5 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night 195
Despite being regarded as one of the weakest UFC cards in history on paper, Fight Night 195 on Saturday in Las Vegas produced some important outcomes and memorable action.
In the main event, Norma Dumont emerged as a definite featherweight contender with a unanimous-decision victory over an opportunistic Aspen Ladd, who stepped in to replace Holly Holm on short notice.
In the co-main event, 42-year-old former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski won another round in his ongoing scrap with Father Time, picking up an impressive decision win over Carlos Felipe.
Other highlights of the main card included a big win from another decorated veteran in Jim Miller, who shut the lights out on Combate Global transplant Erick Gonzalez with a second-round overhand left, and a big win from rising flyweight prospect Manon Fiorot, who moved to 8-1 with a decision win over a tough Mayra Bueno Silva.
None of these fights were particularly hyped up ahead of time, but they gave us a good sense of where some of the sport's grittiest veterans and most promising prospects stand in 2021. They also opened the door to some interesting matchup possibilities.
Keep scrolling for the fights we want to see going forward.
Norma Dumont vs. Amanda Nunes
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When Norma Dumont defeated Aspen Ladd by unanimous decision in the UFC Fight Night 195 main event, she emerged as the top contender in the women's featherweight division. That's partially due to her solid, three-fight win streak, but it's far more to do with the fact that the featherweight division is devoid of fighters—let alone contenders—and that the reigning champion Amanda Nunes has already vanquished anybody else worth mentioning.
Dumont will be a massive underdog against Nunes, and she will have to wait for Nunes to defend her bantamweight title against Julianna Pena at UFC 269 in December, but it feels inevitable that she will get the opportunity. It's just a question of when Nunes and the UFC matchmakers find themselves in need of another sacrificial lamb.
Then again, maybe Dumont will surprise us. Wilder things have happened—or have they?
Aspen Ladd vs. Tate-Vieira Loser
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Despite her loss to Dumont, it would be great to see Aspen Ladd stick to the featherweight division rather than head back down to bantamweight. She has the skills to compete with the slightly bigger women who populate the weight class, and as Dumont as shown, it only takes a win or two to put yourself in reach of a title shot. The road to title contention isn't particularly long at bantamweight, either, but it's definitely longer.
Having said all that, Ladd will most likely return to bantamweight for her next fight. If that's her plan, she should be matched up with the winner of a November fight between former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate and longtime contender Ketlen Vieira.
A win over either woman would reassert Ladd as the legit contender many have long believed she is—and justify her No. 3 spot in the bantamweight rankings. A loss would confirm what her skeptics have been snarling all along: she's a flash in the pan.
One way or the other, we would get some answers.
Andrei Arlovski vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov 2
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Andrei Arlovski is seemingly immune to aging. At 42, and after being labeled washed-up multiple times in the past, he is once again on a win streak. The Belarusian-American veteran made it two in a row with a unanimous-decision win over slick heavyweight boxer Carlos Felipe in the UFC Fight Night 195 co-main event.
Ahead of the fight, Arlovski called for a fight with a top-10 foe. On the surface, his two-fight win streak won't be enough to earn him that opportunity. When coupled with his staggering longevity and years of service to UFC brass, however, it might be enough.
We say give the man what he wants.
From here, it would be great to see Arlovski matched up with No. 8-ranked contender Shamil Abdurakhimov. He beat Arlovski by decision back in 2018 but hasn't won a fight since early 2019 and is low on compelling options. A fight with Arlovski would give him the opportunity to reassert himself as a top talent and give Arlovski the opportunity to set up an almost unthinkable, late-career title run. Why not?
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Jim Miller vs. John Makdessi
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Just like Andrei Arlovski, Jim Miller turned back the clock on the UFC Fight Night 195 main card. The 38-year-old lightweight veteran—whose 38 fights represent the record for the most in UFC history—did so with a rousing, second-round knockout of highly regarded prospect Erick Gonzalez.
Miller seems to have accepted that his days as a title contender are over and is instead focused on sticking around as long as possible, even laying out plans to compete on the momentous UFC 300 pay-per-view, which is likely still several years away.
In other words, Miller's career is all about fun fights—ideally ones that won't put him at risk of too much damage.
A fight with Canada's John Makdessi, who recently returned to the win column with a decision defeat of prospect Ignacio Bahamondes, seems like just the ticket. Like Miller, Makdessi has been a fixture of the UFC lightweight division for what seems like forever. Despite the time they have spent together in the weight class, remarkably they have never crossed paths in the Octagon.
Throw in the fact that Makdessi has called for this fight previously, and it makes all the sense in the world.
Manon Fiorot vs. Eye-Lee Winner
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France's Manon Fiorot isn't even ranked at flyweight, yet she's already being talked about as a future opponent for the division's dominating champion, Valentina Shevchenko. She's simply looked that good in her first few fights in the Octagon.
Fiorot authored another impressive performance on the UFC Fight Night 195 main card, bludgeoning the tough-but-outmatched Mayra Bueno Silva to a unanimous-decision win.
After Fiorot's latest win, it feels like high time to give her a top-15 opponent. We're hoping she's matched up with the winner of November 13's fight between No. 12-ranked contender Andrea Lee and No. 8-ranked contender Jessica Eye. Lee is riding a win over Antonina Shevchenko, while Eye is winless in her past three fights.
Naysayers will argue that a fight with the Eye-Lee winner is too big of a step up for the unranked Fiorot, but why waste time? Let's see what she's capable of.
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