With UFC on FOX: dos Anjos vs. Cerrone now officially in the books, the MMA community is left wondering what lies ahead. Will the UFC book Conor McGregor vs. Rafael dos Anjos? If not, who will Conor McGregor and Rafael dos Anjos fight next? Other inquiries lie in the heavyweight division too; Alistair Overeem finds himself on a three-fight winning streak, but is it enough to get a title shot?
Conor McGregor vs. Rafael dos Anjos?
After seeing RDA completely run through Donald Cerrone in 66 seconds – Conor McGregor vs. Rafael dos Anjos seems to be the fight to make. Not only will this be McGregor’s biggest test stylistically (more so than Frankie Edgar or Jose Aldo), but it will also give Conor the chance to see his future plans at lightweight in addition to getting a break from that grueling weight cut. While this fight has MMA fans licking their chops at what should definitely be an explosive, entertaining affair, it isn’t the only option for the UFC. There are other lightweight contenders in the mix between Anthony Pettis, Eddie Alvarez, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Tony Ferguson. However, there isn’t a clear number one contender out of these four. Pettis and Alvarez are scheduled to meet in Boston, Nurmagomedov has been out due to injury, and Ferguson just fought and beat Edson Barboza.
One thing to keep in mind though is that the UFC will, for sure, be looking to feature Conor McGregor on the July UFC 200 card. So if McGregor doesn’t fight RDA in his next bout and instead fights Frankie Edgar at featherweight (May or April), he will need an available opponent at lightweight for UFC 200 in July. If dos Anjos is forced to wait around for a lightweight contender to emerge, we may not see him fight until late April/early June – making it unrealistic for him to be ready in July for UFC 200. This makes me think the UFC will either book Conor McGregor vs. Rafael dos Anjos first so that way they aren’t reliant on waiting around for a true lightweight contender.
Nate Diaz vs. Donald Cerrone II
After seeing Nate Diaz’s surging performance against Michael Johnson, I think the UFC has to act quickly and intelligently. They could feed Diaz to Khabib Nurmagomedov to fuel Nurmagomedov’s title run, or they could book Diaz/Cerrone II. Diaz has momentum now, and a win over Cerrone could put him right in line for a title shot in mid-late 2016. For Cerrone, scoring revenge against Diaz will keep his head above water and keep his name relevant. This fight could easily headline a Fight Night, or could be solid co-main event potential. Plus, this is the type of match-up that Nate Diaz was talking about in the post-fight press conference: he wants to fight a fighter who will fight him in a fight!
Alistair Overeem vs. Stipe Miocic, Josh Barnett, or free agency
While I would love to see Alistair Overeem finally get a chance to pick up UFC gold, I don’t think he has earned it yet. The heavyweight division is in quite the mess – but it’s an exciting mess. We have two very important heavyweight collisions coming up: Andrei Arlovski vs. Stipe Miocic, and Ben Rothwell vs. Josh Barnett (both fights happening very soon). With a win over Stipe Miocic, Andrei Arlovski absolutely needs to be fighting for title next. But if Miocic wins, a booking between him and Overeem should happen. But let’s say Arlovski wins; we then shift our focus to the Rothwell/Barnett pairing. Overeem has a recent loss to Rothwell, so booking them again wouldn’t quite make sense – especially if Rothwell wins. However, Overeem vs. Barnett (if Barnett wins) would definitely be an appropriate match up to make. Worse case scenario, Arlovski beats Miocic and Rothwell beats Overeem – Arlovski should then fight for the title and I’d avoid a rematch between Overeem/Rothwell. This could result in Overeem fighting the loser of Velasquez/Werdum II, or perhaps a lower-ranked contender.
But there is a problem – Alistair Overeem just completed his UFC contract and plans to test the free market. While there isn’t much in terms of competing heavyweight markets, there is the question of Fedor Emelianenko in Rizin FC. While Fedor is already booked for Rizin’s New Year’s event, we might see Overeem sign up for a one-fight deal to face Emelianenko sometime in the late spring or early summer – I have no doubt Rizin could offer a lot of money.
Like I said, quite a mess, but it’s exciting. So many contenders with strong claims to the UFC belt. Out of all of them, I’d say Andrei Arlovski is the most deserving if he emerges victorious in his next fight. That being said, the winner of Rothwell/Barnett would have an equally-deserving resume. Even though many fans want to see Overeem pick up the ultra-elusive UFC heavyweight belt, he isn’t quite as deserving as the other contenders. This could push Overeem into testing the free market, but with Fedor Emelianenko being the only relevant name outside the UFC, expect Overeem to be back under the UFC’s banner in no time.
Charles Oliveira vs. Ricardo Lamas
Oliveira earned one of the best wins of his career last night when he submitted ranked lightweight contender Myles Jury in what was Jury’s featherweight debut. However, Oliveira missed weight by a large margin; this was the third time Oliveira has missed weight. While many want to punish Oliveira for his unprofessional negligence – the performances speak for themselves. I think Oliveira has the skill to really go far in this featherweight division, and a potential victory over someone like Ricardo Lamas could get him very close the belt. Lamas on the other hand is still a relevant name having beaten Diego Sanchez in his last bout. The winner of this pairing could be a solid #3 or #4 in the division.
