Rich Hansen's Take
HANSEN: Top Fights to Make Following UFC 169 "Barao vs. Faber" in New Jersey
Feb 2, 2014 - 9:30:20 PM HANSEN: Top Fights to Make Following UFC 169 "Barao vs. Faber" in New Jersey

DISCUSS ALL THIS IN OUR NEW MMATORCH FORUM

...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!

By: Rich Hansen, MMA Torch Columnist

The UFC's first pay-per-view offering of the new year has come and gone, and for the most part we're glad it's gone. Out of twelve fights, ten went to decision, and not one of those are going to go down in the sport's lore. The only thing that came out of one of those ten fights is the news that Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo is going to move to Lightweight, giving up his title in the process. Anthony Pettis is next for the soon to be erstwhile Featherweight Champion. As for the rest of the main card fighters from UFC 169, let's take a look at some possible future opponents for each of them.

Renan Barao vs. T.J. Dillashaw

I know what you're thinking, but who else is he going to fight? Even with Aldo moving up, Barao made it clear at the post-fight press conference that he's still got work to do at Bantamweight. Um, no you don't. Who's left? Raphael Assuncao? Takeya Mizugaki? T.J. Dillashaw? If Barao is staying at 135 lbs. so that B.J. Penn can become champion at 145 lbs., then I'm all for it! Other than that, I can't think of a reason for him to stay at bantamweight. Dillashaw has a promising future, and he's nominally next in line. But take a minute, envision that fight, and tell me how Dillashaw wins? Yeah, that's what I thought. Regardless, he's likely next in line. I suppose it's possible that Dominick Cruz gets an immediate title shot for what used to be his belt, but he's destined to fight Urijah Faber next. Which leads me to…

Urijah Faber vs. Dominick Cruz

Hey, Zuffa's gotta them bills, no? This is the closest thing to a money fight in this division, and both guys desperately want the fight. Faber revealed after the fight with Barao that he tore his hamstring preparing for the championship fight. Don't think for a second that he didn't revel in fighting Barao while injured while Cruz pulled out with injury. That's the stoopid type of thing that pops into one's mind when you're blood rivals with someone. I wouldn't be surprised to see this be the co-main event of a summer pay-per-view event, maybe in support of Jose Aldo vs. Anthony Pettis. Which leads me too…

Jose Aldo vs. Anthony Pettis

This isn't a prediction; this is a done deal. They just need to sign it and announce a date. And yes, I am presupposing that both Aldo and Pettis can stay healthy until they enter the cage. This fight will be for Pettis' Lightweight Championship, and Aldo will vacate the Featherweight Championship. Dana White has already stated that if Aldo loses and then chooses to go back to Featherweight that Aldo will get an immediate title shot in the division he's owned for his entire career.

A few thoughts on Pettis vs. Aldo... The last time Pettis checked a leg kick was the first leg kick in practice following the fight with Benson Henderson. Pettis tore a ligament from that, and as a result will be out for a grand total of close to a year. If I'm Anthony Pettis, I'm thinking about Jose Aldo's leg kicks 24/7.

If the Jose Aldo that beat Ricardo Lamas fights Anthony Pettis, Pettis retains. I almost get the feeling that Aldo exerts no more than is necessary to solidly defeat the guy put in front of him, and anything less than 100% performance from Aldo won't be enough against the dynamic Pettis.

I won't believe this fight happens until the moment the second fighter enters the cage. I've literally, and I do mean literally, dreamt about this fight for too damn long to get my hopes up again. Losing the fight at featherweight last year damn near ruined my summer.

Ricardo Lamas vs. Chan Sung Jung

I don't know the timetable for Jung's return, but assuming he's ready in five-six months, that's the fight to make for both guys, both of whom are coming off of losses to Aldo. Just think, Lamas might fight twice this year, saints rejoice! Lamas wasn't exposed tonight as anything worse than 'not as good as Aldo,' and that's hardly a Scarlet Letter, dig? That said, anyone who thought he was going to be competitive against Aldo was a fool. Lamas needs to be built back up, and he should be the favorite over The Korean Zombie. With Aldo leaving the division, it is possible Lamas could earn another title shot in 12-18 months.

Alistair Overeem vs. Stipe Miocic

Even after Alistair Overeem finished slaughtering Frank Mir I was sure that Overeem vs. Junior dos Santos was the next fight to make. I know JDS is coming off of a loss, but this is a fight that almost happened in 2012 or 2013, and JDS really wants this fight. But then Dana White went and trashed Overeem's performance (and if Overeem was awful, I'd love to see his thoughts on Johnny Smugface's performance against Overeem), it seems clear that he doesn't want to reward Overeem with a fight against the former champion. That said, Overeem is making something like 43 million dollars a year, so they aren't going to be having him earn his money fighting the likes of Matt Mitrione. Miocic isn't yet a contender, and this is a fight that makes sense for both guys. A fight with Josh Barnett would actually be one that I like more than the Miocic idea, but I just don't think that's the way they go with Overeem. I also would love the story of K1 World Grand Prix Champion Alistair Overeem vs. K1 World Grand Prix Champion Mark Hunt, but this isn't the type of thing the UFC would choose to promote because that would mean acknowledging a company that they don't own.

