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.
Dan Henderson
In the main event of UFC Fight Night 68, Dan Henderson earned a huge first-round knockout of a tough Tim Boetsch to prove to all the doubters he isn’t done just yet. Beating a guy like Boetsch is impressive in its own right, but knocking him out is even more impressive, and while I do not believe Henderson is a title contender, he is absolutely Top 15 in the middleweight division.
For his next fight, Henderson should be paired up with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in a “stay-busy” fight for Jacare. The Brazilian isn’t getting the next title shot and needs to stay active while he waits to fight for gold. A fight with Henderson would be dangerous of course, but it’s also a fight that Souza should win more times than not, and I think he’d like this fight for his resume. And hey, should Hendo pull off the upset, the UFC would have him as an instant title contender at age 45. Either way, a top contender is born from it, so it makes sense to me as a five-round non-title main event in Brazil.
Fight to make: Dan Henderson vs. Ronaldo Souza
Ben Rothwell
In the co-main event, Ben Rothwell picked up another upset win, this time tapping out Matt Mitrione in the first round with a front choke. Mitrione was picking apart Rothwell on the feet, but for some reason he shot a takedown and paid for it dearly, as Rothwell caught Mitrione’s neck and choked him out cold for his third-straight win.
For his next fight, Rothwell should take on Andrei Arlovski in a rematch. The two went to war in Affliction several years ago in a great fight, and I think a rematch all these years later still makes sense. It would be a good fight for the fans to watch, and the winner of the fight could possibly get a title shot at heavyweight.
Fight to make: Ben Rothwell vs. Andrei Arlovski 2
Dustin Poirier
In a lightweight scrap, Dustin Poirier showed off his incredible boxing once again with a blistering first-round TKO of Yancy Medeiros. The Hawaiian showed off an iron chin, but Poirier kept pouring on the offence, and the referee was forced to stop the fight even though Medeiros was still on his feet.
For his next fight, Poirier deserves to fight a very high-ranked lightweight. I’m thinking the winner of Edson Barboza vs. Myles Jury, which goes down at UFC on FOX 16, makes sense. Both of them are ranked higher than Poirier at the moment, and both would make for awesome fights with “The Diamond,” so I’d like for the UFC to go this route, although I admit there are a ton of great matchups or Poirier at 155 lbs.
Fight to make: Dustin Poirier vs. winner of Edson Barboza vs. Myles Jury
Brian Ortega
In a featherweight fight, Brian Ortega knocked out Thiago Tavares late in the third round in one of the best fights of the year. This fight had it all – great scrambles on the ground, great wrestling to get it there, and some fun striking exchanges on the feet – but ultimately it was Ortega who was the better man, as he picked up the biggest win of his still-undefeated career.
For his next fight, let’s have Ortega take on Dan Hooker, who recently knocked out Hatsu Hioki at UFC Fight Night 65. With both men climbing the ladder at 145 lbs, and both guys coming off of big KO wins over veterans of the sport, it’s a good time to match them up and see who the better prospect is. And while the UFC is at it, let’s match up Tavares and Hioki too.
Fight to make: Brian Ortega vs. Dan Hooker
Anthony Birchak
In a bantamweight fight, Anthony Birchak picked up his first UFC win with an impressive first-round TKO of Joe Soto. Birchak hurt Soto with a big punch and just poured on the offence until his opponent was knocked out cold. It was as impressive as it gets for Birchak, and sets him up for a nice fight his next time out.
I think Birchak should take on Leandro Issa for his next
fight. We saw in Birchak’s UFC debut against Ian Entwistle that he didn’t have a great ground game, so Issa is the guy to test his current one. And for Issa, we know he has a ground game, but we need to find out more about his striking, so it makes sense to put him against an aggressive standup fighter like Birchak his next time out.
Fight to make: Anthony Birchak vs. Leandro Issa
Francisco Rivera
In the bantamweight bout that kicked off the main card, Francisco Rivera earned a huge victory over Alex Caceres by knocking him out in just 21 seconds. Rivera has brutal power for the bantamweight division, and any time an opponent stands with him, he is at risk of being brutally knocked out.
Caceres wasn’t ranked, but the way Rivera beat him was impressive, so he should get a step up in competition for his next fight. I think Frankie Saenz makes sense. Saenz just beat Iuri Alcantara in his last fight to jump into the Top 10. He doesn’t have the striking to stand and trade with “Cisco,” but he does have good wrestling and a good chin. A fight between these two would be a lot of fun, and the winner would get a big fight his next time out.
Fight to make: Francisco Rivera vs. Frankie Saenz
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UFC Fight Night 68: Boetsch vs. Henderson (formerly UFC Fight Night 68: Cormier vs. Bader) took place on June 6, 2015 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 68 was.
Hendo vs. Jacare?!? Are you a sadist? That's just mean.