The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale: Matches to Make for the Winners and Losers
Tim Elliott earned his shot at flyweight glory at The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale, but he came up short Saturday in his attempt at dethroning the best pound-for-pound fighter.
Demetrious Johnson retained his championship by unanimous decision. It was his ninth defense, just one shy of Anderson Silva's UFC record.
Also in action, TUF coaches and flyweight contenders Joseph Benavidez and Henry Cejudo went to war, and Benavidez edged out Cejudo. In addition, Sara McMann defeated a returning Alexis Davis to inch closer to being a top contender at 135 pounds.
Who's next for all these athletes? That's what we'll look at in the aftermath of the latest TUF finale.
Preliminary Fights Quick Hits
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Devin Clark def. Joshua Stansbury by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Devin Clark vs. Tyson Pedro
- Joshua Stansbury vs. Ion Cutelaba
Anthony Smith def. Elvis Mutapcic by TKO at 3:27 of the second round
- Anthony Smith vs. Vitor Miranda
- Elvis Mutapcic should be cut from the roster.
Jamie Moyle def. Kailin Curran by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Jamie Moyle vs. Jessica Penne
- Kailin Curran should be cut from the roster.
Dong Hyun Kim def. Brendan O'Reilly by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Dong Hyun Kim vs. winner of Scott Holtzman vs. Josh Emmett (Dec. 17)
- Brendan O'Reilly should be cut from the roster.
Rob Font def. Matt Schnell by KO at 3:47 of the first round
- Rob Font vs. Johnny Eduardo
- Matt Schnell vs. Jerrod Sanders
Ryan Hall def. Gray Maynard by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Ryan Hall vs. Renan Barao
- Gray Maynard vs. Jason Knight
Brandon Morenovs. Ryan Benoit
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Brandon Moreno def. Ryan Benoit by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Moreno surprised most in his UFC debut win over Louis Smolka and kept the momentum going with a narrow win over Ryan Benoit.
Benoit perhaps could rematch any one of his UFC contests due to the strange nature of all of them. Benoit always finds a way to make his fights interesting albeit with fouls or simply close contests. However, I would pit him against Geane Herrera in a "loser leaves UFC" type of bout.
Moreno deserves a ranked opponent now. After all, he's already beaten Smolka.
Give him Henry Cejudo and see what he can do. I'll touch on this matchup later when I get to the co-main event.
Alexis Davis vs. Sara McMann
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Sara McMann def. Alexis Davis via submission (arm-triangle) at 2:52 of the second round
Davis' return to the Octagon didn't end how she had hoped, but she didn't look awful. She did well off her back against one of the strongest fighters in the division. It was a big ask for a return fight.
A rematch against Jessica Eye (they fought in 2017) could prove the best fight out there for her. It was a close, split-decision win for Davis the first time. Eye has lost four straight but remains in the UFC's divisional rankings, which shows how shallow the division is still.
Davis and Eye both need a big win, and running the fight back is a good option.
McMann did herself a big service by finishing Davis. It renewed some hope in her viability as a contender. She's still more than one win away, but a win over Valentina Shevchenko would put her right there at the top of the heap. That's a fine bit of matchmaking.
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Jared Cannonier vs. Ion Cutelaba
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Jared Cannonier def. Ion Cutelaba by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Two of the lesser-known but important cogs of the light heavyweight division put on a fun tilt Saturday. Cannonier got the win, but it was far from easy.
Cutelaba should fight Joshua Stansbury next. Stansbury is far from the top of the division and should be a good chance for Cutelaba to look good. The UFC has to build Cutelaba back up and needs his presence in this thin division.
Cannonier's win likely puts him just outside of the Top 15. That's not necessarily a good thing as he still has plenty of growing yet to do, but the division is wafer-thin. Ilir Latifi should be on the short list of possible opponents for him.
Latifi is ranked No. 11 but not a real contender. He's a gatekeeper. Cannonier would be forced to grow a lot as a fighter from this matchmaking, and it will show just how far he has to go before challenging those above the Swede. And it's good for Latifi as well.
The bonus? It should result in a crowd-pleasing finish.
Jake Ellenberger vs. Jorge Masvidal
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Jorge Masvidal def. Jake Ellenberger by TKO at 4:05 of the first round
Ow. That's the result coming from this fight. Ow.
Ellenberger got his toes caught in the fence, and it resulted in the fight being stopped for a TKO. Masvidal did nothing wrong in following up with strikes. Ellenberger just had bad luck Saturday.
Only one name makes sense for Ellenberger—Rick Story. These two met on the regional circuit in 2008, and Story won. In all their years in the big show, this fight has never happened, and there couldn't be a better time. They are both coming off losses and in need of something significant.
That's the fight to make.
Masvidal is also deserving of a big fight. Many names come to mind, but none more exciting than Matt Brown, who meets Donald Cerrone on Dec. 10.
Brown (No. 14) remains ranked despite tallying back-to-back losses, and he will unquestionably engage with Masvidal. It's one of the better stylistic matchups on the books for both men and a great way to kick off 2017.
Joseph Benavidez vs. Henry Cejudo
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Joseph Benavidez def. Henry Cejudo by split decision (27-29, 30-26, 29-27)
Two of the top flyweights went at it in a quality contest, and the No. 1-ranked contender slipped by with a decision win. Joseph Benavidez made a strong claim for another shot at the belt with this victory.
Cejudo has now lost back-to-back fights but to the two best men in the division. Still, he needs to hit the back of the bread line. Awaiting him should be Brandon Moreno.
As previously mentioned, Moreno needs a big fight. This is his best-case scenario. All signs point to Cejudo having significant advantages over Moreno. However, this is MMA where anything can happen. Why not give Moreno a big chance in a matchup where Cejudo should get back in the win column? It's a win-win for the UFC.
Should Benavidez get a title shot, and if not, then who is next for Mighty Mouse? This is the biggest question coming out of the TUF Finale.
Despite Benavidez's two losses (September 2012 and December 2013) to Demetrious Johnson, he should get the next title shot. It's been three years and six victories for Benavidez. What else does he have to do?
Demetrious Johnson vs. Tim Elliott
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Demetrious Johnson def. Tim Elliott by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)
Elliott showed his toughness like he has against every elite fighter he has faced. And like in those previous contests, he lost.
The loser of UFC 207's Ray Borg vs. Louis Smolka fight would serve as the correct choice for Elliott's return bout. Elliott is still a fun, exciting and serviceable fighter. The UFC just needs to avoid pitting him against the elite of the division to get the most out of him.
Use him as a gatekeeper or find lower-level matchups that ensure excitement.
Johnson is one fight away from tying Anderson Silva's record. Who will it be against?
It's important to remember this lists the matches to make and not the match that will be made. Johnson may fight Wilson Reis if he wins at UFC 208 in January. It was a fight that previously fell through and is a new challenger for Johnson, who has beaten most everyone else. Jussier Formiga (No. 4) is also a new challenger sitting inside the Top Five.
But that's not the fight to make. The fight to make is the third installment of Johnson vs. Benavidez.
Benavidez is 12-2 in the UFC, with both losses coming to Johnson. The last loss was a violent KO. Still, you cannot deny Benavidez another crack at Johnson. He went 3-0 before the meeting with Johnson to determine the first UFC flyweight champion in a fight that was a close split-decision loss for Benavidez.
Three more wins earned him a second shot at the gold. Now he has six consecutive wins since that second shot three years ago. He's earned it. It's Benavidez's time for one more shot at Mighty Mouse.
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