Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was back at it again, as the world's largest mixed martial arts (MMA) organization staged UFC Fight Night 105 last night (Sun., Feb. 19, 2017) live from inside Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
In the main event of the evening, Derrick Lewis continued to terrorize the Heavyweight division with his brutal second-round knockout victory over Travis Browne (see it again here).
In the co-headlining act, Johny Hendricks breathed a huge sigh of relief after he stopped the bleeding on a terrible three-fight losing streak with a unanimous decision win over Hector Lombard in what was "Bigg Rigg’s" debut at Middleweight (highlights).
There was plenty of action in Halifax, so let’s see what fights could be on the horizon.
Winner: Derrick Lewis
Who He Should Fight Next: Francis Ngannou
This potential matchup reminds me of the time we almost got to see two up-and-coming heavyweights throw down on their rise up the 265-pound ladder in Can Velasquez and Shane Carwin in 2009 before an injury to Carwin thwarted those plans. At the time, both were undefeated and breathing new life into the UFC’s heavyweight division. And though Lewis and Ngannou don’t have the pristine records the aforementioned big men did, it’s still a fight that will pit two young and hungry heavy hitters looking to make their definitive mark on the division and take that next step into tile contention. A win for either man accomplishes that feat. It’s a showdown that may not last very long, but it will be fun while it does. They are bound to cross paths. may as well do it now.
Winner: Johny Hendricks
Who He Should Fight Next: Tim Boetsch
Yes, Hendricks is coming off a win while Boetsch is fresh of a loss to Ronaldo Souza, but the fact remains, Hendricks is still a newbie at 185 pounds, so throwing him against top 10 caliber fighters simply isn’t in the cards yet. Plus, while Lombard was a formidable threat, he isn’t exactly the biggest middleweight around, as he too, jumped up from welterweight to bang with the big boys. Matching "Bigg Rigg" up against "The Barbarian" will let us see just how the former 170-pound champion deals with a much bigger foe, challenges he will have to overcome if he wants to make some noise in his new weight class.
Winner: Gavin Tucker
Who He Should Fight Next: Andre Fili
Matching up newcomers is a tough thing to do, as he or she isn’t ranked and you don’t have much to go on other than what their past records show. That said, Tucker looked good in his Octagon debut, outclassing a 12-fight UFC veteran in Sam Sicilia. A matchup against another Octagon veteran who has alternated wins and losses for his first few fights would be a good test for the young-up-and-comer. Fili is coming off a unanimous decision win over Hacran Dias and had been in there with the best of them such as Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez, so he definitely has the experience to give Tucker a challenge.
Winner: Elias Theodorou
Who He Should Fight Next: Uriah Hall
Elias won his second straight by outscoring Cezar Ferreira in a hard-fought, three-round affair. Still, despite being 5-1 thus far inside the Octagon, Elias can’t seem to break the top 10. A win over a quality name like Hall could accomplish that feat. Granted, "Primetime" is riding three straight defeats, but if Theodorou can get a win over him, that will be two combatants in the top 15 he has defeated (Sam Alvey being the other), and will help him build his case for his own inclusion in the official rankings.
Winner: Sara McMann
Who She Should Fight Next: Raquel Pennington
Now that Ronda Rousey is likely done with the promotion, the opportunities for deserving title shots have opened up for other combatants (barring another "Rowdy" comeback). Valentina Schevchenko is next up for current division champion Amanda Nunes, which still doesn't have a date and time, though I fully expect it to go down in the next five months. In the meantime, the rest of the division can jockey for position. And since Pennington is currently riding a four-fight win streak and is ranked No. 5, while McMann (No. 7) is riding a three-fight win streak, pitting them together in a No. 1 contender’s bout makes sense. That’s because the rest of the fighters ranked ahead of them are all fresh off losses. Book it.
Winner: Paul Felder
Who He Should fight Next: James Vick
Both are coming off impressive wins which preceded losses, and both like to stand-and-bang, which is always a recipe for fireworks. After taking Abel Trujillo, Vick clamored for more push from the promotion, saying that "no one knew who he was" after racking up a 6-1 record. While Felder’s record isn’t as stellar as Vick’s he is more "well known." That said, a victory for Vick will earn him that extra recognition while a victory for Felder over a fast-rising prospect will be a nice feather in his cap, too. Let em’ bang, bro.
For the rest of the UFC Halifax results click here.