On Saturday night, UFC 184 emanated live on pay-per-view from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The stars were out in droves in the City of Angeles, and the UFC’s biggest star did not disappoint, as Ronda Rousey defended her UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship with a 14-second armbar submission of undefeated challenger Cat Zingano. It was one of four main card fights that ended in a finish. It was an exciting night, but now it’s time to look forward. Below, LWOS books the fights for the UFC 184 main card winners and losers:
Ronda Rousey: Rousey picked up another first round armbar victory, but this time she did it faster than she ever has. The UFC keeps lining them up, and Rousey keeps knocking them down with ease. Everyone wants to see Rousey versus Invicta FC Featherweight Champion Cris Cyborg next, but Cyborg doesn’t appear to want to drop down to bantamweight. Therefore, up next for Rousey should be undefeated Brazilian Bethe Correia. Correia has defeated two of Rousey’s teammates, and she continues to call the champ out after each of her victories. With the Cyborg fight off the table for the time being, Rousey vs Correia is the championship fight to book.
Cat Zingano: This was the worst possible way this fight could have gone for Zingano. Known as a slow starter, it looks like she ended up starting too fast, as she got caught out of position right away, and Rousey is the wrong opponent to get caught out of position against. Two or three wins should get Zingano back to a title fight, and her first foe on that quest should be Sara McMann. McMann, another former title challenger, is coming off of a majority decision loss to Miesha Tate in January. A win for either woman against the other would be a huge step towards acquiring another title shot against Rousey.
Holly Holm: Holm looked solid in her split decision win over Raquel Pennington, but fans were expecting more from the former boxing champion in her UFC debut. She’s still a win or two away from a title shot herself, and the next opponent on that path should be Jessica Eye. Eye is coming off of an impressive win over Leslie Smith last November, and she, like Holm, is a few wins away from a title shot. Plus, like Pennington, Eye always comes forward, and a fight between her and Holm should be exciting.
Raquel Pennington: Pennington almost pulled off the upset on Holm with a strong third round, and she even got the nod on the scorecard of one judge. In the end though, it just wasn’t enough. Up next, Pennington should take on her fellow TUF 18 cast member Jessamyn Duke. Pennington and Duke met on the show in the quarterfinal round, with Pennington winning a unanimous decision in a fun, back-and-forth fight. Since the show ended, both ladies have had mixed results in the UFC, and now’s the time to book the rematch. Both have improved too, so the rematch should be even better than their initial reality show meeting.
Jake Ellenberger: Ellenberger picked up a win he badly needed Saturday night, and he did it in super impressive fashion. The choke he secured on Josh Koscheck was one of the gnarliest in UFC history. For his next fight, he should square off with Rick Story. Story is coming off of a main event win over Gunnar Nelson last October. This would not be the first Ellenberger vs Story fight though. The two initially met in June of 2008 in the co-main event of SportFight 23, with Story picking up a unanimous decision win.
Josh Koscheck: Koscheck has done so much in MMA. He was on the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter and he’s been in the UFC for a decade, fighting 24 times, including challenging once for the UFC Welterweight Championship. Now on a four fight losing streak, he has nothing left to prove, and I personally would like to see him retire. If he chooses to fight on, he should fight the loser of Demian Maia vs Ryan LaFlare. Maia and LaFlare fight in the main event of UFC Fight Night 62 in Brazil in three weeks.
Alan Jouban: Saturday night saw Jouban pick up an awesome standing (T)KO of Richard Walsh with elbows. It was a spectacular knockout, and another man who recently had a spectacular knockout was Matt Dwyer. The Canadian travelled to Brazil last weekend and knocked out hometown favorite William Macario with a phenomenal superman punch. Pair up Jouban and Dwyer, and odds are we’ll see another great finish via strikes.
Richard Walsh: Walsh has had a disappointing go of it recently, losing a decision to Kiichi Kunimoto in his previous fight that many thought he won, and now getting knocked out in dramatic fashion by Jouban. If the UFC keeps him around, a fight against Sultan Aliev would be solid. Aliev just made his UFC debut in January, losing to Kenny Robertson. Walsh and Aliev are both strong and aggressive, so pairing them up would make for a good, gritty scrap.
Tony Ferguson: Ferguson looked great in his victory over Gleison Tibau, and the TUF 13 winner is now 8-1 in the UFC. Next, he should fight the winner of Al Iaquinta vs Jorge Masvidal. Iaquinta and Masvidal face off in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 63 next month in Fairfax, Virginia. Ferguson versus Iaquinta or Masvidal would be a fantastic fight.
Gleison Tibau: Tibau has now been with the UFC since 2006. In that time, he’s racked up 25 fights, including a Submission of the Night and Fight of the Night bonus. Joe Lauzon has also been with the UFC since 2006. In that time, he’s tallied 18 fights, including a Knockout of the Night bonus, five Submission of the Night bonuses, and six Fight of the Night bonuses. These two long time UFC vets have never crossed paths, and now is the perfect time for them to finally throw down.
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