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.
Lyoto Machida
In the main event of UFC Fight Night 30, former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida knocked out Mark Munoz with a head kick in the first round to make an unbelievably successful 185-pound debut. I believe that a combination of factors — including knocking out Munoz, being a popular and “name” fighter, and being able to fight in the U.S., unlike Vitor Belfort — has put Machida in a position to challenge for the UFC middleweight title.
If Chris Weidman beats Anderson Silva in their rematch later this year at UFC 168, I think it makes sense to have Weidman take on Machida because it’s the biggest fight out there outside of Belfort vs. Weidman. But unlike Belfort, Machida isn’t on TRT, so the UFC doesn’t have to worry about licensing issues with him.
I think Machida vs. Weidman is an extremely interesting matchup between two elite mixed martial artists, and I would love to see it in 2014. Now, let’s see if Weidman can take out Silva for a second time and make it happen, because if Silva wins, I don’t expect him to fight his close friend Machida – although he may very well give the belt up. We’ll see.
Fight to make: Machida vs. Chris Weidman if he beats Anderson Silva
Jimi Manuwa
In a main card matchup between two solid light heavyweights, Jimi Manuwa upped his undefeated record to 14-0 with a TKO victory over Ryan Jimmo after an in-fight injury to the Canadian. It was the 13th knockout of his career, and his third finish in three fights in the UFC.
Although the stoppage is listed as TKO (injury) in the record books, make no mistake about it, Manuwa was beating up Jimmo really good, and was well on his way to a victory regardless
At the post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White revealed he had been texting with UFC matchmaker Joe Silva during the show that he wanted to give Manuwa a step up in competition.
I would like for that to be Thiago Silva, who would provide a great litmus test to see just where Manuwa is at. It’s a terrific matchup between two strikers, and I think the UFC would be making a mistake if they booked any other fight right now.
Fight to make: Manuwa vs. Thiago Silva
Norman Parke
In a lightweight fight, TUF Smashes winner Norman Parke picked up his third-straight win in the UFC by defeating the formerly undefeated Jon Tuck via unanimous decision. It wasn’t the best performance by Parke, as he never really opened up for a stoppage when his opponent was clearly tired, but at the end of the day he was effective overall and got the win.
For his next fight, I’d like to see Parke take on Al Iaquinta, who won his second-straight fight on the Facebook prelims. It’d be a good matchup stylistically and it would help filter out the middle rung of the UFC lightweight division a bit more.
Fight to make: Parke vs. Al Iaquinta
Nicholas Musoke
In a middleweight matchup, UFC newcomer Nicholas Musoke had an impressive debut with a submission victory over veteran Alesssio Sakara that will open up some eyes to the talented fighters Musoke’s native Sweden is developing these days.
For his next fight, I’d like to see Musoke take on Brad Scott, who picked up a submission win over Michael Kuiper on the prelims. I think this would be a very good fight, and it would help determine who moves up in the UFC middleweight division, and who stays at the bottom of the ladder.
Fight to make: Musoke vs. Brad Scott
John Lineker
In the bout that kicked off the main card, John Lineker knocked out Phil Harris with a punch to the body in the first round, to up his record to 4-1 in the UFC flyweight division – or should I say catchweight, seeing as he has missed weight in three of five Octagon bouts.
According to Lineker, he will reach out to nutritionist Mike Dolce in an effort to get him down to 125 pounds for his next fight. And if the UFC can trust him on this matter and not force him to move to bantamweight, then I want them to book Lineker vs. John Dodson next.
These two guys are the most powerful punchers in the flyweight division, and perhaps two of the top pound-for-pound punchers in the world, and if they fight each other, it couldn’t be anything other than fireworks.
Fight to make: Lineker vs. John Dodson
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UFC Fight Night 30: Machida vs. Munoz took place on October 26, 2013 at Phones 4u Arena in Manchester, England.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 30 was.
