When Ian McCall and John Lineker square off on the UFC 183 prelims on Saturday, they should be fighting for a shot at the UFC flyweight championship. McCall has fought Johnson twice already, but a win over the hard-hitting Lineker would be enough to earn him another title shot. And for Lineker, a successful battle with the scales combined with a win over McCall would put him at the front of the line in the flyweight division.
Since the inception of the UFC flyweight division in 2012, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson has rode roughshod over the competition. He’s dispatched every contender the UFC has thrown at him and it has been against the very best fighters in the world at 125 pounds. He’s defended his title five times and is ready for his next challenge.
Lineker has won five of his last six fights and last fought in a thriller with Alptekin Ozkilic at Fight Night: Cerrone vs. Miller in July of last year. With the first attempt at a fight with McCall getting scrapped, Lineker wanted to move straight to the title fight and take on Johnson, but he should have to get past McCall to get the title fight.
Lineker also has to get past another issue that’s been impacting his UFC career: making the flyweight limit. He has struggled to come in at 126 pounds in the past, and in a title fight he would have to hit 125 on the dot, something he didn’t do the first time he weighed in for the McCall fight.
Lineker came up short in a unanimous-decision loss against Ali Bagautinov last February, who was the only truly top-level flyweight he had faced up until that point. He needs a win over a top-ranked fighter like McCall to fully establish himself as a title contender.
McCall’s 18-fight career was built on fighting top competition. He faced Johnson back-to-back in his first two appearances inside the Octagon, and had a close fight against Joseph Benavidez.
His run in Tachi Palace Fights consisted of wins over Jussier da Silva, Dustin Ortiz and Darrell Montague, who all have since made their way to the UFC. He took on Charlie Valencia and Dominick Cruz during his time fighting in the WEC cage.
He didn’t always win but he has always fought the best possible competition, and he is now on the verge of a third chance to dethrone Johnson. If he can get past the “Hands of Stone” of Lineker, he should get another five rounds with Johnson.
McCall and Lineker aren’t the only two flyweights on the hunt for a title shot, though. The Ultimate Fighter Season 14 winner John Dodson is currently on the mend from an ACL injury he suffered last year. He won the 14th Season of The Ultimate Fighter with a first-round TKO over current UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw in 2011.
He has gone on a 5-1 UFC run with his only loss coming in a close fight with Mighty Mouse in January 2013. He has stated recently he is looking for a UFC title shot, whether it comes against Johnson or Dillashaw.
Another fighter vying for a rematch with “Mighty Mouse” is John Moraga, who has won three of his four fights since losing to the champion in July 2013. Moraga is coming off of back-to-back submission wins, and the 30-year-old MMA Lab fighter seems to be honing his skill set in his second campaign towards the title. But he needs another win over a high-level flyweight to earn a second crack at the championship.
Johnson’s plate seems to be filled with the prospect of rematches with guys he’s already defeated. His next go-round in the Octagon might be against a familiar foe in “Uncle Creepy” Ian McCall, or against a new challenger in Lineker. Either way, the flyweight fight at UFC 183 should provide the division’s next title challenger.
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