UFC on FOX 3 Results: What's Next for the Winners and Losers?

UFC on Fox 3 is in the books and there are some huge takeaways. There's also some big news coming out of the event as both Nate Diaz and Johny Hendricks earned title shots in victory. 

With the fights over and the fighters home, it's time to play fantasy matchmaker with the winners and losers on the night. Some of these matchups were made for the division and others were made because they are exciting. 

So without any further ado, let's take a look at the matches to make after UFC on Fox 3. 

Winner: Karlos Vemola

Karlos Vemola may not be the best fighter in the UFC, but he definitely has some power in his hands and a chin. After an unsuccessful run at light heavyweight, he made the decision to drop down to middleweight and try his hand against the fighters in that division. 

Though the win wasn't pretty, he picked up a needed victory over Mike Massenzio and is on his way to establishing himself at middleweight. 

I'd love to see him against someone like Court McGee, as I think that would be an interesting fight for many reasons, mainly because I believe Vemola's size will be a real test for Court. 

Winner: Roland Delorme

Roland Delorme weathered the early storm to pick up a huge submission win over fellow Canadian Nick Denis with a second left in the first round. It was a gutsy performance and made it very apparent that Delorme can take a punch. 

This actually kind of worries me because that kind of win could put it into his mind that he can fight a reckless fight and pull out a win instead of a smart one where he doesn't take unnecessary damage. 

From my point of view, bantamweight is wide open in the UFC, and Delorme vs. Mike Easton would be a great fight. 

Winner: Dennis Bermudez

I didn't expect Dennis Bermudez to win against Pablo Garza, which makes his dominant performance all the more surprising. He bodied Garza for three rounds and made him look like a complete amateur on the ground and feet. Those slams were ridiculous, and he was the first person in the UFC to completely dominate Garza.

With the win, Bermudez is now 1-1 in the UFC and may be put in a position where he's fighting people a little too soon. I'd like to see Joe Silva take his time going forward with booking Dennis and match him up against Eddie Yagin, who isn't ready to be considered a top fighter in the featherweight division. 

Winner: Danny Castillo

Danny Castillo has been a bit of a dark horse in the lightweight division. He has picked up some big wins on short notice and has slowly but surely become one of the better fighters in the division. Now 3-1 in the UFC with wins over John Cholish and Joe Stevenson on his record, he may be ready to take the next step up in competition. 

I'd love to see him face the winner of Rafael Dos Anjos/Kamal Shalorus. Both would create a stylistic matchup that would answer some more questions about the evolution of Danny Castillo and if he's on his way to becoming a top fighter in the UFC. 

Winner: Louis Gaudinot

Louis Gaudinot fought up in weight to get his opportunity to fight in the UFC when he entered The Ultimate Fighter. His first fight in the UFC wasn't that great, as it showed how small he truly was for the bantamweight division. Fortunately for Louis, he was given another opportunity when the UFC added the flyweight division and he won his first fight against a tough Brazilian fighter named John Lineker. 

With flyweight as open as it is, he could be one or two fights away from a title shot. While I'd love to see him fight John Dodson, it may be too soon for the Ultimate Fighter alums to square off. 

Winner: John Hathaway

John Hathaway came back from a year off to fight Pascal Krauss at UFC on Fox 3. Though he was out of action for over a year, he showed no signs of ring rust and dominated the German welterweight for three whole rounds. It will be a long road back to the top, though, since the welterweight division has changed in that time. 

I'd love to see him matched up with Paulo Thiago. It's an interesting fight and will test the two fighters, both of whom need to show if they are still ready to make a move to the top. 

Winner: John Dodson

Entering UFC on Fox 3, there was only one fight that I thought was a guaranteed win on the card. It was John Dodson over Tim Elliot. Instead of it being a totally one-sided fight, Elliot pushed Dodson for three rounds and forced the Ultimate Fighter winner to dig deep to win. I was impressed with Dodson because he overcame having a broken hand and still walked away with a victory. 

When he finally returns, I hope the UFC has more flyweights for him to challenge. If that's not the case, then I'd love for him to be matched up with the loser of Ian McCall/Demetrious Johnson. Those are two great fights and both will really change up the layout of the flyweight division. 

Winner: Michael Johnson

Did anyone think that Michael Johnson would look that good against Tony Ferguson? Maybe only the guys based out of the Blackzilian camp. It was the best Michael Johnson we've seen in the UFC and one that maintained his composure and didn't make the mental error that he has made in the past that has cost him victories. 

The future is bright for Johnson and if he continues to develop the way he has, we may be talking about Michael Johnson as a future lightweight contender. 

I'd love to see him matched up against the Anthony Njokuani, as it will be a great fight and one that will establish the winner in the lightweight division. 

Loser: Tony Ferguson

I don't want to call Tony Ferguson a loser because I thought that he looked good in defeat. The only problem is that he didn't have an answer for Michael Johnson's footwork and hand speed. The former Ultimate Fighter winner just wasn't able to get off first and was only able to land singular punches instead of his normal combinations. 

