Carlos Condit had the chance to reach the mountain top once more and secure another crack at the UFC welterweight title. All that stood in his way was a showdown with former Division I wrestling champion Johny Hendricks.
Although Condit stormed back in the final round, Hendricks’ wrestling proved to be too much, and Condit left the Octagon with a loss added to his record. The bout was entertaining and could be a Fight of the Year candidate.
It also likely means Condit won’t be taken out of “the mix” for title shots despite dropping two straight in the Octagon. His bout with Georges St-Pierre was entertaining, and he nearly capped off a huge comeback against Hendricks.
Now Condit will once again try to rise up the UFC rankings, but what fighter presents the best opportunity for him to do that?
The obvious match-making person would seem to pair up Condit and Nick Diaz. The two engaged in what became a strategic battle that saw Condit walk away with the decision victory.
This fight makes a lot of sense given both guys are coming off back-to-back losses, but who knows if Diaz will even be competing in MMA by Monday, let alone a few months down the road.
Another name that makes sense in terms of match-making is Martin Kampmann. Both fighters are coming off losses and are ranked inside the top 10. Kampmann also holds a split-decision victory over Condit from 2009 that I’m sure “The Natural Born Killer” would love to avenge.
Some other names I expect to pop up as future opponents for Condit are Nate Marquardt, Josh Koscheck and possibly Rory MacDonald. A potential match up with Marquardt would depend on how much the two have trained with each other, but I don’t foresee it being an issue given that Condit faced St-Pierre.
Kosheck is a big-name fight for Condit and would give “The Natural Born Killer” a high-profile bout to rebuild his reputation, as well as his place in the rankings.
I don’t expect the Condit-MacDonald rematch to be brought up as frequently, but if MacDonald is serious about avenging that loss in 2010, he may sign on despite Condit’s recent struggles. It doesn’t make much sense for MacDonald given the fact he’s only a fight or two away from a title shot, but so long as GSP is champion, we know MacDonald won’t be challenging for the title anyways.
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