Stock Up, Stock Down for UFC's Top Young Stars
The UFC is seeing a surge of young talent throughout most of its 12 divisions, including three champions in Rose Namajunas, Max Holloway and Robert Whittaker.
There are many others fighting their way up the ranks in the hopes of joining—or dethroning—those young champions.
But it's not all hunky-dory for the prospects trying to make their name under the bright lights of the UFC. Some of those fighters hit roadblocks and fail to realize their potential. Is it time to buy or sell the current crop of UFC's young guns?
Could gold be in their future?
Bleacher Report's Matthew Ryder and Nathan McCarter take a look at the UFC's most notable young talents and assess where their stock currently stands. After narrowing down the field to 10, here are the stock reports for each of these exciting up-and-comers.
Darren Till
1 of 10
Record: 17-0-1 (UFC: 5-0-1)
Darren Till got his shot to do something special on Sunday when he was given a headlining bout in his hometown of Liverpool, England, where he met top welterweight contender Stephen Thompson—and he took it.
In a 25-minute chess match, Till showed the world he's ready to make the jump into contendership. He played Thompson's game for the entire bout, and by controlling the pace and punctuating his patience with fits of power striking, he snatched one from the two-time UFC title challenger.
The week got off to a bad start for the 25-year-old, though, as he missed the weight by 3.5 pounds and was forced into a bizarre second weigh-in scenario where he had to be 188 pounds on fight day if he wanted to secure the fight. He made the weight and the fight went quite well once he did.
Leaving Liverpool, he's in the upper echelon of the division now and should easily be no more than one fight away from a title shot—if he even has to wait that long.
While some didn't love his performance, and others still outright felt he lost, the fact remains he's 17-0-1 in his MMA career and just beat the top contender in the weight class, leaving the cage without a mark on him. Not many guys can claim that position.
Stock: Up
—Matthew Ryder
Tatiana Suarez
2 of 10
Record: 6-0 (UFC: 3-0)
Tatiana Suarez dominated and won The Ultimate Fighter Season 23, but due to sagging ratings, not many fans took notice. She returned after injury more than a year later with a unanimous-decision victory against Viviane Pereira. Again, it was to little notice.
At UFC Fight Night 129 on May 19, she finally got a chance against another rising prospect—Alexa Grasso. Suarez made it look easy with a first-round rear-naked choke victory. The Mexican was out of her depth.
Fans have seen many decorated grapplers fall short of expectations, but occasionally there is someone who simply stands out and meets those expectations. Suarez looks to be that person.
Everything about her style makes her seem like a clear contender, and performances like that of her most recent outing show why her stock is exploding in 2018.
She didn't just look like a prospect. She looked like a contender. Suarez is likely only a couple wins away from getting her chance, and if she gets the call don't expect her to be that big of an underdog against the champion.
Stock: Up
—Nathan McCarter
Thomas Almeida
3 of 10
Record: 21-3 (UFC: 5-3)
Thomas Almeida was unstoppable in his first 20 pro bouts, posting an unblemished record and only going to decision once in the process.
When he arrived in the UFC, he posted four straight wins, including three performance bonuses and one grotesque stoppage win over respected veteran Brad Pickett.
In the time since, though, eventual champion Cody Garbrandt starched him badly to hand Almeida his first loss, and he has entered into something of a tailspin since. Jimmy Rivera beat him by decision, and Rob Font stopped him at UFC 220 earlier this year; all of a sudden. people aren't talking as much about the once-promising Brazilian.
It's not likely you've heard the last of Almeida, who's only 26 and has shown he can compete with the best bantamweights in the world. He's still floating in the back end of the top 15 and beating a similar talent later in 2018 will have him back on track.
Right now, though, his stock is down.
Stock: Down
—Ryder
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Zabit Magomedsharipov
4 of 10
Record: 15-1 (UFC: 3-0)
Perhaps it is time to go a bit more under the radar with a prospect. Zabit Magomedsharipov is heralded by the hardcore base, but he is lacking in casual recognition—for the time being.
Magomedsharipov got the UFC call by going on an eight-fight win streak where he finished seven of the outings. He extended that streak with his first two UFC wins. And then, in a decision win, picked up a Fight of the Night honor.
It is still too early to judge just where he projects in regards to the title picture, but he is surely making his way up the ranks at 145 pounds. And with his exciting fighting style, fans should begin to buy stock in Magomedsharipov's rise in the UFC.
Magomedsharipov is a bonus-check collector. The UFC needs to elevate his stature so the rest of the world can see what he is all about. The Russian could be a staple in the company to ensure high-quality action is to be had.
Stock: Up
—McCarter
Sage Northcutt
5 of 10
Record: 10-2 (UFC: 5-2)
After an ugly three-fight stretch in 2016 that saw him drop two fights by submission and look like he might never realize his potential—an admittedly hasty position to be taken given he was still only 20 at the time—Sage Northcutt has turned it around in his past two.
He's committed to training full-time, putting his college education on hold in hopes of taking full advantage of his physical gifts and pending athletic prime. He's training with Team Alpha Male now, and the results have been a slightly more evolved and settled approach in the cage.
He has picked up a pair of decision victories back-to-back, and he will look to put together his first three-fight win streak since 2015 when he returns to the cage in July against journeyman Zak Ottow.
