4 Fights We Need to See After UFC on ESPN 61
UFC on ESPN 61 went down on Saturday night inside the promotion's Apex facility in Las Vegas. It was an under-the-radar card, with just a few ranked fighters on the bill, but it produced some memorable action for the fans who decided to tune in.
The top spot on the line-up went to ranked heavyweight contenders Serghei Spivac and Marcin Tybura, from Moldova and Poland, respectively.
It was the second time the two heavyweights had met in the Octagon, with their first meeting occurring in 2020. Tybura won that contest by decision, but Spivac got revenge in style in the rematch, submitting his opponent with an arm-bar in Round 1.
The co-headliner was supposed to be contested at featherweight, with Chepe Mariscal taking on Damon Jackson, but the plan changed when Mariscal missed weight by several pounds. Mariscal won their catchweight fight by decision, moving onto a seven-fight streak in the process.
One of the other big winners of the night was No. 8 women's bantamweight contender Karol Rosa, who pulverized No. 11 contender Pannie Kianzad's leg en route to a unanimous-decision win.
Moroccan featherweight Youssef Zalal also won big in Vegas, submitting Jarno Errens with a first-round rear-naked choke to earn a performance bonus and put himself on a five-fight streak.
Keep scrolling for the four fights we're hoping to see in the wake of Saturday's card in Vegas.
Serghei Spivac vs. Jailton Almeida
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Serghei Spivac avenged a previous loss to Marcin Tybura in the main event of Saturday's card in Las Vegas, and rebounded from a stoppage loss to Ciryl Gane in the process.
The win isn't going to put him in title contention, but it was one of the biggest of his career, and it will set him up for another big test in the near future.
Our pick for his next opponent is Brazil's Jailton Almeida, who closed out 2023 as one of the top contenders in the heavyweight division but then had a 15-fight win streak derailed by Curtis Blaydes.
He has since rebounded with a quick submission win over Alexandr Romanov, and he should be ready to get back into the Octagon soon. In fact, shortly after Saturday's card ended, Almeida took to social media to call for a fight with Spivac specifically.
It makes sense given their recent results, and based on their positions in the rankings. Almeida is ranked seventh, and Spivac eighth. It's also a great fight on paper, as the pair are two of the division's best grapplers.
Chepe Mariscal vs. Sean Woodson
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After his decision win over Damon Jackson, Chepe Mariscal is now on a seven-fight win streak, including four-straight victories in the Octagon. He will be short on goodwill after missing weight for his fight with Jackson, but he is still closing in on the top of the featherweight division.
We'd like to see him attempt to take another big step toward the division's top 15 in a fight with Sean Woodson, who is known for his boxing and has won five of his last six fights.
The lone hiccup in that span was a draw against Luis Saldana, while he has beaten solid opponents like Youssef Zalal, Charles Jourdain and Alex Caceres.
Much like Mariscal, he is closing in on the rankings. Book the two rising featherweights against each other on a pay-per-view undercard or Fight Night main card, and we'll see who's ready for another step up.
Karol Rosa vs. Holly Holm
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Karol Rosa picked up a dominant decision win over Pannie Kianzad in Vegas, largely on the strength of her vicious leg kicks.
It was an important win for the Brazilian, who had lost two of her last three fights ahead of the event. She isn't in title contention just yet, but in a division as shallow as women's bantamweight, another big win or two will change that.
Rosa entered her fight with Kianzad in a three-way tie for No. 8 in the rankings, and she should take a step up now. Wherever she lands, there are some interesting options ahead of her, most notably a fight with former champ Holly Holm.
Holm hasn't fought since she was walloped by the debuting Kayla Harrison at UFC 300 in April, and she is clearly nearing the end of her illustrious combat sports career, but she seems to have a good fights left in her.
At No. 7, she looks like a good next step for the rising Rosa.
Youssef Zalal vs. Dooho Choi
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Youssef Zalal was one of the biggest winners of this weekend's UFC event, hence the $50,000 bonus he got for his first-round submission of Jarno Errens.
It was his fifth win in a row, a sequence that also includes a second-round submission against the always tough Billy Quarantillo.
Zalal's UFC career got off to a great start with five-straight wins, but his hype was totally deflated by three losses in a row. Now that he's put that skid behind him with a nice winning run, he's again looking like he could become a serious contender at featherweight.
Our pick for his next opponent is South Korea's Dooho Choi.
Like Zalal, The Korean Superboy came into the UFC with a lot of hype, only to lose his momentum with a few tough losses. However, he recently bounced back with an impressive knockout victory over Bill Algeo, and he will soon be looking for a chance to build a win-streak of his own.
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