Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
All the best, most interesting, and unquestionably coolest fights the UFC needs to book following their latest event on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
The final event of UFC’s ‘Fight Island’ month had some serious potential to stretch out into oblivion. But, while the main event may have slowed a bit, the whole card ended up as a pretty fantastic mix of high level, striking, grappling, and narrative importance. Robert Whittaker kept his spot among the middleweight elite with a narrow win over Darren Till. Shogun Rua closed the book on Lil’ Nog’s career, and Fabricio Werdum rode out of the UFC on a big win.
So, is Whittaker once again the top contender at 185 lbs? Does Carla Esparza have a path back to a title shot in the strawweight division? And how much is too much for Khamzat Chimaev in his quest to become champion of all the UFC?
To answer those questions – as well as a few other things – I’ll be using the classic Silva/Shelby fight booking methodology from the UFC of years past. That means pitting winners against winners, losers against losers, and similarly tenured talent up against one another. Hopefully, by following that model, a few of these bout ideas will actually make it off the page and into the Octagon. Now, let’s get to the fights.
ROBERT WHITTAKER
I won’t say I came out of this fight with more questions than answers for Whittaker, but he did struggle more than I’d have expected with Till’s ranginess. Almost certainly a big part of that was the Englishman’s improved counter-game—one that put Whittaker on the mat early and, by his own admission, had him reassessing strategy. Still, off that fight, I don’t see much reason for Whittaker to be instantly back in the title hunt. Especially not if Adesanya beats Paulo Costa. If Costa wins the belt that may be a different conversation, but for now, Whittaker doesn’t feel like a guaranteed no. 1 contender.
Instead, that call-out from Jack Hermansson last week is looking a lot more reasonable. If Whittaker can keep picking off opponents floating around the top 5, then at some point, his contender status will be undeniable. A bout with Hermansson would no doubt see him the favorite walking in. An opportunity for the ‘Reaper’ to build a streak, an opportunity for the ‘Joker’ to grab his own title shot; Whittaker vs. Hermansson could make either man a surefire contender.
DARREN TILL
Honestly, this was a much, much better fight than I expected out of Till. For just about the first time in his career he was dedicated to throwing on the counter when Whittaker came forward. The one time he really hesitated on that front, he got dropped. But he did enough damage with his shots the rest of the fight to scare Whittaker off of leading exchanges with confidence. It all made the fight a nail-biter down the stretch with neither man really willing to commit to offense. No matter the outcome, it much better establishes Till as a potential top contender at 185. It’s just too bad there’s no obvious bout out there waiting for him in the wings.
Instead he’ll have to look out for the other planned bouts between top-10 fighters. Could be the loser of Adesanya vs. Costa, or any combination of winner or loser coming out of Romero vs. Hall (I’d love the UFC try pushing Romero on Till, just to see what he’d say). But, with Derek Brunson vs. Edmen Shahbazyan right around the corner, how about Till vs. the winner of that fight? It’s a chance for Till to better assert his middleweight bonafides and a path for either Brunson or Shahbazyan to continue their climb toward contention. Till vs. the Brunson/Shahbazyan winner should give everyone a chance to make a point.
SHOGUN RUA
Not the cleanest win. (May honestly be the most controversial score of the trilogy.) Still, it was a solidly contested, close fight between two long-time legends. And while it may not be the kind of fight that would fill anyone with confidence that Shogun is about to go on a run to the belt, he’s also 5-1-1 in the UFC over the past few years. Might as well let him jump in against a few fighters clawing their way up the edges of the top 15 again. He could take on Misha Cirkunov, or Ryan Spann. But I think there’s one really solid, fun fight for Rua that should allow his veteran savvy to play a big role—while also being dangerous enough to make things thrilling. Nikita Krylov. Krylov is fresh off a surprising victory over Johnny Walker, but he’s had trouble really finding traction among the light heavyweight elite. Rua vs. Krylov should be a crazy, back-and-forth, thrill-a-minute fight. Make it happen.
FABRICIO WERDUM
Of all the things I’d love to see Werdum do (including stick around in the UFC for a rematch with JDS), I’d most prefer to see him go over to Bellator to get that fight with Josh Barnett that somehow never materialized over the course of both men’s historic (and often promotionally paralleled) careers. But word on the street is that he’ll probably end up over with Kadyrov’s Absolute Championship Akhmat. The Chechyn dictator has long been a supporter of Werdum’s career, and the former UFC champion would be a major get for his regional promotion. Look for Werdum vs. Ruslan Magomedov sometime in 2021.
