Going to try something a little bit different today. There were so many fights between solid, well known fighters from the London card that are going to be looking at some interesting fights their next time out. They weren't quit a big enough deal to carry a full post on their own or there just isn't enough to say about the fight as a whole, but I do have some thoughts. I figured I could compile all of them into one larger post and discuss what is potentially on tap for them whenever they return.
We'll just start from the top and move our way down. Muhammad Mokaev was exciting in his debut, but unfortunately we really didn't get to see him for all that long. He's been calling out Tim Elliot in the days since the fight and I think that may be a little fast. I always prefer a more methodical route to the top with incremental steps, so keep that in mind. I thought Cody Durden was an appropriate opponent for a debut and, given the state of the flyweight division, I think someone in the 16-20 range, just outside the rankings, is where I would like to see Mokaev fight next. I think someone like Ode Osbourne or Malcom Gordon could make some sense. I view Tyson Nam as being a little bit better than those two, but that is a fight I like as well. Jeff Molina would be a fun matchup, but I don't see the need to halt the momentum of a good prospect by having one of them lose. If they really want to give him a test, I wouldn't mind seeing a Tagir Ulanbekov fight, but that is the highest I'm willing to go for him next. Tim Elliot is a tough fight and has a ton of experience. I see no need to rush Mokaev at this time. I kind of like the Tyson Nam fight as a good balance of challenging him without pushing him too quickly.
The next fighter that I want to discuss is Jack Shore. I'm not sure how he really hasn't had a bigger fight yet, but I suspect that will change in his next appearance. That is no slight on Valiev, he's a really good fighter who is probably just outside the rankings in his own right, but not a name of high value right now. I would think the UFC would be looking to push both instead of matching them up against each other, but here we are. Shore has been talking about names like Raphael Assuncao and Ricky Simon and I think that range is about right. I think the UFC may be looking to have Simon fight up as well, so I'm not sure if that exact name fits, but that level of fighter is spot on in my mind. I think someone like Assuncao, Marlon Moraes, or Cody Stamman is what he's looking for next. I would expect he fights someone with a little more name value as well to help build his status. If they go away from that type of fight and give him a much tougher test against another younger, prospect type, they could look at Raulian Paiva, Kyler Phillips, Said Nurmagomedov, and Raoni Barcelos. If it were up to me, I would look at those veteran options first before I went for another young, tough fighter.
Up next is Paul Craig. As if this writing, the rankings haven't updated yet, but I am going to assume he jumps to the 9 spot in the rankings ahead of Krylov and Jamahal Hill. He's been talking about Anthony Smith, but I think that is a little too high of a jump. To me, Anthony Smith is in a position for a true title eliminator or number one contender type fight. There's 4 guys at the top beyond Glover and Prochazka in my estimation. Those are Anthony Smith, Magomed Ankalaev, Aleksandar Rakic, and Jan Blachowicz. I don't think Paul Craig is in that tier just yet, but I think he needs to be fighting up in the rankings. That sort of leaves 4 fighters to be matched up with each other in the form of Craig, Volkan Oezdemir, Dominick Reyes, and Thiago Santos. That does leave Jamahal Hill on the outside looking in, but maybe he can fight Krylov next. I don't think there's a wrong way to match those 4 up to be honest. I think Reyes is the key because he is the one who has the easiest path to a title shot due to his name value. He will probably be able to get the fight he wants and I think a fight with Santos is probably best for him right now. That gives him the highest ranked guy he can get and return to the title picture with a win. Oezdemir and Hill have been talking about each other, so that would leave Craig without a partner. We'll see exactly how all of this plays out, but I think both Oezdemir and Santos are the fights I would be most interested in seeing next for Paul Craig.