Ali Bagautinov vs. the winner of Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett

If Pickett defeats McCall (unlikely), they might hotshot Pickett vs. Demetrious Johnson, based on Pickett's bantamweight division win over Johnson back, way back, way way back in April 2010. I don't know what to tell you, I mean, if you don't see the life-enhancing awesomeness that Ian McCall and Ali Bagautinov could provide to you, then, um, baseball season is only two months away. If Sean Shelby doesn't make that fight, maybe he books Bagautinov vs. Josh Sampo or Zach Makovsky. I think both Sampo and Makovsky are top five Flyweights, but since they're new and unknown, and since the UFC is apparently conspiring to keep them unknown, I doubt they'd see this as a step up for Bagautinov. If they're looking for a higher profile fight for Bagautinov, he could destroy the highly overrated, yet well-known-by-flyweight-standards John Moraga.

Abel Trujillo vs. Edson Barboza

I refuse to give Trujillo any credit for his punch over Jamie Varner, and I hope Barboza knocks Trujillo's face inside out. Fights with Michael Chiesa or the winner of Melvin Guillard vs. Michael Johnson could be on tap, too.

Frank Mir vs. Gabriel Gonzaga

I'm so conflicted about Frank Mir, and I don't think I accurately describe my stance on him. When I call Mir 'Johnny Smugface' I do so playfully, respectfully. Well, respectfully-ish. I'm not saying he IS smug (although he is), I'm saying he has the best Smugface I'll ever see. I particularly love when he has the Smugface on his face when it's streaked with his own blood. The only time he hasn't had that look of smug self-satisfaction on his face was in the immediate aftermath of the UFC 100 main event. Mir's Smugface has a place in UFC lore, and is more worthy of a slot in the UFC Hall of Fame than Stephan Bonnar.

Now, with that explanation out of the way (and I'm sure I've clarified nothing and muddied the waters even worse), if Mir stays in the UFC, he should be fighting either Gabriel Gonzaga or Stefan Struve next. And since we don't know exactly when Struve will return, Voila! Gonzaga. Mir's on a four fight schneid, sure. But dos Santos, Cormier, Barnett, and Overeem are a murderer's row in the heavyweight division. If he loses to a guy who's clearly ranked below him, fine, then he can fight Mighty Mo, Peter Graham, and Lavar Johnson this fall on Spike TV. But until then, he's earned the right to lose as many UFC fights in succession as Steve Cantwell. See? I have a deft way of putting things in perspective.

John Lineker vs. Joseph Benavidez

Look, hear me out on this one. I know Benavidez is the second best flyweight in the world, I know Lineker doesn't deserve a step up, and I know Benavidez is rumoured (superfluous u for Dan Moore) to be murdering fighting Tim Elliott next. But Benavidez can't be paired up with a contender anytime soon, because he'd be a favorite to defeat anyone but Demetrious Johnson, and the division is thin enough where they need their contenders to remain such. John Lineker has all the talent in the world but he is not, repeat he is NOT, a contender. He's never made 125 lbs. on the dot, he's missed weight three times. He almost missed weight this weekend. He just lost to the number six guy in the division, he's not a contender. If he loses to Benavidez, he's still just 24 years old and has a decade of prime years remaining. And one more thing; tell me with a straight face that Benavidez vs. Lineker wouldn't be awesome. But if Benavidez already has a date with Tim Elliott, we could see fair consolation prizes for Lineker in either the loser of McCall vs. Pickett, or the loser of Sampo vs. Makovsky.

Jamie Varner vs. Jorge Masvidal

To be honest, I really don't care who Varner gets next. I'm going to watch him fight anyone because he's a fun fighter, and because that's what I do. I just hope that Joe Silva is wise enough to keep him away from the Gleison Tibaus and the Mark Boceks of the world. Masvidal could make for a fun fight. Takanori Gomi could make for a whale of a fun fight the next time they go to Asia after the March 1 card. Danny Castillo could provide a fun fight as well. Varner's role in the UFC isn't to be pushed towards a championship. Rather, it is to do what he did on Saturday night, while occasionally not impersonating Terry Martin (vs. Chris Leben) and Pete Sell (vs. Scott Smith). There's nothing wrong with that.

Fights to Make for the Prelim Card Fighters Who Impressed Me

.
.
.

Follow me on Twitter @MMATorchRich