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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Anthony "Rumble" Johnson turned some more attention to himself on Saturday night, as his 44 second stoppage of Antonio Rogerio Nogueira was as impressive as it was violent.
The win has him being seriously considered in the mix of elite talent at 205 lbs., an incredible resurgence considering where he was just a couple of years ago. But he's been impressing the right people, and UFC President Dana White said after the fight that he's real close to that title mix.
"He still needs another fight to get into that [mix]," White said at the post-fight press conference (via MMAJunkie.com). "It's amazing. I don't think we've ever had a guy go from 170 [pounds] to 205 and actually be more powerful and more devastating than he was at 170. I've never seen anything like it."
"I was blown away by Anthony's performance tonight. He made it quick, and he made it look easy. We'll get him another fight."
Penick's Analysis: Johnson honestly put himself in a position where he can be in a No. 1 contender fight in his next bout. Now, there aren't a lot of others who deserve to be in that mix themselves, so it's hard to figure out exactly who he should fight next. A fight between Johnson and Gustafsson in the fall to determine which of them gets a title shot could work, though the UFC may not be keen on making Gustafsson fight again when they have the ready made bout with Jon Jones for him. Of course, if Cormier beats Jones, then Jones-Cormier II will surely happen, opening the door for Johnson-Gustafsson as well. He's in that spot where he's either going to have to fight lesser competition to stay busy, or the UFC will have to risk someone dropping out of the title picture in order to find out if Johnson's at that level.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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