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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) invaded San Antonio, Texas last night (Sat., July 20, 2019) to stage UFC on ESPN 4 from inside AT&T Center. In the main event, Leon Edwards outclassed Rafael dos Anjos after 25 minutes of action (see it) to earn his eighth straight win, While Walt Harris and Greg Hardy made quick work of Aleksei Oleinik and Juan Adams, respectively, knocking them out in the very first round.
Winner: Leon Edwards
Who He Should Face Next: Santiago Ponzinibbio
Ideally, a fight against Jorge Masvidal would be great given their past history, but since “Gamebred” has won two straight against top contenders via knockout, he is eying bigger and better things. For Edwards, not being in the top 10 is a disgrace to me, as he should have been there long ago.
While I expect his win over Rafael dos Anjos to get him there, it won’t get him Masvidal, so a fight against another streaking Welterweight like Ponzinibbio makes sense. Santiago is ranked above Edwards and is riding a seven-fight win streak, one less than Leon’s eight. The winner here could be in serious discussion for a championship fight, or at the very least surpass the likes of dos Anjos, Anthony Pettis, Stephen Thompson and Darren Till in the rankings. It’s a good matchup for both men and frankly, long overdue.
Winner: Walt Harris
Who He Should Fight Next: Alistair Overeem
Oleinik was ranked only on spot above Overeem, so I highly doubt Harris is going to look backward for a fight. Interestingly enough, “The Reem” also knocked out Oleinik in his last fight, so it makes sens in that regard. It will be a huge test for both men, and will give us an idea of where exactly Walt measures up with the biggest names in the division. Furthermore, Overeem can get a huge boost by taking out a up-and-comer eager to take his spot. Two big men who love to strike? What’s not to like?
Winner: Greg Hardy
Who He Should Fight Next: Daniel Spitz
Hardy picked up another quick knockout win, once again denying us the chance to see how his all-around game is, as he has still only gone past the opening round on one occasion. While getting quick wins is nothing to scoff at, I still need to see more of Greg before we start pitting him against the big dogs.
Plus, he’s fairly new to the Octagon, so he still has a ways to go, and I’m sure he doesn’t mind the slow progression. Spitz is a comparable foe, as he also has three fights inside the Octagon, going 1-2 including his previous loss to Walt Harris. It will be a good opportunity for Spitz to stop the Hardy freight train, while Greg can pick up another win against a formidable opponent to up his cred and resume.
Winner: Dan Hooker:
Who He Should Fight Next: Alexander Hernandez
Why not? Both men picked up huge wins on the main card last night to get them back in the win column after suffering technical knockout defeats in their previous outings. Hooker could potentially sneak into the top 15 following his destruction of James Vick (see it), while Hernandez is eager to climb the ladder following his win over Francisco Trinaldo after previously getting mopped up by Donald Cerrone. If these two young Lightweights want to get to the top of the mountain — which will be a long road — these are the types of fights they have to win.
Winner: Andrei Arlovski
Who He Should Fight Next: Blagoy Ivanov
Arlovski got a new lease on his UFC life by avoiding his fifth straight loss by doing enough to get the nod against Ben Rothwell. Still, “The Pitbull” won’t be getting a top 10 foe anytime soon, so a matchup against Blagoy seems likely. Ivanov has won back-to-back fights over the aforementioned Rothwell and most recently Tai Tuivasa.
Despite his slow start in his UFC career, Blagoy is formidable and has the credentials and skills to be a legit contender in the land of the big men. A test against a grizzled veteran like Arlovski would be a welcome site for him. Meanwhile, Arlovski taking out the former Bellator MMA champion will give him the confidence to keep it going at 40 years of age and 48 professional fights into his combat career.
For complete UFC “San Antonio” results and coverage click here.