Fight Fixin’ is a fantasy matchmaking article that comes out after every major event and features possible matchups for main card winners and/or losers from the previous event.
Urijah Faber defeated Scott Jorgensen in the main event of the TUF 17 Finale, a win that will put “The California Kid” firmly back in the title mix at 135 pounds. Yes, Faber always loses in title fights, but he always wins in non-title fights, and he’s a marketable, exciting fighter, so he’ll always be near the top of the division.
For his next fight, the UFC should match up Faber with another exciting bantamweight, Brad Pickett. Both Faber and Pickett always deliver a good show for the fans, so there’s no doubt in my mind this would win the “Fight of the Night” award on whatever card it gets booked for.
Fight to make: Urijah Faber vs. Brad Pickett
Kelvin Gastelum derailed the Uriah Hall hype train with a split decision victory in the co-main event of the TUF 17 Finale, a victory that sees him crowned as the latest TUF champion. Only 21 years old, the sky is the limit for Gastelum, who the UFC should bring along slowly.
For his second fight in the promotion, the UFC should match Gastelum up with another TUF veteran in the form of CB Dollaway, who defeated Daniel Sarafian in his last outing at UFC on FX 7. Dollaway is currently injured, but once he’s healed up and ready to go, he would make a great opponent for Gastelum.
Fight to make: Kelvin Gastelum vs. CB Dollaway
Fighting for the first time since a TKO loss at the giant hands of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Travis Browne made quick work of veteran Gabriel Gonzaga, finishing off the veteran heavyweight with a brutal barrage of elbows in the first round of their bout. It was a much-needed win for Browne, who badly needed a rebound victory, and he certainly got it, as he was awarded the “Knockout of the Night” bonus.
For his next fight, the UFC needs to give Browne a big fight. Yes, he lost to “Bigfoot,” but considering that he’s fighting for the title next, in hindsight it’s really not that bad of a loss on Browne’s record. With Alistair Overeem also having been knocked out by “Bigfoot” recently, it makes sense to match him up with Browne in what would be a very intriguing fight, one that would launch the winner back into title contention.
Fight to make: Travis Browne vs. Alistair Overeem
Bubba McDaniel redeemed himself after an awful performance on TUF with a submission victory over Gilbert Smith to open up the TUF 17 Finale main card. The win puts McDaniel at 1-0 in the UFC,and he will get another fight in the promotion.
For his sophomore UFC effort I would like to see McDaniel matched up against Josh Samman, who defeated Kevin Casey via TKO on the prelims. Both guys are TUF fighters and both guys are 1-0 in the UFC, so this is a fight that’s very logical, and I have a feeling it would be pretty exciting.
Fight to make: Bubba McDaniel vs. Josh Samman
On the Facebook prelims, veteran Cole Miller finally got back into the win column with a much-needed submission victory over Bart Palaszewski that Miller admits saved his job with the UFC. Although he’s been in 13 UFC fights, Miller is still only 28 years old, and when he uses his submission game, he is a threat to defeat anyone in the UFC featherweight division, where he is among the tallest and rangiest fighters in the weight class.
For his next bout, I’d like to see the UFC match Miller up with Daniel Pineda, who also picked up a submission victory on Facebook that saved his job, over Justin Lawrence. Both guys are pretty much in the same boat, and this would likely be a very exciting fight, so it makes sense to book it.
Fight to make: Cole Miller vs. Daniel Pineda
The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale took place on April 13, 2013 at at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Click the stars to rate how good you think the TUF 17 Finale was.