The next fighter is Ilia Topuria. His situation is a little bit interesting because I'm not 100% sure if he is going to return to featherweight or stay at lightweight. I don't like him nearly as much as a lightweight prospect as I do at 145 because he's just not that big of a guy. He isn't really even all that big for featherweight. He's basically the same height and reach as Aljamain Sterling, but fighting up 2 divisions if he stays at lightweight. He's been calling out Paddy Pimblett and I think Topuria would win that fight, but I don't expect to see it. We'll get into Paddy a little later, but I don't think Paddy is ready for that level of fight at all right now. If Topuria goes back to featherweight, I see no reason to not rebook the Evloev fight that didn't end up happening. If he stays at 155, I don't really expect him to get a ranked opponent next. I suppose Diego Ferreira is an option, but that isn't a matchup I'm super excited for just reading it. For me, Drew Dober, Alexander Hernandez, or Thiago Moises are sort of where I would insert Topuria for now. Maybe he can get someone like Joel Alvarez, but I can't imagine him getting a better opponent than that. I think the Dober matchup makes some sense if we can't get the Paddy fight. As fun as that would be, I don't expect to see it.
When it comes to Molly McCann, I'll keep this one short. She isn't particularly close to the title or even all that close to the rankings, but she's had a decent UFC career and is on a nice winning streak now. That was a phenomenal knockout and she's always a fan favorite, so I'm interested in seeing her get a bit of an opportunity here. I think a solid step forward would be a matchup with Gillian Robertson, JJ Aldrich, or Antonina Shevchenko. I'm not saying she needs a ranked opponent or anything like that, but I think a win over one of those 3 gets her closer to that type of fight.
I'll take the same, short approach with Gunnar Nelson. It was good to see him back after so long and I think he is in an interesting position to maybe fight a solid veteran in his next fight. Matt Brown and Bryan Barberena are fighting this weekend, so maybe those guys make someone sense and the timelines are aligned too. Maybe a matchup with Tim Means? There's also fighters like Alex Morono and Jake Matthews out there who are in about the range of opponent I'm interested in for Gunnar next. Court McGee is another veteran type fight who's name I didn't include before. If they're looking to get a little more hype behind it, maybe that's a matchup that interests Robbie Lawler? who knows. I'm not looking for anything super high level for him next and I think all of those options are possible and interesting.
The final fighter for this post is the one you all came for, Paddy Pimblett. He's such a unique prospect because there's where he lies as a fighter and where he's at as a star and those two don't align. He's already one of the most popular and talked about fighters on the roster and is extremely good for business, especially in Europe. Paddy down played the possibility of the Topuria fight and I think that was a smart decision. Paddy is simply not ready for that level of fight at this time. The UFC is going to have to try and balance Paddy's stardom with where he actually stands within the lightweight division. His standing with the fans has him needing big fights and high card placement, but his skills just aren't at that level right now. Paddy was hurt in the stand up again on Saturday and that is really concerning at this point. Paddy has been on wobbly legs with Luigi Vendramini and Rodrigo Vargas, who aren't crazy, high level strikers. He has some legitimate talent, but he's a long way from fighting any fights that are truly impactful in terms of how they effect the lightweight division as a whole. These might be really underwhelming, but for his next fight, I'm thinking someone in the range of Chris Gruetzemacher or maybe Devonte Smith. To me, anyone beyond that is just at a level beyond Paddy right now. I would pick him to lose to someone like Jim Miller, Nasrat Haqparast, or Terrance McKinney. To go down another tier, I think Jai Herbert and Mason Jones are tough fights for him as well. Ignacio Bahamondes is probably a tier above him and the worst possible matchup for Paddy so that won't happen, but even a Jamie Mullarkey fight I think is too much for him right now if they want to put him in a fight where he can be the favorite. His management called out Ottman Azaitar and, as much hate as that callout got, I think that is honestly the appropriate level of opponent for him right now. I really don't hate that fight at all and if I had to come up with another name of my own, maybe Michael Johnson? I don't know really. Johnson would be a veteran name for him to fight, but I think that is a really hard fight for him right now given how shaky he's been on the feet. I think the UFC is going to take things slow and there's really no reason for them not to. Paddy is already a huge star without a big name opponent, so they can give him a slow build as he continues to improve. I wouldn't anticipate an exciting name whenever they announce Paddy's next fight, whenever that may be.
What do you guys think? Leave your thoughts in the comments about who any or all of these fighters should get next time out. If you're so inclined, comment both the fight you want to see for a fighter and then a separate prediction for who you think they actually will fight. Also let me know what you guys think of this type of post structure. Is this something you would want more often for some of the not as impactful fights? Let me know. Thanks for reading. Have a good one.
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