You would have to say his stock is heading "north" right now.
I'm sorry, I'll show myself out.
Stock: Up
—Ryder
Sean O'Malley
6 of 10
Record: 10-0 (UFC: 3-0)
Sean O'Malley has major potential, both as a competitor and as a counterculture icon in the MMA context. He fights with a certain flash and enthusiasm that is bound to bring attention to him as he rises through the ranks, and his outrageous personality will only further draw people in.
A noted marijuana enthusiast and vegan, the rangy Montana native has been steadily improving since lacing up for his first amateur bout in 2013. He went 7-2 before going pro and hasn't lost yet in his 10 paid fights. In fact, he had only gone to decision once as a professional before he reached the UFC, accumulating seven stoppages.
The competition has gotten better at the sport's highest level, but O'Malley is still winning. He was injured in his UFC 222 win in March, but you can expect to see him back in action before long. People should be excited about that.
Stock: Up
—Ryder
Mickey Gall
7 of 10
Record: 4-1 (UFC: 2-1)
Mickey Gall's stock should be done for the facial hair he entered UFC 217 with last November, but perhaps we should come up with better reasons than that.
Gall got his call to the company through Dana White: Lookin' for a Fight. He looked impressive and was CM Punk's first UFC opponent. That fight went as expected. The UFC then put him against Sage Northcutt. Gall passed with flying colors again and looked like the prospect everyone hopes he would be.
The third fight, against Randy Brown, put a halt to all those conversations.
Gall's lackluster performance against Brown called into question just how high his ceiling is. He still has plenty of time and all the raw ability to achieve greatness, but now there is doubt surrounding where he stands as a potential UFC figurehead.
There's no reason to unload all of the stock in Gall, but the price definitely took a tumble in his last trip to the market. He talks a big game, and his next fight—whenever that may be—will go a long way to proving just how much he can back that up.
Stock: Down
—McCarter
Sergio Pettis
8 of 10
Record: 16-3 (UFC: 7-3)
Sergio Pettis is an interesting study, because it feels like he's been around for 100 years, but he's still astonishingly only 24. Perhaps due to some combination of his last name—an MMA staple for a decade now, thanks to older brother Anthony—and his 10 UFC fights already, it just feels like he's been around a long time.
In being around so long, there have been some ups and downs. He bounced between bantamweight and flyweight briefly before settling into the 125-pound class; and after being stopped in the first fight of his UFC flyweight run, he put together four straight wins. Unfortunately he met top contender Henry Cejudo at the end of 2017, who halted his momentum with a convincing decision.
That has sort of reset Pettis as a contender and probably sent him back to the purgatory between title talk and prospect. There's no question he still has the tools, but he needs some more polish before continuing his ascent up the mountain.
It’s hard to know what to make of his stock right now though, so it might be best to hold until his meeting against No. 1 contender Joseph Benavidez at UFC 225.
Stock: TBD on June 9 at UFC 225 vs. Joseph Benavidez
—Ryder
Paulo Costa
9 of 10
Record: 11-0 (UFC: 3-0)
Everything about Paulo Costa and his UFC debut in 2017 screamed star. A shredded, good-looking Brazilian with a 77-second knockout. But fans had been burned too many times as thick, muscle-bound, heavy-handed fighters routinely showed their ceiling fell short.
Costa could be the exception.
After dispatching Oluwale Bamgbose by KO, Costa got his chance to prove any remaining doubters wrong in a matchup against Johny Hendricks—he did. A second-round TKO put Costa on the map as a contender.
Costa is scheduled to take on Uriah Hall at UFC 226 on July 7. Another quality showing against a notable name would elevate him even further up the middleweight ranks. Stylistically, it is a matchup that should provide fireworks regardless of who comes out on top.
Borrachinha is the complete package in what a promotion is looking for in a top-end fighter. His performances have backed that up thus far and that's why his stock is up, up and away.
Stock: Up
—McCarter
Mackenzie Dern
10 of 10
Record: 7-0 (UFC: 2-0)
Spoiler alert: Her stock is down. But why, after a dominant first-round win, is an undefeated star such as Mackenzie Dern having her stock drop?
Let's start with the most talked about issue with Dern—her weight. Of her seven professional bouts, six have been at strawweight. She has missed weight for half of those bouts and none more egregious than her most recent attempt at UFC 224 on May 12.
The additional issue with Dern was her debut performance against Ashley Yoder at UFC 222 in March.
Yoder is not a top-tier talent, yet she was able to give Dern all kinds of problems inside the Octagon. It pointed to many flaws that the 25-year-old has yet to correct. Where talented grapplers like Demian Maia or Jacare Souza have high-level techniques to get the fight to the ground, Dern hasn't shown any to date.
Dern's takedown attempts from the outside are less than ideal. Even more worrisome is her grappling from the clinch. When you look at the top of the division, it becomes clear that Dern is not ready for that level.
She has fight-altering power—rare for a 115-pounder—and elite jiu-jitsu. Those two things still make her a valuable and interesting prospect who has plenty of time to develop. But for all her hoopla, it is time to lower those expectations and allow her space to grow.
Stock: Down
—McCarter
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