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 UFC 175 main event, Lyoto Machida lost a “Fight of the Night” middleweight title bout against Chris Weidman. Although the fight ended up going the full five rounds, and although Machida certainly had his moments, Weidman did more with his striking and wrestling, so Machida will have to work his way back up to a title shot.
Another fighter who is working his way to a potential title shot is Luke Rockhold, who is currently out with a broken toe suffered in his fight against Tim Boetsch at UFC 172. I believe that Rockhold and Machida would be an excellent matchup between two of the top five fighters in the division, and the winner of the fight would be very close to a crack at the middleweight title.
Fight to make: Machida vs. Luke Rockhold
Alexis Davis
In the co-main event, Alexis Davis was knocked out in brutal fashion by Ronda Rousey in just 16 seconds to lose her bid at capturing the UFC women’s bantamweight title. There is nothing more to say about Davis in this fight, other than she proved she was not in the same league as Rousey, and she will no doubt get a huge step down in her next outing.
For her next fight, I’d like to see Davis take on Jessica Andrade, who has been quite impressive in the UFC, going 2-1 with wins over Raquel Pennington and Rosi Sexton, and her sole loss coming to Liz Carmouche. I think Davis vs. Andrade would actually be a very fun and competitive striking match, and it would help determine who is still deserving of a top 10 rank, and who needs a step down again.
Fight to make: Davis vs. Jessica Andrade
Thiago Santos
In a middleweight bout, Thiago Santos was competitive with Uriah Hall but just could not get things done in the end, as he lost a close unanimous decision on the scorecards. Still, Santos looked pretty good in the fight, and deserves to stick around in the UFC.
A middleweight who is coming off a close decision loss and who would make for a good opponent for Santos is Nick Ring. I think these guys would put on a fun little kickboxing matchup, and it would help determine who should stick around the UFC and who should be released.
Fight to make: Santos vs. Nick Ring
Marcus Brimage
In a bantamweight bout, Marcus Brimage lost a relatively close split decision to Russell Doane. The fight was very competitive on the feet and on the ground, and could have gone either way, but the judges sided with Doane, and Brimage lost in his 135-pound debut.
For his next bout, Brimage should take on George Roop in a battle of two bantamweights who lost at UFC 175. The fight would be interesting because Roop is the tallest guy in the division while Brimage is one of the shortest, so that dynamic, combined with the fact that both men are of a similar standing in the division, makes me want to see this bout booked.
Fight to make: Brimage vs. George Roop
Alex Caceres
In a bantamweight bout, Alex Caceres was submitted in the third round by Urijah Faber in what was his toughest fight to date in the UFC. Although Caceres was more competitive with Faber than anyone expected, he still lost the fight, and will have to take a step back in his career now .
Another fighter who recently took a step back is Erik Perez, who lost via rear-naked choke to Bryan Caraway at UFC Fight Night 42. I believe that Caceres and Perez, who are both ranked in the UFC’s top 15, would make for a fun and exciting matchup, and I think the UFC would be wise to book this fight for the Mexico card later this year at UFC 180.
Fight to make: Caceres vs. Erik Perez
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UFC 175: Weidman vs. Machida is due to take place on July 5, 2014 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 175 was.
