rule out the young Moldovan, Spivac is just 29 and while he looks to wilt under heavy artillery from the massive behemoths of the UFC heavyweight division, Jailton Almeida is not that. But Almeida is a monster in terms of his wrestling and grappling, which is also Spivac’s forte. So you know, let’s run this, let’s see who gets back on the horse, and the winner of two of the most mobile heavyweights comes out smelling of roses IMO.
Maycee Barber vs Erin Blanchfield/Manon Fiorot Winner – Let me explain… This is a contender eliminator that seems a little crazy considering Blanchfield/Manon is already a contender eliminator, but the news broke this week that Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko were coaching TUF. That puts them out for an age, and they’re probably fighting afterwards, so… yeah. Unfortunately WMMA 125 is at the stage where they probably need to eliminate multiple contenders before anyone actually gets a shot. On the plus side, the winner is a bonafide beast!!
Katlyn Cerminara vs Natalia Silva – Katlyn edges further and further from a title shot, and now needs to defend her ranking against the surging Natalia Silva. If Silva can also get the job done, she probably joins the log jam at the top of the 125 division (see above). It’s a tough fight for Natalia, even tougher for her to shine in this spot, but hey. Let’s play this rankings game fairly and see what happens.
Mateusz Gamrot vs Dan Hooker – Let’s be honest, Gamrot isn’t getting a top 5 opponent after a gruelling but largely unentertaining victory over a very tough opponent. He’s beaten a lot of the guys beneath him in the rankings, though, with Hooker being an exception. Hooker deserves to fight upwards after 2 straight wins over Claudio Puelles and Jalin Turner, so I think this makes a lot of sense right now.
Rafael dos Anjos vs Benoit St Denis - (see above)
Kyler Phillips vs Rob Font – Font should defend his ranking after going 1-4 in his last 5, all against top opposition of course, but at 36, can he keep it going? Kyler Phillips having earned Pedro Munhoz’s #13 spot is a prime candidate for the chance to fight Font, who has great hands but might just be susceptible to Kyler’s all-round striking arsenal. Or he might just halt Kyler’s momentum and prove he still belongs – let’s find out!
Pedro Munhoz vs Aiemann Zahabi – Zahabi might be 36, but his win over Javid Basharat is no joke! That’s a statement from the Canadian, who has now won 4 straight. In terms of a ranking for Aiemann, it’s now or never, against a fellow veteran who has tested them all in his time. Munhoz may be slowing, but he’s still a huge handful and good everywhere. A great test for Aiemann to see if that streak has real legs.
Philipe Lins vs Ryan Spann – Lins moves to 4-0 in the light heavyweight division, and I’d like to see him face #11 Ryan Spann. Spann has lost 2 straight fights against Nikita Krylov and Anthony Smith but is a dangerous finisher who can sometimes get guys out of there early – just as he did to Ion in 2022. Lins, though, has earned a dangerous opponent and a chance to break into the top 15 in my opinion at the ripe old age of 38.
Ion Cutelaba vs Mingyang Zhang – Ion Cutelaba has lost 4 of his last 5, but a win over Tanner Boser probably ensures he keeps his job for just a little bit longer – but he needs to start winning, and quick! Mingyang Zhang is a huge unit from China who looks a kill-or-be-killed type, which could make for an extremely fun fight against Ion. Ion is tough as nails, so it will be impressive if Mingyang can get him out of there early!
Michel Pereira vs Chris Curtis – Michel Pereira appears to be finding life at 185 way easier than 170! That’s insane, and his striking and finishing ability is really starting to shine. It has to be a ranked opponent next, and #14 Chris Curtis looks ideal. Curtis can hang back and look to counter, which is exactly how he likes to fight, but good luck against Pereira!
Michal Oleksiejczuk vs Brunno Ferreira – Is it mean to line up another powerhouse Brazilian striker for Oleks? Nah, of course not, that’s the sort of firefight that gives Michal the best chance to shine! He’s beaten Chidi Njokuani, Shamil Gamzatov, and Modestar Bukauskas, so you can bet he wouldn’t back down against another aspiring heavy hitter!
Robelis Despaigne vs Martin Buday – Realistically this is a fast-track opportunity, yes, the same questions that existed pre-fight still exist now, but let’s see how many people this Cuban freight train can run through. Buday isn’t an easy opponent, yes, the guy is 4-1 in the UFC, but he’s kinda slow and Robelis might just be able to treat him in a similar way as he treated Parisian, considering none of Parisian’s experience counted at all! Although I completely understand people baulking at this one. To those, I’m sorry! I just didn’t want to pick Thomas Petersen or Lukasz Brezski… A UFC debutant would also be acceptable!
Josh Parisian – CUT! 3 defeats in a row, and just ran into a monster who finishes fights early… early in the fight.
Asu Almabaev vs Allan Nascimento – As far as two of the better grapplers outside the flyweight rankings go, this would be a doozy. The winner almost certainly gets someone in the #12-15 spots in my opinion, especially with a statement finish. Allan is super high level, so if Asu gets the W, that’s a major coup – if not, Allan rolls on and makes it 3 in a row. Allan does need to address the multiple pull outs, though.
CJ Vergara vs Brad Katona – That’s right, a fight at bantamweight, because no way does CJ deserve another crack at flyweight after 3 failed attempts. Katona is the TUF 31 winner but lost his first non-TUF fight back in the UFC against Garrett Armfield, which kinda shows you his level despite all that experience. I think they match up well, good opportunity for both to bounce back with both 3-3 in the UFC overall.
Joanne Wood – RETIRE! Full credit to Wood for going out with such a strong third and final round, that must have been exactly how she envisioned it. She also got the nod.
Maryna Moroz vs Luana Carolina – Where do you go from here when you’ve just been beaten by an unranked fighter who announced their retirement? Moroz just hasn’t quite put it all together, perhaps lacking the athleticism to go further. All I can really give her now is another unranked opponent in a sink-or-swim fight – and Carolina has beaten a decent grappler in Loopy Godinez and also recorded a split decision defeat to Joanne Wood. Seems about right, but only Luana is threatening to climb the ranks here in my opinion.
