4 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night on ESPN 59
The UFC returned to Denver, Colorado, on Saturday night, bringing 12 fights to fans in the Mile High City.
The top fight of the night was contested in the women's flyweight division, with former strawweight champ Rose Namajunas taking on streaking contender Tracy Cortez.
Cortez stepped in on short notice to replace the injured Maycee Barber and stood to make a huge statement by taking out a former champ. In the end, however, Namajunas reigned supreme, asserting herself as a serious flyweight contender with a clear-cut unanimous-decision win.
The co-headliner occurred at welterweight, with Argentina's Santiago Ponzinibbio taking on Russia's Muslim Salikhov in a clash of veteran strikers. It was a close fight, but Salikhov ultimately came out on top with a split-decision win.
Outside of the top two fights, the biggest winner of the night was clearly featherweight contender Jean Silva, who stopped Drew Dober with a horrendous cut in a short-notice lightweight fight. It was the Brazilian's second win in 14 days, as he also knocked out Charles Jourdain at featherweight at UFC 303 late last month.
Keep scrolling for the fights we'd like to see next for Namajunas, Salikhov and Silva after their big wins in Denver, as well as our pick for Cortez's next move after her short-notice loss.
Rose Namajunas vs. Maycee Barber
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Rose Namajunas lost her first fight in the flyweight division, suffering a decision loss to France's Manon Fiorot. That left many with the impression that she was undersized for the weight class, and that she would be wise to return to strawweight, but she decided to stay put anyway.
It's starting to look like she had the right idea. After losing to Fiorot, she rebounded with a decision win over Amanda Ribas, and has now followed that up with her decision win over Cortez in Denver.
With two wins behind her, Namajunas is closing in on a title shot. Unfortunately for her, there's a long line of contenders awaiting a shot at the belt, including Valentina Shevchenko and Fiorot—so she likely has some more work to do.
Our pick for her next fight is Maycee Barber.
Namajunas was originally supposed to fight Barber in Denver, but the plan fell through when Barber suffered an injury. The fight still makes sense.
Barber is ranked No. 4 at flyweight, and is riding six straight wins in the division. She's almost ready for a title shot herself, but like Namajunas, is behind the likes of Shevchenko and Fiorot in line.
Tracy Cortez vs. Erin Blanchfield
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Tracy Cortez's short-notice fight with Rose Namajunas didn't go the way she planned, but there's no reason to write her off as a serious flyweight contender just yet.
After all, she took the fight on just a few weeks' notice and had won 11 straight fights beforehand.
When she's ready to get back at it, she should be matched up with Erin Blanchfield.
Blanchfield was considered one of the top contenders at flyweight heading into 2024 but hit a speed bump when she suffered a unanimous-decision loss in a fight with Fiorot.
She'll soon be looking for the chance to get back on track and would most likely be willing to take a fight with Cortez, having suffered a split-decision loss to her in the Invicta cage in 2019.
There's some history between the two women, and it makes sense to set them up for a rematch as they look to get back on track.
Muslim Salikhov vs. Gabriel Bonfim
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Russia's "King of Kung Fu" scored one of the biggest wins of his career in Denver, sneaking past former welterweight contender Santiago Ponzinibbio with a split-decision win.
The victory separated Salikhov from a tough knockout loss to Randy Brown in his last fight and should set him up for a big opportunity next time out.
Our pick for the Russian's next Octagon appearance is a fight with Gabriel Bonfim.
Bonfim, from Brazil, was also in action at Saturday's card in Denver, defeating Ange Loosa by decision on the undercard. The win distanced him from a stoppage loss to Nicolas Dalby in his last fight—the lone loss of his career—and brought him to a fantastic 16-1 overall.
It remains to be seen if the 26-year-old Brazilian will ever turn into a serious welterweight title threat—his loss to Dalby was a tough blow—but after his Denver win over Loosa, he deserves another established name in the division, and a veteran like Salikhov is just that.
Jean Silva vs. Calvin Kattar
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Jean Silva's bloody stoppage win over Drew Dober was his second Octagon victory in 14 days, as he also smashed Charles Jourdain with an uppercut at UFC 303 in late June.
The win over Dober, which came under short-notice circumstances, was contested at lightweight, but Silva is best suited for the featherweight division and seems intent on returning to the weight class after his visit to Denver.
He has a 14-2 record that includes 13 finishes, and many consider the Brazilian a future title contender at featherweight—and maybe even a future champ. It remains to be seen if he can make good on that reputation, but after two stoppage wins over high-level foes in the span of two weeks, he's earned the chance to prove himself with a big step up.
We'd like to see him matched up with Calvin Kattar.
Kattar, ranked No. 9 at featherweight, has been a contender in the weight class for ages, but has never been consistent enough to earn a title shot.
He lost a decision to former bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling in his last fight and will soon be looking to bounce back. A fight with a rising contender like Silva seems like just the ticket for him, and it would tell us a lot about the future holds for both men. It also looks like an excellent fight on paper.
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