Matches To Make After UFC Vegas 19

UFC Vegas 19 went down last night (Sat., Feb 20, 2021) inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Derrick Lewis pulling off a massive betting upset by delivering a brutal knockout victory via uppercut over Curtis Blaydes (see it again here) in the Heavyweight main event. In the co-headlining act, Yana Kunitskaya defeated top-ranked Ketlen Vieira via unanimous decision (recap here), while Tom Aspinall picked up a huge win by submitting Andrei Arlovski.

Winner: Derrick Lewis

Who He Should Fight Next: Rozenstruick vs Gane winner

Yes, Lewis is still calling for a fight against Alistair Overeem, but other than for personal satisfaction for “Black Beast,” I don’t see why he’s looking down when he should be looking up. With the win over Blaydes, he set himself up for a title fight, though he will have to wait until Jon Jones gets his crack at the winner of Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou. And since those two fights have yet to happen, Lewis will likely fight again. Jairzinho Rozenstruick and Ciryl Gane are set to collide next weekend (Sat., Feb. 27) at UFC Vegas 20, and I think Lewis should face the winner while he lets the championship picture clear itself up. Of course, this is all assuming “Black Beast” opts not to wait.

Winner: Yana Kunitskaya

Who She Should Face Next: Irene Aldana

Kunitskaya picked up a huge win over Vieira, which should earn her a Top 5 ranking this coming week. Up next for Yana, I would love to see UFC matchmakers match her up against Irene Aldana. The Mexican-born fighter is currently ranked No. 4, three spots ahead of Kunitskaya. That said, Aldana is coming off a loss to Holly Holm, while Yana has won two in a row. When you look at the landscape of the women’s Bantamweight division, there really isn’t anyone else that makes sense for either woman.

Winner: Darrick Minner

Who He Should Face Next: Julian Erosa

Manner picked up his second straight win after taking it to Charles Rosa to earn a unanimous decision win. Erosa, meanwhile, picked up a highlight-reel knockout win over Nate Landwehr (video here), so why not pit them against one another? Erosa has won three straight while Manner is 4-1 in his last five outings. They still have a way to go to get near a Top 15 ranking, but a win here for either man helps their cause.

Winner: Tom Aspinall

Who He Should Face Next: Chris Daukaus

Both of these up-and-coming big men had spectacular performances in “Sin City,” with Aspinall submitting Andrei Arlovski and Daukaus knocking out Aleksei Oleinik (see it). Prior to the event, I expressed my interest in seeing these two face off at this event instead of their scheduled opponents, and after their performances my interest in that fight only increased. Daukaus is 3-0 inside the Octagon while Aspinall boasts the same record under the UFC banner. And while many will say, “why do you want to put two up-and-coming studs against one another right now?” For the same reason Bellator booked Yoel Romero vs Anthony Johnson in the first round of the Heavyweight Grand Prix: you give the fans what they want to see and don’t risk losing the opportunity of it to going up in smoke. Granted, this matchup isn’t at the level of Romero vs Johnson, but you get my drift.

Winner: Phil Hawes

Who He Should Face Next: Julian Marquez

Hawes picked up his sixth straight win, second inside the Octagon, after taking out Charles Rosa. Up next for Hawes should be a fight against Marquez. The Miley Cyrus-loving Middleweight picked up a huge win over Maki Pitolo last week at UFC 258, putting him at 2-1 inside the Octagon. Both men are young in their UFC careers and have a lot to prove to the UFC matchmakers if they want to score bigger fights moving forward. There shouldn’t be too much overthinking in booking this fight, it just makes sense.

For complete UFC Vegas 19: “Blaydes vs. Lewis” results and play-by-play, click HERE!