Monday Morning Hangover: What's next for Thales Leites after coming up short against Michael Bisping?

Another weekend of fisticuffs has come and gone, as UFC Fight Night 72  blew the roof off SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, last Saturday night (July 18, 2015) on FOX Sports 1.

For complete results from UFC Fight Night 72: "Bisping vs. Leites" click here.

Plenty of fighters were left licking their wounds, including Ivan Jorge, who was submitted  by Joe Duffy in round number one (video highlights here). And Leonardo Mafra, who was knocked silly (see it again here) by Stevie Ray, also in the opening frame.

But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover, now 48 hours removed from the show?

Thales Leites.

The former middleweight contender slowly and quietly built himself an eight-fight win streak, including five in a row since returning to the Octagon two years ago.

A win over an established Octagon veteran like Michael Bisping would not only have given him six straight UFC wins, but also put him on the championship radar, while shooting him up the rankings and getting him closer to a title eliminator fight.

But as Bisping has proven before, he has a habit of ruining plans and pissing people off while he's doing it.

"The Count" walked away from Scotland with a razor-thin split decision after the cageside judges felt the brash Brit had done enough to earn the nod. A decision that didn't sit too well with many.

That's because for the majority of the fight -- which was an all-out standup affair -- Thales seemed to land the more powerful and effective shots, buckling Bisping on a few occasions. However, it appeared the "The Count's" high volume attack is what won the judges over.

Recap here.

I don't get paid to score fights, but if I did, my scores would've favored Thales.

Though Bisping isn't a current or former champion, he somehow carries that aura around him that in order to get a "W," you have to make sure you were convincing enough to prove you deserved the victory, something Tim Kennedy was able to do.

That, or flat out knock him out or submit him, like Luke Rockhod.

At the end of the day, "The Count" is one of the biggest stars on the roster -- titleholder or not -- and judges, more often than not, aren't going to give him (or any other big star) a loss if it wasn't convincing.

Kind of like Lebron James and Kobe Bryant getting "special" calls from referees. Wait, did I just compare Bisping to Lebron and Kobe?

You get my drift.

That's not to say it was a lopsided decision; as "Bizzy" did do work, just not enough to get the victory, in my opinion.

It's those kinds of losses that make defeat a pill that's a bit harder to swallow. At this point, however, there's nothing left for Leites to do but to put it in the past and move forward.

Easier said than done, I know, but maybe a fight and win against C.B. Dollaway -- who also has a recent loss to Bisping -- can expedite the process.

Any objections?