5 fights to make following UFC Fight Night: Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho
The UFC's latest event went down at the Las Vegas APEX last night. For a lower-end Fight Night, it turned out to be pretty solid.
UFC Fight Night: Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho threw up a handful of new contenders in multiple divisions, and overall, was a fun event to watch.
What's next for the fighters who performed well last night? Only time will tell, but they have a lot of good options ahead of them.
Here are five fights to make following UFC Fight Night: Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho.
#5 UFC featherweight bout: Mairon Santos vs. Doo Ho Choi
Last night's show featured the finals of TUF 32, and it's safe to say that the two bouts went well under the radar.
However, Mairon Santos, who stopped Kaan Ofli in the featherweight final, does seem to have some potential. His knockout of the Australian was a vicious one, and his overall record of 14-1 is pretty solid.
Only time will tell whether he can sink or swim in the UFC, but he's clearly an exciting fighter to watch and at 24, has a lot of time on his side.
The promotion is unlikely to want to protect him as they once did with newly-minted TUF champions, though, so his next foe is anyone's guess.
One good option could be Doo Ho Choi. Once considered one of the best young talents at 145 pounds, 'The Korean Superboy' is now more of an exciting veteran. He returned from a long absence last month to wow fans with a KO of Bill Algeo.
Judging by Santos' performance last night, a fight with Choi could be a thrilling striking bout, and if the Brazilian could win, he'd quickly gain the hype TUF champions used to get years ago.
#4 UFC middleweight bout: Gerald Meerschaert vs. Bo Nickal
Gerald Meerschaert became an unlikely UFC record holder last night. He picked up his 12th finish in the middleweight division with a come-from-behind win over Edmen Shahbazyan.
'GM3' looked outgunned for most of the fight and even went down hard off a body shot in the second round. Somehow, though, he gutted it out, and managed to land a takedown on 'Golden Boy', submitting him with an arm triangle shortly afterwards.
Meerschaert will probably never be a title contender at 185 pounds but as a gatekeeper, he's one of the best. He's always in a fun fight, and it's rare that he goes all three rounds.
With that in mind, why not match him with uber-prospect Bo Nickal? The former NCAA Division I champion hasn't fought since a one-sided win over Cody Brundage at UFC 300 in April, and clearly needs a step up in competition.
Meerschaert would be the perfect step up for him. He wouldn't be expected to beat 'The Allen Assassin', but it'd also be easy to see him capitalising on a single mistake and pulling off an upset.
Overall, this would be the perfect test for Nickal's skills right now.
#3 UFC strawweight bout: Tabatha Ricci vs. Amanda Lemos
It's arguable that three fighters picked up the biggest wins of their career last night, and one of them was Tabatha Ricci.
She outpointed Angela Hill in the event's co-headliner, and while the fight wasn't all that exciting, 'Baby Shark' still impressed. She outstruck the veteran and as she began to tire, was able to take her down and outwork her on the ground too.
Currently ranked just outside the top ten at 115 pounds, Ricci is clearly due a step up. However, with most of the women above her already matched up, finding a viable foe won't be that easy.
One option could be Amanda Lemos. Currently ranked at No.5, it's arguable that 'Amandinha' might be too much of a step up for Ricci, who has yet to face someone on that level.
However, 'Baby Shark' has shown well-rounded skills in all areas and solid durability, and she has to attempt to break into the elite at some point.
More interestingly, Lemos is coming off a defeat via submission, so this could be the perfect time for a prospect like Ricci to face her.
If the UFC intends to visit Brazil in the near future, this all-Brazilian clash could definitely make sense for that event.
#2 UFC welterweight bout: Michael Morales vs. Gilbert Burns or Sean Brady
Outside of the headline bout, no fighter took as big a step forward last night as Michael Morales.
The Ecuadorian welterweight prospect was matched with a very high-level gatekeeper in the form of Neil Magny, and didn't just beat him, he destroyed him.
Morales dropped 'The Haitian Sensation' in the first round and didn't go hell for leather to finish him. Instead, he stayed patient, took a dominant position on the ground, and smashed Magny until the ref stepped in.
The win should move Morales into the top ten at 170 pounds, and he's already stated that he wants to become welterweight champion within two years.
Who should he fight next, then? A good test for him would be the winner of the upcoming clash between Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady.
Neither man possesses the explosive striking of Morales, but they're both battle-tested fighters with more experience, and more to the point, their grappling is far superior, at least on paper.
A fight with 'Durinho' or Brady would definitely push Morales to his limits, and if he could win, he'd maybe be one fight away from a title shot.
The UFC might need to wait until 2025 to make this fight based purely on timing, but that shouldn't matter. It'd be a logical piece of booking for all parties.
#1 UFC middleweight bout: Caio Borralho vs. Marvin Vettori
No.12 ranked middleweight Caio Borralho was faced with the toughest test of his UFC career last night, squaring off with former title challenger Jared Cannonier.
It'd be an understatement to say that 'The Natural' passed the test with flying colors. Sure, he suffered a nasty cut at the hands of 'The Killa Gorilla', but overall, he absolutely dominated the fight.
Not only did he bully Cannonier on the ground, as many observers thought he might if he could get the bout there, but he also beat him up standing, too. In the fifth round, in fact, the Brazilian almost put his foe away with a tremendous salvo of strikes.
The win probably puts 'The Natural' two fights away from a title shot, so who should he fight next? Given that most of the upper echelon at 185 pounds are already booked, the best option might be Marvin Vettori.
'The Italian Dream' is currently ranked at No.6, meaning Borralho may well leapfrog him next week. However, he's still a tough, experienced former title challenger with the ability to beat anyone at middleweight.
Given that he hasn't fought since the summer of 2023 - and lost to Cannonier in that fight - the UFC may well decide to wait for a better opponent for Borralho instead.
However, if 'The Natural' could knock Vettori off, it'd be another big feather in his cap and would definitely further his claims to a title shot.