UFC 133 Results: 5 Fights Chad Mendes Should Take Next

At last night's UFC 133 in Philly, Chad "Money" Mendes fully controlled jiu-jitsu specialist Rani Yahya on the way to an unanimous decision victory. Yahya never mounted enough of a threat to force Mendes out of cruise-control mode, which may help explain why Mendes didn't make the exclamatory statement some were hoping to see.

The laid-back performance, combined with a hand injury suffered in the second round, may mean Money will need another victory or two before getting his long-awaited featherweight title shot. For his part, UFC president Dana White was non-commital in his post-fight presser on the subject of Mendes' future, emphasizing that the injury might make the decision for everyone.

For the sake of argument, though, let's assume Mendes will need one more fight before challenging for the strap. Here are five possibilities for that opponent.

5. Dustin Poirier

At the ripe old age of 22, The Diamond is 10-1 overall and a perfect 2-0 both inside the Octagon and as a featherweight.

A matchup with Mendes would signal that the UFC believes this talented Louisiana native is ready for the big time.

4. Diego Nunes

The well-rounded Nunes is 16-2, with his only loss since 2009 coming to Kenny Florian who is scheduled to fight Jose Aldo for the featherweight title this October.

If Nunes can handle Manny Gamburyan in September, he should definitely be in the contender mix at 145.

3. Hatsu Hioki

Outside of the WEC merger, the 28-year-old Hatsu (24-4-2) is the UFC's crowning acquisition at featherweight. This Japanese choke artist (he has six choke-out wins on his record) has held belts in three different promotions and will make his UFC debut against George Roop this October.

Though Roop is a very worthy competitor, Hatsu will be expected to win and subsequently move quickly up the 145 ladder. A matchup with Mendes would make for a terrific title eliminator.

2. Kenny Florian

If Florian goes down against Aldo at UFC 136, this thinking man's fighter would be an intriguing matchup for Mendes. Though both are competent strikers, this could become a compelling ground war between the D-1 wrestler and second-degree jiu-jitsu black belt.

1. Jose Aldo

Should Aldo lose the belt to Florian, his overall dominance will likely mean that the road to the featherweight title will go through him.

I would personally love to see whether Mendes could use his grappling to keep the Muay Thai mini-destroyer under wraps.