UFC on FUEL: Where Do We Go from Here?

The nagging rehabilitation of current welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre will put him out of action for approximately 18 months.

By the time he steps back into the Octagon. UFC’s head honcho Dana White commented after last night’s UFC on FUEL debut that he expects interim champion Carlos Condit to wait for GSP instead of having a rematch with the surging contender Jake Ellenberger.

With a six-fight win streak in the UFC and victories over two former contenders, a Condit/Ellenberger bout would have been the easy fight to make. Now that this bout is off the table (for now), let’s take a look at where the stars of last night should find themselves in their next bouts.

John Albert

The bout between bantamweights John Albert and Ivan Menjivar was one of the best one-round fights in UFC history.

The action was back and forth and each man came close to finishing the fight. A loss in that battle is nothing to be ashamed of. Albert will be back in the Octagon soon enough, and the list of competitors who are in his way is fierce.

Prediction:
John Albert fights Jared Papazian in June.

Ivan Menjivar

WEC import Ivan Menjivar is in good company. Renan Barao and Michael McDonald are the only bantamweights who share Menjivar’s 3-0 UFC record.

In a division that is always hungry for challengers, Menjivar is only a couple of wins away from being in title contention. He will need to prove himself against another hungry challenger who is trying to carve out a name for himself in the UFC.

Prediction:
Ivan Menvijar fights T.J. Dillashaw in June.

Aaron Simpson

Winning a close fight is rough cause for any fighter to celebrate. Losing one can be heartbreaking.

Aaron Simpson needs to stay motivated and get back into the Octagon as soon as he can. After his grinder performance against Brad Tavares, I’m surprised that the UFC brass had enough faith in Simpson to put him on the televised card last night.

I think he earned the right to be there.

Prediction:
Aaron Simpson fights Clifford Starks in August.

Ronny Markes

Very few fighters have a victory over former No. 1 middleweight in the world Paulo Filho. Don’t be surprised to see Markes make a big impact during his UFC career.

Pulling off a decisive victory over a grinder like Aaron Simpson is an impressive feat, regardless of whether or not the fight was pretty to watch. The fight was too close to warrant a big jump in competition, but Markes deserves a challenge.

Prediction:
Ronny Markes fights the winner of Court McGee versus Costas Phillappou.

Dave Herman

Stepping up in competition is a major challenge for a lot of fighters. Some guys never get over the hump and remain gatekeepers for their entire careers. Some bounce back and wind up being legitimate contenders.

The most important thing for Dave Herman is to have an impressive performance in his next bout. In his fight with Jon Olav Einemo, Herman pulled out the victory in a close fight against mid-tier competition. Let’s bring him back down to the middle of the pack and see how well he does.

Prediction:

Dave Herman fights Matt Mitrione in July.

Stefan Struve

Losing to the big boys of the heavyweight division like Junior dos Santos, Roy Nelson and Travis Browne, but defeating fellow gatekeepers like Pat Barry and Dave Herman puts 6’11" Stefan Struve in a strange position.  

You don’t want to thrust him too far towards the top, but you want to give him the elevation that he has earned with his last two victories. Struve’s submission game is slick to say the least, but his stand up needs work. It’s trial by fire for the big guy until he learns to use his reach the way that he should.

Prediction:

Stefan Struve faces the winner of Cheick Kongo versus Mark Hunt.

Diego Sanchez

Last night, Diego Sanchez earned his sixth Fight of the Night award in a closely contested bout against Jake Ellenberger. Sanchez never stopped pushing the action, and he nearly stole the fight from “The Juggernaut” in the third round.

Now that he has lost the momentum he once had, he will need a big fight against a credible opponent next if he wants to get back on the right track. Typically, Joe Silva likes to pair a fighter coming off of a loss against another fighter coming off of a loss.

Prediction: 

Diego Sanchez rematches Jon Fitch in early summer.

Jake Ellenberger

Ellenberger will not be getting the rematch with Carlos Condit that many anticipated would come with a win over Diego Sanchez last night. That being said, he is not without options.

The recent announcement of Josh Koscheck versus Johny Hendricks is an exciting addition to UFC on FOX 3 in May. Koscheck is a perennial contender in a stacked division, and Hendricks is coming off of his earth-shattering KO of Jon Fitch.

When the smoke has cleared, the winner of Kos/Hendricks would be in place to claim a shot at the welterweight champion.

Prediction:

Jake Ellenberger fights the winner of Koscheck/Hendricks to determine a No. 1 contender to the UFC welterweight championship.