UFC Fight Night 25 Results: What's Next for Main-Card Winners

It is entirely possible the main card of UFC Fight Night 25 in New Orleans yielded three new title contenders in three different divisions.

In the first main-card bout, Alan "The Talent" Belcher showed he was all the way back from a 16-month injury layoff when he pounded out veteran Jason MacDonald.

In the second fight, The Ultimate Fighter winner Jonathan Brookins stifled Erik Koch's potent standup, but couldn't prevent the 22-year-old from winning the judges' affections and notching his fourth consecutive win.

Middleweight Court McGee wore down the Korean Dongi Yang to take an impressive unanimous decision win.

The main event, however, was probably the highlight of the evening. With one vicious knee directly to the incisors of perennial contender Jake Shields, welterweight Jake Ellenberger scored the most important knockout of his career.

Here's what's next for all of Saturday's main-card winners.

4. Alan Belcher

Layoff? What layoff?

The Talent put his nickname's sake on display in TKOing MacDonald, and in so doing instantly wiped the memories of thousands of skeptical MMA fans.

With the win, Belcher is immediately back in the upper reaches of the middleweight division. For his next opponent, the UFC should look no further than the next fight on this very fight card...

3. Erik Koch

Koch may not have won convincingly, but he did enough to persuade the judges he was the better man Saturday night.

The young phenom has said before the fight that a win should earn him a featherweight title shot—IF he could score a knockout or otherwise convincing victory.

That didn't happen. Nor should the title shot. The 13-1 Koch has looked very impressive so far in his career, but not enough to vault the Chad Mendeses or even the Tyson Griffins of the world.

Nevertheless, Koch, with this win, should be considered a contender at 145. A matchup with the winner between Pablo Garza and fellow young buck Dustin Poirier, or even December's match between Mark Hominick and Chan Sung Jung, would be a solid next step for Koch.

(Photo credit: Midwest Cage Championship)

2. Court McGee

By outlasting a very solid competitor in Yang, McGee proved (definitively, in my mind) that he is more than just a made-for-TV story.

Nope, I reckon he's now a bona fide force to be reckoned with at 185. And for his next matchup, I think he should square off with fellow Fight Night victor, and inspirational tale, Alan Belcher.

1. Jake Ellenberger

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a contender.

After knocking out the great Jake Shields in less than a minute Saturday night, Ellenberger should get an equally speedy invitation to the top of the UFC's welterweight heap.

And I'm not muckin around either. How about a rematch with Carlos Condit if Condit loses to Georges St-Pierre at UFC 137 this October. How about the loser of Nick Diaz and B.J. Penn at the same event?

If anyone has a puncher's chance against these and, uh, certain other guys, it's Ellenberger. Saturday's awesome victory has earned him the right to try.