UFC 167 Results: What's Next for the Winners
It felt like a special show. Maybe it was an illusion created by all the pre-fight pageantry in celebration of the UFC’s 20th anniversary, but UFC 167 felt special.
Sure, the production was almost entirely unchanged. It was the same UFC experience we’ve come to know and love, and yet it somehow felt different.
With all the storylines that developed during the event, I was left feeling as though I had just watched a WWE pay-per-view.
It’s just a shame there’s no Monday Night Raw equivalent to follow up on Saturday night’s soap opera. Instead, you’ll have to make do with my musings.
Read on for my thoughts on what’s in store for UFC 167’s winners.
Gian Villante
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It’s difficult to know what the ceiling is on Gian Villante’s potential. The 28-year-old New Yorker has no shortage of athletic ability, but his technical limitations force me to shy away from labeling him a prospect in the 205-pound division.
Training alongside UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman has perhaps led to some unfair comparisons between the two.
Long Island has been a hotbed for MMA talent recently, with Matt Serra and Ray Longo manufacturing studs the way the music industry manufactures hits.
Villante seems destined to remain on the undercard, however. Look for him to appear on the Facebook prelims for the foreseeable future, perhaps eventually earning a bump up to the televised undercard.
Sergio Pettis
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Sergio Pettis entered the UFC with a ton of hype behind him. Given that he is the younger brother of UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, such fanfare seemed inevitable.
Indeed, the 20-year-old could have spent his entire career holding opponents against the cage, and we’d still expect him to execute Guile-esque flash kicks.
While Tony’s—we’re tight like that—kid brother has demonstrated enormous potential, his narrow win over Will Campuzano may serve to lighten the bandwagon.
I expect the UFC to give Pettis time to develop, bringing him along slowly on the televised prelims.
A drop down to flyweight would be a wise move, as he looked undersized against Campuzano—who ordinarily competes at 125 pounds.
Jason High
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Jason High is a strange one. His colourful personality on Twitter perhaps leads people to believe that he’s more relevant than he actually is.
The 32-year-old has a lot of athletic ability and experience, but there’s no sign that his career is on an upward trajectory. Rather, his narrow win over Anthony Lapsley looked like more of what we’ve come to expect out of High: a solid but unspectacular fighter.
He is skilled enough to maintain his spot on the roster and always give good value on the prelims.
Being matched up with Ryan LaFlare or an up-and-comer like Kelvin Gastelum would make sense at this stage.
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Erik Perez
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The future looked bright for Erik Perez after he rattled off three straight UFC wins in 2012.
Unfortunately, a hiccup against Takeya Mizugaki put the brakes on the hype train. However, his dominant win over the teak-tough Edwin Figueroa at UFC 167 should get the fans talking again.
At 23, Perez is still young and has plenty of time to develop. There’s no need to rush him onto the main card just yet.
Expect the UFC to keep him on the prelims for now. A fight against the caddish Bryan Caraway could prove to be an interesting test for the proud Mexican.
Rick Story
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Rick Story has hit a few speed bumps during his UFC career.
After putting together an impressive six-fight win streak from 2009-2011, the 28-year-old fell into a period of inconsistency.
Given the tools at his disposal, it’s a mystery why he hasn’t established himself as an elite welterweight yet.
But after looking like a world-beater against the unorthodox Brian Ebersole at UFC 167, I expect Joe Silva to match up Story with someone on the fringe of the welterweight division’s Top 10.
Thales Leites
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Thales Leites has clearly improved since his first run in the UFC. His yawnsome title fight with Anderson Silva was, paradoxically, both his biggest highlight and lowlight in the organisation.
While the Brazilian still relies on his dominant ground game, he has worked diligently on his striking.
A win over the waning figure of Ed Herman may not make headlines, but it keeps Leites relevant.
Look for the UFC to keep the 32-year-old busy with a fight against someone from the middleweight division’s top 20. Lorenz Larkin, having fought recently himself, would be an ideal opponent for Leites.
Donald Cerrone
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Just when you think that Donald Cerrone is on the downside of his career, he goes and puts in a career-best performance against a beast like Evan Dunham.
“Cowboy” may never end up holding a UFC title, but he has to be one of the sport’s most reliably entertaining fighters. Almost without fail, he seems to give fans something to talk about.
It’s hard to say where he resides in the lightweight division, particularly with him hinting at a drop to 145 pounds.
If he stays at lightweight, a fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov would make a lot of sense—and be a ton of fun.
Ali Bagautinov
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In terms of emerging talent, Russia would appear to be the new Brazil.
Ali Bagautinov is one of many Russians who are making their mark on the sport of MMA.
The former world combat sambo champion was given a stern test by Tim Elliot, but we were still left feeling that he could have gone through the gears if necessary.
Despite his appearance on UFC 167’s main card, there’s no need to rush the progress of Bagautinov. At 28, he is just entering his prime and will likely only get better.
Look for him to be matched up against someone inside the flyweight division’s Top 10. A fight with Chris Cariaso would make a sweet addition to any card.
Tyron Woodley
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It’s unfortunate that Tyron Woodley didn’t really show up for his fight with Jake Shields, particularly after making a splash in his UFC debut.
His demolition of Josh Koscheck at UFC 167 has almost erased that loss from memory, though.
Joe Rogan made a sound observation about Woodley, noting that his cartoonishly muscular physique may not necessarily aid him in his hunt for the UFC welterweight title.
He is a huge 170-pounder and tends to fade late in fights, especially if he is engaged in prolonged grappling exchanges.
That being said, pitting him against the winner of Matt Brown and Carlos Condit seems logical, given the timing of the bouts. Also, a matchup against fellow UFC 167 winner Robbie Lawler could work.
Depending on what happens with Georges St-Pierre, Woodley may end up being part of a tournament to determine the new welterweight champion.
Robbie Lawler
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If you had told me a year ago that Robbie Lawler would win three UFC fights in a row including a win over Rory MacDonald, I would have laughed. Then, when I realised you were being serious, I would have slapped you for making such a ridiculous claim.
How did this happen? MacDonald was the heir apparent, and Lawler was the guy who could barely get a win in Strikeforce.
MMA is a funny game.
With Lawler now looking like a legitimate contender at 170 pounds, expect him to be a part of the UFC’s plans if St-Pierre takes a break.
A fight with Woodley, perhaps?
Rashad Evans
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After the loss to Jon Jones, we wondered where Rashad Evans had gone.
He was so absent in his fight against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira that calls were made to have Evans’ picture put on the back of milk cartons.
The panic is over, folks. I’m pleased to say that Evans was found alive and well at UFC 167. In his savaging of Chael Sonnen, the former 205-pound king looked to be back to his best.
The next step for him depends on whether he sees his future at light heavyweight or middleweight.
A drop to 185 pounds would be the quickest path to a title shot, which is why I expect him to compete there in 2014.
Georges St-Pierre
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Georges St-Pierre looked set to take a break from the sport, but Dana White seems to think that he'll be back in no time.
Whether he's back in the Octagon in a few months remains to be seen.
That being said, I think it would be a mistake to try and convince the longtime welterweight king to rush his return. Anyone who watched the UFC 167 post-fight press conference realises that St-Pierre has some personal issues to resolve.
It was uncomfortable to hear him explain that he “can’t sleep” and is “going crazy.” If he needs time to decompress, he should get it.
Some things are more important than climbing inside the Octagon to beat people up. Sounds crazy, I know.
Where the 170-pound division goes in his absence is hard to say, but you know that fans and media will be eager for a tournament.
But if he does come back in a few months, expect Johny Hendricks to be standing across the cage from him.
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