The World Series of Fighting’s third event turned out to be a strong show that gave fight fans a shocking finish. In the main event, Josh Burkman was able to avenge a six-year-old defeat to Jon Fitch in dramatic fashion, stopping the former UFC competitor in 47 seconds. With that outcome and a number of others, it is going to be interesting to see where the WSOF goes from here. These steps should help progress the careers of some of the top names on the roster:
Burkman stands firmly at the top of the heap of not only the WSOF’s welterweight division, but as the promotion’s top-ranked fighter overall. This highlight reel victory was the culmination of Burkman’s resurgence, and even though some will try to discredit it because it came against Fitch, Jon was still a top ten ranked fighter in the eyes of many. Josh is 8-1 since leaving the UFC in 2008, and the WSOF needs to get him into big fights quickly before Zuffa comes calling again. Steve Carl scored a dominating win over Tyson Steele on the same card, and he could potentially be the next opponent for Burkman.
Fitch was quickly stopped for the second time in four fights, leading some to believe that his time as an elite welterweight is over. While that may or may not be an overstatement at this time, it’s clear that the former UFC title contender needs to find a way to get back on track quickly. He asked for a rubber match with Burkman, but that isn’t the best move at this point. Instead, pairing him with the powerful Gerald Harris will give him the opportunity to show fans that he’s still the Fitch that so many have come to hate.
“Dr. Feelgood” once again used his smothering game to wear down another opponent; this time it was Lyle Beerbohm. Jacob may not provide the most exciting fights when he is in action, but he is a hard out for anyone looking to be considered a top contender at lightweight. When it comes to future matchmaking, the WSOF should avoid placing him against Justin Gaethje at this time. However, unfortunately for the promotion, it doesn’t have a deep enough roster at the moment to provide it with other options. The better move would be for the WSOF to look for an available free agent lightweight that adds some value to their organization.
Gaethje continues to emerge as a star prospect within the lightweight division. He stopped another fighter in devastating fashion when he ended Brian Cobb’s night via leg kicks. At 24 years old and with a record of 9-0 in the sport, the WSOF has the type of talent that can be built around, akin to the way Bellator is doing with Michael Chandler. However, before the promotion can even throw out the idea of him becoming its lightweight champion, Gaethje should have to earn two or three more wins. Placing him into a matchup against Dan Lauzon would create another opportunity to showcase him against a fighter that has competed at the highest level of the sport, which is exactly what the promotion needs to do if it plans on building him into a star.
World Series of Fighting 3 provided fans with some good fights across the card and featured the emergence of some potential faces of the organization. And as the promotion continues to develop, fights like these should help push those faces further to the forefront.
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World Series of Fighting 3 took place on June 14, 2013 at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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