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.
Carlos Condit
Carlos Condit overcame some early danger to eventually take out Martin Kampmann with a fourth-round TKO in the main event of UFC Fight Night 27, a big win that snapped his two-fight losing streak and which reaffirms his spot as the No. 3 welterweight in the world.
All of the top welterweights are booked and UFC president Dana White said that Matt Brown, the hottest fighter in the division, already has a fight booked, so the pickings are slim for Condit. He’s expressed an interest in rematching either Georges St-Pierre or Johny Hendricks, so if he’s willing to wait, it makes sense to book Condit against the loser of UFC 167’s main event.
Fight to make: Condit vs. loser of Georges St-Pierre vs. Johny Hendricks
Rafael dos Anjos
Rafael dos Anjos picked up his fifth-straight win in the lightweight division with a decision win over Donald Cerrone, a victory that firmly establishes him as one of the Top 10 155ers in the world.
For his next fight I’d like to see dos Anjos matched up against the winner of UFC 165’s Pat Healy vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov. All three of these fighters are on good win streaks, so matching them up with one another would help sort out who is a true contender and who is not.
Fight to make: Dos Anjos vs. the winner of Pat Healy vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Kelvin Gastelum
Kelvin Gastelum looked terrific once again, taking out Brian Melancon with a first-round submission victory to win his 170-pound debut. It was a great win for Gastelum to start his welterweight career, and even though he’s only 21 I want to see the UFC give him a step up.
One guy who isn’t booked right now is Rick Story, who is coming off a controversial split decision loss to Mike Pyle at UFC 160. Story is a tough guy and he would be the perfect test for Gastelum his next time out, just to see how good this guy really is.
Fight to make: Gastelum vs. Rick Story
Court McGee
Court McGee once again looked awesome at 170 as he beat up Robert Whittaker over the course of three rounds en route to a split decision win. It was a big win for McGee and now, 2-0 at welterweight, he deserves to fight a top guy at 170.
One fighter that isn’t booked is John Hathaway, who is one of the most underrated welterweights in the UFC. This fight makes a lot of sense for the England card in October, and I’d like to see it go down.
Fight to make: McGee vs. John Hathaway
Takeya Mizugaki
Takeya Mizugaki picked up a split decision win over Erik Perez, and now the Japanese star is on the first three-fight win streak of his WEC/UFC career.
Most of the top 10 bantamweights are booked, but Mizugaki can still fight someone on a win streak, such as the winner of UFC 165’s Roland Delorme vs. Alex Caceres. Sure, both guys are ranked lower, but both guys have great records at 135, and both would be fun matchups for Mizugaki.
Fight to make: Mizugaki vs. the winner of Roland Delorme vs. Alex Caceres
Brad Tavares
Brad Tavares won his fourth-straight middleweight fight, and even though he struggled at times against Bubba McDaniel, it was still a solid win for him and it moves him up the ladder.
For his next time out I’d like Tavares to get a step up, and one guy who would be that is Thales Leites, a former UFC title challenger who recently picked up a big win over Tom Watson at UFC 163, in his return to the UFC. Leites would be a good test for Tavares, and if he wins, he would be deserving of a Top-10 opponent.
Fight to make: Tavares vs. Thales Leites
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UFC Fight Night 27: Kampmann vs. Condit II took place on August 28, 2013 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 27 was.
