5 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night 193
UFC Fight Night 193 went down Saturday night in Las Vegas, and the event paved a way for some pretty interesting matchup possibilities.
The card was topped by a clash between light heavyweight contenders, and former title challenger Thiago Santos picked up a decision win over the hot-and-cold Johnny Walker. It wasn't a particularly dazzling win, but it was sorely needed, as he was riding a trio of losses to Jon Jones, Glover Teixeira and Aleksandar Rakic.
The UFC Fight Night 193 co-main event, a middleweight fight between fringe contenders Kevin Holland and Kyle Daukaus, ended in disappointment, as the referee declared the bout a no-contest when Holland was knocked out and submitted after an inadvertent clash of heads.
Despite the tepid main event and disappointing co-headliner, the UFC Fight Night 193 card did feature some memorable fights. Chief among those were an upset win from Jared Gooden, who defeated Joe Solecki by split decision, and an impressive victory from rising flyweight prospect "King" Casey O'Neill, who thumped Antonina Shevchenko to a second-round TKO.
What's next for these UFC Fight Night 193 winners? Keep reading for the fights we're hoping to see when the dust is settled.
Thiago Santos vs. Ankalaev-Oezdemir Winner
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With three losses behind him, Thiago Santos desperately needed a win in his UFC Fight Night 193 headlining clash with fellow Brazilian Johnny Walker. It wasn't pretty, but he got the victory he sought, defeating his rival by unanimous decision.
It wasn't the kind of performance that's going to catapult Santos back into the title conversation, but it should set him up for another big fight in the light heavyweight division. We're hoping to see him fight the winner of an upcoming fight between No. 7-ranked light heavyweight contender Magomed Ankalaev and No. 8-ranked contender Volkan Oezdemir, slated for UFC 267 on Fight Island on October 30.
Ankalaev has lost just once as a pro and is on a six-fight win-streak. Oezdemir, a former title challenger, was knocked out by Jiri Prochazka in his most recent fight but remains one of the best-established contenders at 205 pounds. Beating either of these men would propel Santos into the kind of big-ticket matchups he surely desires—particularly with a baby on the way.
Johnny Walker vs. Dominick Reyes
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Johnny Walker, once regarded as a future title challenger, took another L in his UFC Fight Night 193 fight with Thiago Santos, leaving the cage of a wrong side of a unanimous decision.
It was a disappointing ending to a disappointing fight for the struggling Brazilian, but he's unlikely to lose too much ground in defeat. Not only was the fight reasonably competitive, but neither man did all that much while he was in the cage. It was the kind of fight that didn't provide much new information about either man. Neither looked better or worse than he has previously. It was just a fight that happened.
As Walker looks to recover from his loss to Santos, we recommend he's matched up with former light heavyweight title challenger Dominick Reyes. Since losing a razor-close decision to light heavyweight legend Jon Jones in early 2019, Reyes has experienced two far worse losses, succumbing to knockouts at the hands of Jan Blachowicz and Jiri Prochazka. To say he's in desperate need of a win would be an understatement.
Pitting Walker and Reyes against each other would answer a lot of questions about both men and their respective places in the light heavyweight division. Better yet, it seems like it would be a fun fight and a great chance for both men to regain some fans after tough setbacks.
Kyle Daukaus vs. Kevin Holland 2
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UFC Fight Night 193's co-headlining middleweight fight between Kyle Daukaus and Kevin Holland was ruled a no-contest after Holland was badly hurt by an inadvertent clash of heads. It was an extremely disappointing outcome—even if it was in keeping with the bizarre brand of violence that Holland fights have become known for.
After their disappointing fight in Vegas, Daukaus and Holland could easily be matched up with other people. However, we're going to suggest a rematch, not only because of the way their fight ended but also because neither man has any better option. Everyone on the fringes of the middleweight top 15 is either booked up or recovering from an injury—we're talking, of course, about Chris Weidman—and neither Holland nor Daukaus has earned a fight with a top-10 opponent.
Book these two finishers against each other again and pray for a fight that lives up to the way they match up on paper and ends more decisively.
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Jared Gordon vs. Paddy Pimblett
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Jared Gordon picked up a nice upset win in the final bout of the UFC Fight Night 193 undercard, defeating the highly regarded Joe Solecki with a hard-fought split decision.
In his post-fight interview with commentator Daniel Cormier, Gordon called for a fight with Paddy Pimblett. The Liverpudlian, a former Cage Warriors champion, recently burst into the UFC limelight with a knockout win over Luigi Vendramini.
"My man Paddy says he doesn't have to call anyone out, but he had my name in his mouth before his debut," Gordon said. "Nothing malicious. I like the guy, but I beat his teammate Chris Fishgold, and he wanted to get that one back, so come and get it. I'll go 2-0 against the team, and I'll be the Cage Warriors official champion."
We're here for Gordon's callout of Pimblett, and from the sounds of it, the popular Brit is up for it to.
"Let's do this," Pimblett wrote on Twitter after Gordon's fight concluded.
Casey O'Neill vs. Barber-De La Rosa Winner
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ONE Championship atomweight star Bi Nguyen has told me several times that her friend and teammate Casey O'Neill is a future UFC champion. O'Neill certainly looked the part on the UFC Fight Night 193 undercard, where she scored an impressive second-round TKO win over Antonina Shevchenko—the older sister of reigning flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko.
With that win, O'Neill is 8-0 in MMA and 3-0 in the Octagon. All three of those latter wins have come by way of stoppage. That success should earn the Scottish-born Australian—owner of one of the more interesting accents in the UFC—a date with a top-15 foe.
Here's hoping the UFC matchmakers book her for a fight with the winner of the UFC 269 fight between Maycee Barber and Montana De La Rosa. Barber and De La Rosa are ranked No. 13 and No. 15 at flyweight, respectively. Either woman could give O'Neill the kind of tough-but-fair challenge she needs as she looks to climb the flyweight mountain, and both potential matchups look fun on paper.
Perhaps best of all, UFC 269 doesn't go down until December 11, meaning O'Neill, who has fought five times in the past 12 months, can enjoy some well-earned time off as she waits for Barber and De La Rosa to fight.
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