The one positive takeaway is that he showed everyone he has a ridiculous chin and won't mentally break when he's put in a position where he knows he cannot win without a knockout. That he continued to press forward is something he should be proud of. 

I'd like to see him matched up with John Makdessi. 

Winner: Lavar Johnson

Lavar "Big" Johnson is a mountain of a man. He's so much larger in person that it should have been pretty obvious that he has the power in his hands to put anyone on the planet to sleep. While his grappling remains suspect, his ability to walk through Pat Barry's leg kicks was awesome to watch. 

One thing that I can't get over is that Johnson continues to show that he's a great competitor who isn't looking to hurt his opponents. This is the second time he stopped punching a sleeping opponent before the referee stepped in. MMA needs more people like that, and I hope more fighters take a cue from Johnson. 

I said it in the lessons learned story, but I want to see him fight Mark Hunt. I don't care where or how, but that fight needs to happen. 

Loser: Pat Barry

One thing that Pat Barry reiterated constantly at the open workouts is that people are constantly negative whenever a fighter loses. So Pat, I won't be negative. I thought that Pat Barry showed great ground work and definitely has improved as a fighter. 

Pat needs to work on his striking defense. This is the second time that a bigger and stronger fighter has been able to walk through his strikes to deliver devastating punches. I'm sure those punches rocked him to the point that he was unable to really get back in his groove, but this is the second time he's been knocked out in his UFC career. 

I'd love to see him drop to light heavyweight if only because he won't be fighting guys with ridiculous power and reach. If that's not possible, then why not a rematch with Cheick Kongo? 

Winner: Alan Belcher

Alan Belcher almost had his career cut short when he suffered an injury to his eye. It was so bad that doctors advised him that he would never be able to fight again. If you paid attention to the MMA media, you'd have thought he was gonna have his career cut short again against Rousimar Palhares because of the leg locks. 

Instead, Belcher showed that not only is he one of the most dynamic strikers in the middleweight division, but he's also one of the most fearless. He dove into Palhares' guard and worked for his own submissions. Even when the submission specialist had a leg, Belcher kept his cool and survived. 

I'd love to see him matched up with the winner of Chris Weidman vs. Mark Munoz. Seriously, how great do those fights sound?

Loser: Rousimar Palhares

It was almost like Palhares was supposed to win the fight and no one told Alan Belcher that he would have a fighting chance. It made sense since Rousimar has been able to absolutely murder his past opponents' legs with his ridiculous leg locks. 

There's some big problems with Rousimar, namely that he's really not all that well-rounded. If he can't get the submissions, he is left in such a bad position that opponents have the ability to finish him with strikes from the top. This is the second time it's happened and I'm not sure anything can be done about it. 

A fight with Demian Maia intrigues me. Hopefully, Joe Silva is thinking the same. 

Winner: Johny Hendricks

Following the open workouts, it was said that Johny Hendricks would receive a title shot if he can get past Josh Koscheck. That's a lot of pressure to put on someone in the week leading up to a co-main event. It didn't affect Hendricks in the slightest, though, as he had a great performance against a tough opponent in Josh Koscheck. 

Between his wrestling and heavy hands, there's not many fighters in the welterweight division who have a path to victory against Hendricks. If he can add some defensive grappling and sweeps from his back, he could be the most dangerous fighter in the division.

It sounds like he's going to wait it out for the title fight, but that is always subject to change. Why not have Hendricks vs. Condit since Georges St. Pierre may not be returning this year?

Loser: Josh Koscheck

Josh Koscheck is incredibly tough and one of the most dependable fighters in the UFC. He's always willing to fight and even after losing to Hendricks, he was already asking for another fight. That's insane if you saw how swollen his right eye was at the post-fight press conference. 

Josh Koscheck is in a weird position in the welterweight division. At this point, he's so far away from a title shot that he may be better suited at another weight class. 

If he does decide to remain at welterweight, why not a rematch with Thiago Alves? I'm already stoked on that fight and I just made it up right now. 

Winner: Nate Diaz

Nate Diaz looked ridiculously good in the main event of UFC on Fox 3 against an incredibly tough opponent in Jim Miller. Unlike his brother, Diaz looks to have some real power in his hands, as he rocked Miller several times with big shots. The rear-naked choke finish was disgusting and one of the slickest I've seen in the UFC. 

He earned a title shot and with word that Frankie Edgar is still healing from a broken nose, I think that the UFC should match Diaz up with Henderson sooner rather than later. It's a fight I want to see and one that makes sense with the timetable. 

Loser: Jim Miller

Jim Miller fought 30 minutes away from his home at UFC on FOX 3 at the Izod Center. He came in as a "live dog" but was absolutely dominated from pillar to post by Nate Diaz. Miller was unable to get into his groove and was forced to fight Diaz's fight, which meant that he had to shoot for takedowns way outside of his normal range. 

I'm not so sure if he submitted to the choke or the fact that his tongue was stuck between his teeth, but either way, it was gruesome to watch. 

I want to see Miller face the loser of Guida/Maynard, which takes place at UFC on FX 4 in Atlantic City. Either way, we get an exciting fight.