Matches To Maker After UFC Long Island

UFC Long Island went down last night (Sat., July 16, 2022) in what truly was an action-packed event that featured eight stoppage wins. In the main event, Yair Rodriguez scored a technical knockout win over Brian Ortega after “T-City” suffered a separated shoulder trying to escape from a submission attempt (see it here). In further action, Lauren Murphy dominated Miesha Tate, while Amanda Lemos forced Michelle Waterson to tap to a guillotine choke (see it here).

Winner: Yair Rodriguez
Who He Should Face Next: Josh Emmett (not for an interim title)

Given the way the fight ended, it’s easy to assume that the two will run it back in the future. That said, Ortega could be out awhile so don’t expect an immediate rematch. Rodriguez wants a shot at the Featherweight title, but Alexander Volkanovski is on the mend and could sit out until late 2022. Furthermore, Josh Emmett is waiting in the wings for his shot at UFC gold, and currently shares the No. 3 spot with Rodriguez. Dana White is open to the possibility of an interim Featherweight title fight between Rodriguez and Emmett, but if you ask me, making an interim title isn’t fair to Volkanovski. He literally just defend his belt and if he does sit out six months, that’s no cause for an interim title. Make the fight, just leave the belt out of it.

Winner: Amanda Lemos
Who He Should Face Next: Tecia Torres

Lemos got back in the win column with a huge win over Michelle Waterson, forcing “Karate Hottie” to tap in round two. She should overtake Waterson for the No. 10 spot in the rankings, allowing her to set her sights on higher-ranked foes. Lemos — who is 6-1 in her last seven fights — is a great match up for Torres, who is coming off a loss to Mackenzie Dern. “Tiny Tornado” was on a three-fight win streak prior to the loss and is currently ranked No. 8 at 115 pounds.

Winner: Li Jingliang
Who He Should Face Next: Neal vs. Luque winner

Jingliang turned things around for himself after he was manhandled by Khamzat Chimaev, scoring an impressive knockout win over Muslim Salikhov in round two. The 16-fight UFC veteran is trying to crack the Top 10, and a win over either Geoff Neal or Vicente Luque should do the trick. The two are set to collide on Aug. 6, 2022, with the winner facing off against Jingliang.

Winner: Matt Schnell
Who He Should Face Next: Matheus Nicolau

Schnell earned some fans last night after pulling off a great comeback win over Su Mudaerji. Ranked No. 8, Schnell is slowly making his way up the 125-pound ladder despite some inconsistency over the last three years. As for Nicolau — winner of five straight inside the Octagon — he currently sits at No. 7, one spot ahead of Schnell. The winner could make greats strides toward Top 5 positioning and inch closer to their first-ever shot at a UFC title.

Winner: Shane Burgos
Who He Should Face Next: Movsar Evloev

Burgos picked up his second straight win after an exciting win over Charles Jourdain in the stacked Featherweight division. Burgos is starting to find his groove again after suffering back-to-back losses to Josh Emmett and Edson Barboza, A fight against Evloev would be a huge test for Burgos and give him the chance to get closer to the Top 10. Evloev is undefeated at 16-0, 6-0 inside the Octagon. He is coming off a win over Dan Ige, but is still only ranked at No. 13. A win over Burgos bumps him up, while “Hurricane” can up his momentum by handing Evloev his first-ever loss.

Winner: Lauren Murphy
Who He Should Face Next: Taila Santos

Murphy earned a dominant win over former women’s Bantamweight champion, Miesha Tate, one fight removed from her crushing loss to division champion, Valentina Shevchenko. Speaking of which, Santos also recently failed in her bid to dethrone Shevchenko, though she did put up a better fight than most. If either of these two ladies want another crack at the dominant champion, they have to get a few more big wins, so why not try to get one over the other?

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For complete UFC Long Island results and coverage click here.