4 Fights We Need To See After UFC Fight Night: Medic vs. Rodriguez

Uros Medic had a life-changing weekend.

The Serbian welterweight returned to the Octagon in the main event of the UFC's Saturday debut in Belgrade. With the hopes of a nation on his shoulders, he ended up picking up the best win of his career, knocking out his veteran opponent Daniel Rodriguez in just 30 seconds. It was fourth KO win in a row, and it transformed him from an exciting curiosity into a legitimate contender in his division.

There will be nothing but extremely tough fights for Medic from here. The top half of the welterweight top-15 represents the absolute pinnacle of MMA, and after his win over Rodriguez, that is where the Serbian now resides.

It's going to be very interesting to see what the UFC matchmakers decide to do with him next.

The same goes for light heavyweight contender Navajo Stirling, who also had a career-changing night on Saturday — even if it occurred thousands of miles from his home in New Zealand. Stirling, a training partner of Israel Adesanya and Carlos Ulberg, wasn't originally supposed to fight on the card, but stepped in to replace Bogdan Guskov against former champ Jan Blachowicz. He won the fight in brutal fashion, bloodying and stopping his legendary foe inside a round to stay undefeated.

He too will get nothing but the toughest tests from here on out.

Here are the fights we'd like to see next for Medic and Stirling, as well as matchup suggestions for two other big winners from Saturday's card in Belgrade.

Uros Medic vs. Leon Edwards

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With four straight knockout wins behind him, most notably defeats of Daniel Rodriguez and Geoff Neal, Uros Medic is now one of the top contenders in the welterweight division. That said, there are a few guys ahead of him in the queue right now, namely Carlos Prates and Michael Morales.

While Medic could conceivably be matched up with Prates or Morales from here, most fans are probably hoping those two will fight each other, given their momentum in the division. In that event, the best choice for Medic is probably Leon Edwards, who he called out post-fight on Saturday.

Edwards is a former welterweight champ, best known for his stunning, title-winning knockout of Kamaru Usman. However, he has recently fallen on hard times, with decisive losses to Belal Muhammad, Sean Brady and Carlos Prates behind him.

The former champ desperately needs to justify his place in the top-10 at the same moment that Medic needs another step up. It makes sense on that basis alone. While it may seem like a bit of a tough matchup for Edwards in light of recently results, don't forget what he's capable of at his best. He is a cerebral and measured striker with great cardio and very affective grappling to fall back on. While he could certainly get the Rodriguez treatment, he has all the skills to derail the Serbian's moment. That's what makes him the perfect opponent.

Navajo Stirling vs. Magomed Ankalaev

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Navajo Stirling's brutal first-round stoppage of Jan Blachowicz turned him into one of the top contenders in the light heavyweight division, but a title shot almost certainly isn't next—especially with his training partner Carlos Ulberg sitting on the throne.

While Stirling set his sights on Paulo Costa and Khalil Rountree Jr. in his post-fight interview, it seems like a better idea to match those two against each other. In that event, Stirling could be matched up with former champion Magomed Ankalaev next.

Ankalaev, who lost the belt to Alex Pereira last year, recently rebounded with a late stoppage win over Bogdan Guskov. The win put him back in title contention, but was tedious enough that he won't get the next title shot. With that established, let's match him up with Stirling next. He has the grappling, cardio, and fight IQ to give the undefeated New Zealander his toughest test to date. If Stirling passes that test, a title shot would almost certainly be next.

Aleksandar Rakic vs. Brando Pericic

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Aleksandar Rakic was once one of the top contenders in the light heavyweight division, but as of Saturday, had not won a fight since 2021. That finally changed in Belgrade, when he picked up a somewhat slow but ultimately impressive decision win over Marcin Tybura in his first fight as a heavyweight.

The win over Tybura will launch Rakic right into the heavyweight top-15, and given how new he is in the division, there's nothing but fresh matchups for him from here. He could justifiably be matched up with just about anybody outside the top-5, but our pick is Brando Pericic.

Australia's Pericic is a new face in the UFC, but after three-straight knockout wins, is already ranked No. 12 in the Meta AI heavyweight rankings. That's right around where Rakic is likely to land when the rankings are updated, so it makes sense to match them up against each other from here.

It would also be a good opportunity for both men to answer some important questions. Rakic would have the chance to prove he can handle a heavyweight with real, fight-ending power, while Pericic would have an opportunity to test himself against a truly high-level opponent with a ton of big-stage experience.

Tofiq Musayev vs. King Green

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Former Rizin Grand Prix winner Tofiq Musayev picked up his second UFC victory on Saturday, knocking out Ludovit Klein in a notable upset in the lightweight division.

In his post-fight interview, the Azerbaijani striking specialist called for a fight with a ranked opponent. While he definitely gets some extra credit for his accomplishments outside the UFC, his doing so felt a bit premature, as he's still just 2-1 in the Octagon.

Instead of sending him right into the top-15, how about matching up with King Green?

Green is 39, and should be way past his prime, but has now won four straight fights, including a dramatic defeat of Terrence McKinney last month. While he's not currently ranked, he's right on the precipice of the top-15, and is also a big name in the division. In other words, he's the kind of Musayev would surely be happy to fight, even without a ranking on the line. The former Rizin star is also 36 years old himself, so he's pretty close to Green's age bracket. Book it.