UFC Vegas 27 went down last night (Sat., May 22, 2021) inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, featuring a Bantamweight bout that saw Rob Font pick up a huge victory over former division champion, Cody Garbrandt, in the headlining act (see it again here). In the co-main event, Carla Esparza solidified her spot as the No. 1 contender in the Strawweight division by defeating Yan Xiaonan via second round technical knockout.
Winner: Rob Font
Who He Should Face Next: Sandhagen vs Dillashaw winner
The Bantamweight division is on hold at the moment due to the fact that division king, Aljamain Sterling, is on the sidelines with an injury. When he does return, he will likely rematch former champion Petr Yan in October or November. Cory Sandhagen and T.J. Dillashaw will face off in a couple of months, which could earn the winner a shot at the title. Of course, there is a lot that can happen from here until then, so it behooves Font to stay ready to step in for any of those fights. If everything goes as planned, I can see the promotion booking Font against the winner of Sandhagen and Dillashaw for a shot at the title, as well.
Winner: Carla Esparza
Who She Should Face Next: Rose Namajunas title fight
Esparza made an emphatic statement by stopping Yan Xianon in the second round of their Strawweight bout, giving her the first loss in nearly a decade. With that. “Cookie Monster” undoubtedly deserves the first crack at ending Namajunas’ second run as division queen. Ironically enough, Esparza defeated “Thug Rose” six years ago to become UFC’s inaugural 115-pound champion so she will be going in with tons of confidence.
Winner: Jared Vanderaa
Who He Should Fight Next: Ben Rothwell
Vanderaa got back in the win column with a strong showing against Justin Tafa. So did Rothwell, who choked out Chris Barnett with a guillotine choke, putting him back in the win column, as well. Thats why I would love to see these two big men throw haymakers against one another next. Rothwell has the experience edge on Vanderaa but “The Mountain” is game and I’m sure he’d accept the chance to take out a longtime veteran to up his stock.
Winner: Norma Dumont
Who She Should Face Next: Danyelle Wolfe
The women’s Featherweight division is extremely lacking with fighters, so trying to hard a suitable foe isn’t the easiest that hard to do. Up next for her, a fight against Wolfe seems appropriate since she was set to make her UFC debut against Felicia Spence, who Dumont defeated. The Canadian boxer only has one MMA fight under her belt, so there isn’t much tape on her to see just how she would do against a seven-fight veteran.
Winner: Ricardo Ramos
Who He Should Fight Next: Gavin Tucker
Ramos got back in the win column with a dominant win over Bill Algeo. Up next for the Brazilian should be a fight against Tucker, who came up short in his last fight against Dan Ige, losing via knockout just 22 seconds into the fight. Prior tp the defeat, Tucker was on an impressiver streak of winning 13 of his 14 pro fights. Ramos and Tucker just about have the same amount of UFC experience so one wouldn’t have the advantage over the other in that department.
Winner: Jack Hermansson
Who He Should Fight Next: Hall vs Strickland winner
Hermansson picked up a huge win by handing Edmen Shahbazyan his second straight loss after losing to current No. 1 contender, Marvin Vettori in his last outing. As for what could be next for the joker, he should keep an eye out for the winner of the upcoming bout between Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland, who are set to throw down at UFC 265 this August. Hermansson has yet to face either of those two men, so either one would be a fresh matchup.
For complete UFC Vegas 27: “Garbrandt vs. Font” results and play-by-play, click HERE!