Fight fans and experts alike went into UFC 185 with a certain set of expectations, but in many bouts, it seemed like the exact opposite occurred. After the main event and co-main event matchups, Rafael dos Anjos and Joanna Jedrzejczyk hoisted two title belts above their heads and were crowned the two new faces of the lightweight and strawweight divisions. They were not the only winners on this card, however, and these suggested fights should be booked to continue to move their respective careers forward:
Rafael dos Anjos vs. the winner of Donald Cerrone vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Rafael dos Anjos blew the doors off of Anthony Pettis and walked out of Dallas with the UFC lightweight title. The story of his impressive turnaround has been amazing to witness during these last few years. If he is to keep writing that tale, he will need to defeat Donald Cerrone or Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Cerrone and Nurmagomedov are due to face each other at UFC 187. “The Eagle” has a victory over RDA, while “Cowboy” was soundly defeated by the new champion. Still, a fight against either man would be captivating because as dos Anjos has proved, competitors can vastly improve over time.
Rafael dos Anjos defending against either Donald Cerrone or Khabib Nurmagomedov would be best used as a co-main event for a UFC PPV featuring one of the promotion’s bigger stars in the main event portion.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Tecia Torres
Joanna Jedrzejczyk looked dominant in her win over Carla Esparza in the co-main event. Her ability to land crisp strikes while avoiding any type of takedown looked like it could be a problem for any woman that comes her way. Although the strawweight division continues to sort itself out, Tecia Torres has begun to emerge as an interesting character, one who could find herself in line for a title shot if she can get past Angela Hill.
Torres and Hill are booked to fight at UFC 188 in Mexico City. Torres, like JJ, has a high level striking game, so it would be interesting to see if she can match the champion in that department.
Jedrzejczyk vs. Torres best works as a co-main event for a UFC PPV that features another title bout above it on the card.
Henry Cejudo went back to his roots to defeat Chris Cariaso. He hit the former title challenger with takedown after takedown to show that he was as dominant in that area as they come. Despite only his second UFC win, his first as a flyweight, Cejudo is already being mentioned as a potential contender for Demetrious Johnson. But instead of being thrown directly into the title fight, Cejudo should be given 1 or 2 more bouts by the UFC. Ryan Benoit would be a strong test.
Earlier on the UFC 185 prelims on Fight Pass, Benoit pulled out a stunning win over Sergio Pettis in a bout which he had to come from behind to clip the “Phenom” in the second round of. He would be a large underdog against Cejudo, just as he was at UFC 185, but as with any other part of MMA, there’s always the puncher’s chance.
Henry Cejudo vs. Ryan Benoit should be added to the UFC 188 card as the opener to the PPV portion of the event.
Alistair Overeem vs. Josh Barnett
At 34 years of age, Alistair Overeem still has some time left to compete in the cage. The UFC has long wanted the multiple-time champion to compete for gold, but he has not been able to reach that point. Putting him on a path towards that belt is the best plan of action, and said path should begin with one Josh Barnett.
Barnett has not competed since UFC 168 in 2013 where he was stopped by Travis Browne. He’s stayed active on the grappling and professional wrestling scene, but has not made much of an attempt to get back into the Octagon. This fight would afford Barnett the opportunity to earn the payday while helping bridge a path towards the title for Overeem that will allow him to avoid having to face the men in the division against which he would be a large underdog.
Alistair Overeem vs. Josh Barnett should be used as a main card bout for a UFC event that is featured on the Fox network.
UFC 185 was a very strong event from start to finish. After multiple stoppages and exciting bouts all around, the combat sports fan community was widely pleased with how their night of fights turned out. Looking forward, these suggestions are the best routes to take for the individuals who had their hands raised in Dallas, suggestions that will hopefully lead to more exciting nights of fights in the future.
**********
UFC 185: Pettis vs. dos Anjos took place on March 14, 2015 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 185 was.
