There are 34 winners, just as there are 34 losers, and they all need a fight.
Joe Silva and Sean Shelby will never have been as busy as they are now, after seeing so many weight classes be reshaped by the goings-on in the octagon over the weekend.
For the first time ever, the UFC put on three consecutive nights of fighting and we’ve got two new undisputed champions to be considered alongside a whole host of new challengers.
We didn’t take the time to offer potential match-ups for every fighter who competed between Thursday and Saturday because nobody is really on tenterhooks to find out who Chris Gruetzemacher is going to face next.
Here are the names who we thought an Irish MMA fanbase would be most interested in matching up and these are our recommendations.
Conor McGregor v Frankie Edgar
Killing two birds with one stone here as the victors of Friday night’s and Saturday night’s main events match up perfectly for one another.
The other options on the table for McGregor are either a rematch with Jose Aldo or a lightweight title fight with the winner of Rafael dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone.
But we think the Irishman has a bit more business left at featherweight and what more does Frankie Edgar have to do to earn another title shot?
It’s a fascinating stylistic match-up and McGregor’s quick finish of Aldo doesn’t really lend itself to an interesting rematch right now.
Luke Rockhold v Yoel Romero
Another relatively simple one to pick as if Yoel Romero doesn’t get a title shot now, he never will.
We actually had his unofficial middleweight title eliminator scored for Jacare Souza on Saturday night but a win is a win and he’s earned the right to take on new champion Luke Rockhold.
Chris Weidman’s reign as 185 lb kingpin wasn’t quite long enough to warrant an immediate rematch so we’d like to see Romero get the chance before he turns 40.
It would be a meeting of the two best athletes in the division and would be interesting to see if the ‘Soldier of God’ is willing to stand with Rockhold.
Chris Weidman v Jacare Souza
This is really coming across like we’re just matching up winners with winners and losers with losers but who else makes sense for Chris Weidman right now?
He was beaten quite badly by Rockhold in the co-main event of UFC 194 and shouldn’t really get an immediate rematch while Jacare’s decision defeat is a little questionable so he should be given the benefit of the doubt with another shot to break into contention.
Nobody else in the top 10 really makes sense for either guy.
Demian Maia v Tyron Woodley
We’ve seen, and there was never any real doubt, that there’s nobody at 170 lbs who can counteract Demian Maia’s dominance on the mat.
So why not give the Brazilian one final test before giving him a title shot and he’s not really been in there against a power-puncher like Tyron Woodley.
Woodley was slated to face Johny Hendricks but an injury upended that and now ‘Bigg Rigg’ is facing Stephen Thomson so Woodley is in need of an opponent.
This one could set up the next title contender and we’d like to see how each guy deals with the very specific skill-set of the other.
Max Holloway v Jose Aldo
Max Holloway has earned a big-name fight. He’s gone 8-0 since losing to Conor McGregor in 2013 and continues to languish on the undercards of pay-per-views.
Chad Mendes’ pair of defeats in recent months probably don’t make him as good a candidate for Holloway to continue his momentum but why not throw ‘Blessed’ in there against the former champion who will be hungry to rebound from his 13-second knockout?
The Hawaiian is the only top 5 featherweight who Aldo hasn’t already fought and it would be the perfect narrative, an up-and-coming prospect against a supposedly over-the-hill champion.
The winner gets the winner of McGregor v Edgar. Make the fight!
Gunnar Nelson v winner of Kelvin Gastelum/Kyle Noke
He will have undoubtedly been over the moon for teammate Conor McGregor but Gunnar Nelson will still be harbouring some heartbreak after being dominated by Demian Maia at UFC 194.
There’s no shame in losing a grappling-heavy contest to the BJJ black belt and Nelson should get back on the horse sooner rather than later.
We’d have loved to have seen him up against Kelvin Gastelum but he’s got a fight booked for early January so we’ll switch it up and say the winner of Gastelum/Noke should get ‘Gunni’ next.
Both guys would test Nelson’s improved stand-up and Gastelum, in particular, would give Nelson the chance to shine once more on the mat if Gastelum decided to use his wrestling.
Chad Mendes v Al Iaquinta
Chad Mendes needs a change!
He’s very much going down the line of becoming that fighter who will always be just below the best level in a division… or Miesha Tate syndrome as I believe it’s called.
He’s lost three of his last four at featherweight and, granted he’s not a big 145 lber, but a change of scenery is needed and there’s nothing really captivating for him left at this weight class.
We don’t hate the idea of him moving up to give lightweight a go and he has a similar style and frame as Al Iaquinta who’s on a bit of a run.
He may as well try it because there’s only so long that people will care about a guy who can beat everyone between 10-5 at featherweight but is found out against elite level guys.
Tony Ferguson v winner of Michael Johnson/Nate Diaz
Tony Ferguson is legit!
He came through serious adversity against Edson Barboza to earn the most important win of his career and he’s not too far off a title shot.
The winner of Anthony Pettis v Eddie Alvarez is likely next in line but we see a Ferguson v Johnson/Diaz making sense as being the perfect contender eliminator.
Rose Namajunas v Carla Esparza
Rematch alert!
Rose Namajunas v Joanna Jedrzejczyk is going to be a war when they eventually meet but presuming the champ faces Claudia Gadelha next, we like the sounds of Namajunas v Esparza II.
Esparza became the first ever strawweight champion by beating heavy-favourite Namajunas last December and a rematch would give the 115 lb division its next challenger.
Paige VanZant v Aisling Daly
Namajunas’ domination of VanZant on Thursday proved that 12 Gauge had been slightly rushed to the top of the 115 lb division and, in all honesty, she was found out.
Our very own Aisling Daly has spoken before about her belief that VanZant was being given an easy path in the UFC and why not allow Aisling the opportunity to vault up the rankings while giving VanZant the chance to get her feet back under her in the division.
Sage Northcutt v Joe Ellenberger
Will the hype train continue?
Joe Ellenberger has got the name, or surname at least, to make it seem like Northcutt’s getting harder tests as his momentum gathers traction.
Sage’s Achilles heel looked to be his defensive wrestling when he was taken down by Pfister in the first round so why not challenge him with Joe Ellenberger who is coming off a loss?
Artem Lobov v Sam Sicilia
There’s no doubt that Dana White is going to give Artem Lobov another chance in the UFC despite losing the TUF finale to Ryan Hall on Friday night.
He’s not going to get the fights he asked for, against Urijah Faber or Andre Fili, but a bout against a decent name isn’t the craziest notion.
Sam Sicilia against Lobov would be huge with the knockout power that both men have.
Ryan Hall v Tatsuya Kawajiri
It wasn’t a barnburner but Ryan Hall was deserving winner of the 22nd season of The Ultimate Fighter.
His ground game could well send him on a run in the UFC and while he’s not ready for a top name opponent just yet, a fighter like Tatsuya Kawajiri is just recognisable enough to generate interest.
