4 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night: De Ridder vs. Allen

It's safe to say Brendan Allen has shaken up the UFC middleweight division.

The 29-year-old was back in action in the middleweight main event of Saturday's UFC Fight Night card in Vancouver, when he took on former ONE Championship titleholder Reinier de Ridder.

Allen wasn't supposed to be a part of the card, but he stepped in on short notice to replace De Ridder's original opponent, Anthony Hernandez.

Heading into the contest, De Ridder was considered one of the top contenders in the middleweight division and could have received a title shot against Khamzat Chimaev if he had won. Allen had other plans.

Despite some early adversity, the American exhausted the former ONE champ through Round 3 and 4, to the point that the fight was stopped between the fourth and fifth rounds.

It was a shocking outcome, and one that has completely changed the landscape at middleweight.

Allen wasn't the only big winner In Vancouver. Earlier on the main card, two Canadians asserted themselves as serious contenders in their divisions with hard-fought decision wins.

First up, Aiemann Zahabi picked up a split victory over Marlon "Chito" Vera to take another step toward a bantamweight title shot. Then, in the co-main event, Mike Malott asserted himself as a serious welterweight contender with an impressive win over Kevin Holland.

Of course, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows for the Canadian team. One of the other big winners of the night was French flyweight Manon Fiorot, who rebounded from a failed title bid opposite Valentina Shevchenko with a quick TKO win over Jasmine Jasudavicius.

Here are the fights we'd like to see next for Allen, Malott, Zahabi, and Fiorot.

Brendan Allen vs. Michael Page

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While Brendan Allen managed to dash Reinier de Ridder's UFC title dreams in Vancouver, it's unlikely he'll take the Dutchman's spots as one of the top contenders in the middleweight division. Not yet, at least.

He's been too inconsistent lately, with losses to Anthony Hernandez and Nassourdine Imavov still visible in the rearview mirror. That said, another couple of wins could change that.

Allen has definitely got options after his big win at the weekend, but a fight with Michael "Venom" Page is probably the best choice.

Page, a career welterweight, is in the midst of a surprising rebirth at middleweight, with wins over Shara Magomedov and Jared Cannonier behind him. Like Allen, he's well on his way to a title shot, but he needs a few more wins to get there.

It would be fun to see them fight on an upcoming pay-per-view—and find out who's ready for a fight with somebody in the top five.

Mike Malott vs. Gilbert Burns

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Mike Malott had a ton of momentum at the start of his UFC career, but lost a ton of steam with a shocking stoppage loss to welterweight gatekeeper Neil Magny.

It was hard to say what the future held for him after that defeat, but he's recovered quite well. In Vancouver, he picked up his third-straight win against Kevin Holland. It was arguably the most significant victory of his career in terms of the quality of his opposition.

The win will most likely push Malott into the top 15. That's great news for him, but he's still got a lot to prove if he's going to be considered a title contender at welterweight.

Let's see if he can take the next step in a fight with Gilbert Burns.

Burns, a former title challenger and one of the best welterweights of the last generation, has fallen on hard times, with losses in his last four fights. But he remains a tough test for all but the best welterweights, which makes him a perfect challenge for Malott right now.

Let's see if the Canadian can hit the next level, or if he'll stumble again like he did against Magny.

Aiemann Zahabi vs. David Martinez

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After his win over Marlon Vera in Vancouver, Aiemann Zahabi probably deserves a fight with somebody like Deiveson Figueiredo, Song Yadong, Cory Sandhagen, or Sean O'Malley.

However, it's more likely he is left to take a lower profile matchup as those four men—all well-established contenders—are matched up with each other.

Our pick for the Canadian, who has now won seven straight fights, is David Martinez.

Martinez is a bit of a step down from Vera, but the former Combate Global champion has won nine straight fights, including a huge win over Rob Font last time out.

He's on a similar streak to Zahabi, albeit with fewer quality wins. It makes sense to pair them up next. It should be a good fight, and it will be difficult to deny the winner an opportunity against a top-five opponent.

Manon Fiorot vs. Alexa Grasso

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Manon Fiorot could not have looked better than she did against Jasmine Jasudavicius in her first fight back after a failed title bid against Valentina Shevchenko.

The win cemented her as one of the division's best fighters and kept her firmly in the title conversation, which could get very interesting soon.

The title will next be up for grabs when Shevchenko defends against strawweight champ Zhang Weili at UFC 322. If she loses—a real possibility—Fiorot will again be in position to fight for the title against Zhang.

Unfortunately for the French fighter, a Zhang win is by no means certain, and she is also behind Natalia Silva in the rankings at present. In other words, she will most likely need to fight at least once more before challenging for the title again.

If that is the case, the best choice for her next fight is clearly former champ Alexa Grasso.

The Mexican is riding back-to-back losses to Shevchenko and Silva, but she remains one of the division's top fighters and will be keen to get back in the title hunt herself.

Grasso and Fiorot have been orbiting each other for years. It's time they finally made contact.