On Saturday night at UFC 174, Brendan Schaub faced off with the former UFC heavyweight champion, Andrei Arlovski. Schaub was ranked No. 14 coming into the fight, while Arlovski was making his first UFC appearance since 2008.
In a less-than-thrilling fight, Arlovski won by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28). When the next set of rankings are released, Schaub will likely drop out, but Arlovski will not likely take his place.
Schaub has plenty of options for his next fight, so let’s take a look at whom he could face next.
Soa Palelei vs. Jared Rosholt Winner
At the end of June, Soa Palelei and Jared Rosholt will face off in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 43. Schaub could also face the loser of the fight, but he would be a step up in competition for either of these two.
Palelei is 3-1 in the UFC, although his one loss came at UFC 79 in 2007. Since his return to the Octagon in 2013, he is 3-0 with three knockouts.
Rosholt is 2-0 in the UFC with two wins by decision. Palelei would likely make the more exciting fight for Schaub.
Shawn Jordan vs. Jack May Winner
Jordan will be facing off against May at UFC Fight Night 47 in mid-August. Jordan has dropped two straight fights by knockout—to Matt Mitrione and Gabriel Gonzaga, respectively. Overall, he is 3-3 in the UFC with three wins by knockout.
Jack May is just 0-1 in his UFC career, as he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Derrick Lewis.
A fight with Jordan could be really explosive, while a fight with May could be a little below Schaub at this point. However, Dana White was not pleased with Schaub’s fight on Saturday.
Stefan Struve
Struve has been out for over a year with a serious medical issue, but he is set to make his UFC return at UFC 175 against The Ultimate Fighter 10 alumnus, Matt Mitrione. Should Struve be successful, a fight against Schaub would be a good matchup.
Struve has four wins in the UFC by knockout and hasn’t shown the strongest chin. Schaub has three knockouts in the UFC and has also shown a suspect chin.
A fight between these two would almost ensure a big knockout.
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