5 Fights We Need to See After UFC 283
UFC 283, the promotion's first pay-per-view of 2023, went down on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and there is plenty to discuss in the wake of the event.
In the main event, American knockout artist Jamahal Hill captured the vacant light heavyweight title with an exciting unanimous-decision victory over former champion and local hero Glover Teixeira, who retired from competition after the fact.
In the co-main event, Mexico's Brandon Moreno authored a decisive end to his four-fight rivalry with Brazil's Deiveson Figueiredo, finishing his nemesis with a volley of third-round strikes to reclaim the undisputed flyweight title.
Before the title fights got under way, Brazil's Gilbert Burns reasserted himself as a top welterweight contender with a first-round submission victory over the division's winningest fighter, Neil Magny.
Former strawweight champ Jessica Andrade also picked up a nice win on the main card, thumping Lauren Murphy to a unanimous-decision win at flyweight to the elation of her fellow Brazilians in the building.
It was a card that laid the groundwork for some seriously exciting matchup options. Keep scrolling for the fights we're hoping to see when the dust has settled.
Jamahal Hill vs. Magomed Ankalaev
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Jamahal Hill is the new UFC light heavyweight champion, but his reign is anything but undisputed.
The American was ranked No. 7 heading into his UFC 283 fight with Glover Teixeira and was arguably less deserving of a title opportunity than both Magomed Ankalaev and Jan Blachowicz, who battled to a draw in a failed attempt to crown a new champ late last year. His reign will also be under scrutiny until he fights Jiří Procházka, who was the champion until he vacated the throne because of a shoulder injury last year.
Needless to say, Hill has some work to do if he wants to legitimize his title reign.
In a perfect world, his first title defense would come against the former champ, Procházka, who had a pretty intense call-out for him after UFC 283. Yet Procházka's shoulder injury was serious enough that he was forced to vacate the title to recover, so it's unlikely he'll be ready anytime soon.
With the former champ on the sidelines, Russia's Ankalaev is probably the best choice for Hill's next fight. Blachowicz, a former champion, is also a good option, but he's had plenty of opportunities to fight for the title over the last few years, and it's nice to see other guys getting the opportunity.
Furthermore, Ankalaev looks like the tougher matchup for Hill on paper, as he's an excellent sambo grappler with big power in his hands.
Brandon Moreno vs. Matheus Nicolau
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After stopping Deiveson Figueiredo in the UFC 283 co-main event, Mexico's Brandon Moreno is once again the undisputed flyweight champion. Perhaps more importantly, he can finally move past his rivalry with the Brazilian, which spanned four fights and more than two years of their careers.
Moreno has plenty of options for the first title defense of his new reign. Brazil's Alexandre Pantoja, the division's No. 2-ranked contender, is probably the most likely of the bunch. He is riding wins over Manel Kape, Brandon Royval and Alex Perez, and he actually holds a 2018 decision win over Moreno, which gives their rematch a built-in revenge narrative.
That would be a great fight, but we'd rather see Moreno defend his belt against another Brazilian bruiser in Matheus Nicolau, who is currently perched at No. 5 in the rankings.
While Pantoja has won three straight, Nicolau has six straight, including four in the UFC. Those wins haven't come against weak opposition either, as all four of the men he's beaten in the UFC are currently ranked in the top 15. Nicolau also has a solid 19-2-1 overall record and has finished 11 of his pro wins—a pretty impressive stat for a flyweight.
We're not going to be disappointed if the UFC goes for Moreno vs. Pantoja instead—it's just not our first choice.
Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Dominick Cruz
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After losing his UFC 283 fight with Brandon Moreno, and relinquishing the flyweight belt as a result, Deiveson Figueiredo announced his intention to move up to the bantamweight division.
The Brazilian, who is arguably the most dangerous finisher in the history of the flyweight division, matches up beautifully with many of the top fighters at bantamweight, and as a decorated former champ, he is all but guaranteed a top-15 or even top-10 foe in his debut in the weight class.
Our pick is a fight with the seventh-ranked Dominick Cruz.
Cruz is the former bantamweight champ and arguably the best fighter in the division's history, which makes him a very cool opponent for a fighter as accomplished as Figueiredo.
It also looks like an interesting matchup on paper, as Cruz's wrestling, evasive movement and cardio look like great counters to Figueiredo's power, submissions and aggression.
The real selling point of this matchup, however, is that it's the best option available for Figueiredo, with many other top bantamweights booked up. Ecuadorian knockout artist Marlon "Chito" Vera, for example, would be a great welcome committee for the former flyweight champ, but he's booked to fight Cory Sandhagen. The same goes for Rob Font, who is set to fight Adrian Yanez.
So Cruz is our pick.
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Gilbert Burns vs. Colby Covington
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Gilbert Burns' first-round submission victory over Neil Magny wasn't exactly a shocker. While Magny is the welterweight division's winningest fighter, he has lost to nearly every top grappler he's fought, such as Demian Maia, Rafael dos Anjos, Michael Chiesa and Shavkat Rakhmonov, and Burns is arguably better on the mat than any of those men.
Still, his win over Magny should set him up for another big fight at welterweight, and if he has his way, it'll be a fight with a fellow former title challenger in Colby Covington, whom he called out in his post-fight interview.
We're here for it.
Covington has been loosely tied to a potential clash with undefeated contender Khamzat Chimaev. That's a great fight, but Chimaev badly missed weight the last time he was supposed to make the division's 170-pound limit and frankly doesn't deserve a fight with Covington after that. A vacation up at middleweight makes a lot more sense for him.
Having said that, Burns is a perfect opponent for Covington at this point. Both men failed to swipe the welterweight title when they had the chance, but have since rebounded from their losses to the former champ Kamaru Usman, with Burns defeating Magny and Covington beating Jorge Masvidal by decision.
Now that they're both back in the win column, it only makes sense to pit them against each other. It's a great fight on paper, and the winner would have real claim to another crack at the belt.
Jessica Andrade vs. Manon Fiorot
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At this point, it's abundantly clear that former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade can beat anybody in the flyweight division with the exception of the champion, Valentina Shevchenko.
The Brazilian finisher, who has also competed up at bantamweight, reaffirmed that fact on the UFC 283 main card, when she battered former title challenger Lauren Murphy to a unanimous-decision win that probably could have been stopped in the second or third round.
After that win, Andrade is right on the cusp of another flyweight title shot. She also remains in title contention at strawweight, where she once held the strap. Suffice it to say that she's got options.
Our pick is a fight with France's Manon Fiorot, who became the No. 1 flyweight contender with an impressive win over Katlyn Chookagian last year.
For a while, it looked like Fiorot might get the next crack at Shevchenko. After winning her first five UFC fights, she certainly deserves that chance.
However, that opportunity ultimately went to streaking Mexican contender Alexa Grasso, who will challenge Shevchenko at UFC 285 in March. That leaves Fiorot without a dance partner at the precise moment that Andrade is looking for another worthy foe.
It makes all the sense in the world, and the winner will be undeniable for a title shot.
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