CARLA ESPARZA
Not any kind of dominating win for Esparza, but it is one that continues to prove that she can’t be taken lightly by any prospect in her division that hopes to make a run at the belt. There were reports floating around that Dana White was considering this fight a potential title eliminator for Weili Zhang (given that Rose wouldn’t be ready to fight soon), but my guess is that really only was going to count for Rodriguez if she came out and got a big win. More likely for Esparza would be Tecia Torres or Jessica Andrade. With Joanna sitting on the sidelines, there’s not a clear next fight for Andrade right now, so why not Esparza vs. Andrade. The ‘Cookie Monster’ is looking for her path back to title contention again and beating someone like Andrade is likely to be exactly what achieving that dream will take. Carla Esparza vs. Jessica Andrade—give Esparza a shot to be a contender again.
PAUL CRAIG
This fight was kinda tailor made for Craig to show off his aggressive ground game. An opponent without a great defensive style and with a tendency to gas while pushing a high wrestling pace just seemed well set for Craig to work off his back. Lo and behold, he snatched the early triangle to run his UFC record out to 5-4-1. That could put him in line for a fight with Ryan Spann, Jamahal Hill, or Roman Dolidze. But I think a bout with Devin Clark feels like it’d be just perfect right now. Clark has been looking a lot more controlled and consistent lately. But, much like Antigulov has a tendency to want fights on the mat, and to get a bit sloppy with position. Can Craig stay dangerous against someone that won’t gas out quite so bad? Or will his lack of positional control just get him run over? Craig vs. Clark is a rock solid LHW fight at the edges of the top 15.
KHAMZAT CHIMAEV
As good as Chimaev’s performance over Phillips looked he demolished Rhys McKee with that much more ease. Picked the man up, set him down and beat him for almost two minutes straight. He’s got all the look and feel of a serious top prospect at 170 lbs. A future contender for the welterweight crown. And the UFC being the UFC, they’ll probably willingly give him a decent step up next time. Fights against Muslim Salikhov, Jake Matthews, or Warlley Alves all seem like they’d be reasonable (if still big) steps up. But it’s hard not to feel like they’re steps Chimaev is ready to take. However, there’s a fight I think would be a great next bout for Chimaev, and that’s against Claudio Silva. Much like I’m sure Chimaev will be, Silva’s a man nobody at 170 lbs wants to fight. And, given the Chechen-born Swede’s call out of Demian Maia, it’s a great mid point to facing that level of world class grappling. Chimaev vs. ‘Hannibal’ Silva should be a crazy grappling battle.
FRANCISCO TRINALDO
An absolute hell of a win from Trinaldo, who was getting badly, badly beaten in the second round by Jai Herbert. The fact that ‘Massaranduba’ came out in round 3, leaning on his low kicks and throwing his left hand like there was no tomorrow was a remarkable feat of grit and determination. The shot he landed to knock Herbert cold looked like it would have stopped a horse. Afterward, Trinaldo said he’d be moving up to 170 lbs and called for bouts against Donald Cerrone or Mike Perry. It seems unlikely he’d get either fight, especially not if Cerrone’s headed back down to lightweight again in the near future. Instead, I’d love to see Trinaldo take on James Krause or maybe Elizeu Zaleski. That Kruase vs. Trinaldo bout feels like an especially great matchup of crafty, gritty veterans who are used to showing up the youngsters around them. Trinaldo vs. Krause for some serious old man strength at 170 lbs.
TANNER BOSER
Two wins over just one month is a hell of an achievement for Boser, who darted pretty easily around Raphael Pessoa before landing the big hook that had Pessoa clutching his right eye and reeling. He called out Maurice Greene after the bout, citing and old feud revolving around a past bout that didn’t quite get made. And while I’m not all that sure the fight is necessary at this point, it may still be the best option he has with Pavlovich injured and Abdurahimov already booked. I’d say Marcin Tybura is also a pretty reasonable test, to see how Boser can do against another tough heavyweight used to out-lasting and out-working opponents. But, if Tanner Boser really wants to fight Maurice Greene, then the UFC might as well make it happen.
OTHER BOUTS: Alexander Gustafsson vs. Ben Rothwell, Marina Rodriguez vs. the Hill/Waterson loser, Gadzhimurad Antigulov vs. Dalcha Lungiambula, Alex Oliveira vs. Elizeu Zaleski, Peter Sobotta vs. Bryan Barberena, Rhys McKee vs. Gabriel Green, Jai Herbert vs. Devonte Smith, Jesse Ronson vs. Luis Pena, Nicolas Dalby vs. Lyman Good, Tom Aspinall vs. Sergey Spivak, Jake Collier vs. Maxim Grishin, Raphael Pessoa vs. Yorgan de Castro, Pannie Kianzad vs. the Avila/Montano winner, Bethe Correia vs. Sarah Moras, Ramazan Emeev vs. Song Kenan, Niklas Stolze vs. Jason Witt, Nathaniel Wood vs. Ricky Simon, John Castaneda vs. Ode Osbourne