Matches to Make After UFC 285

The champ is here.

Despite coming off a three-year layoff, it took Jon Jones less than three minutes to claim the vacant Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight crown Saturday night. Jones, the former UFC light heavyweight kingpin, steamrolled Ciryl Gane — choking out the former interim champ with 2:04 remaining in the first round — in the UFC 285 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Jones (27-1-0, 1 NC) backed up his claims as the best mixed martial arts fighter of all-time and became the eighth fighter in UFC history to win two belts at two separate weight classes, but the new champ already has a host of worthy challengers waiting in the wings.

On a night where two new champions were crowned and a host of promising prospects emerged, the fights to follow UFC 285 “Jones vs. Gane” could be enticing. Here are five of the best:

Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic

Jones’ first title defense as UFC heavyweight champion was teased mere minutes after the 35-year-old claimed the belt. Ever since losing the title to Francis Ngannou two years ago, former UFC champion Miocic has waited patiently for his not-so-immediate title shot. Miocic hasn’t fought since 2021, but is considered the greatest heavyweight to grace the Octagon. Jones hopes that their eventual showdown will put those claims to rest.

Alexa Grasso vs. Erin Blanchfield-Taila Santos winner

Grasso shocked the world when she ended Valentina Shevchenko’s five-year reign as the UFC women’s flyweight champion. Despite coming in as the underdog, Grasso showed that she could hang with the UFC’s longest reigning champ and seized the belt with a nasty neck crank in the fourth round. An immediate rematch is obviously in the cards, but Grasso’s accession to the title makes things intriguing at flyweight. Brazilian contender Santos nearly took the title from Shevchenko last June at UFC 275 and was supposed to fight rising contender Blanchfield at UFC Fight Night on Feb. 18. Santos stepped aside as Blanchfield took out Jessica Andrade in two rounds. If the UFC looks to rebook that fight, it could serve as the perfect lead into Grasso/Shevchenko 2.

Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Colby Covington

Geoff Neal proved to be a solid test for Rakhmonov, but “Nomad” passed with flying colors. The 28-year-old Uzbekistan native took Neal’s best shots before walking down the savvy vet and choking him out with a beautiful standing choke in the third round. Having finished all his opponents, Rakhmonov (17-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) is ready to face a top-tier welterweight. Luckily for us, he already has one in mind. If a title shot is out of the cards (it is), Rakhmonov announced that a date with No.2 ranked Colby Covington (17-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) would be the next best option. Covington hasn’t fought since beating Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision at UFC 272 but has his eyes on UFC gold. If Covington were to take the fight, a title shot would sweeten the pot.

Bo Nickal vs. Phil Hawes

Nickal’s UFC debut was short and dominant as expected. Jamie Pickett offered little against the 27-year-old phenom before submitting to the pressure of a somewhat awkward arm-triangle at the 2:54 mark of the first round. Nickal had little problems getting Pickett to the ground but needed to adjust his position multiple times to secure the choke. The UFC will be hard pressed to find someone that can test Nickal on his way up the middleweight rankings, but it has to try. It’s too early to match him against the best middleweights in the world, but a striker the caliber of Phil Hawes would be a step up. Hawes (12-4) is 2-2 in his last four and is coming off a KO loss to Roman Dolidze. Hawes proved he could be nasty in the clinch in his TKO win over Deron Winn last June and has only been submitted once in his nine-year career.

Ian Garry vs. Randy Brown

Garry showcased poise, skill and grit after rising off the floor to stop Kenan Song 4:22 into the third round. Blessed with a 74-inch reach, the 6-foot-3 Garry is a lanky welterweight that could be the next great contender to come out of Ireland. But the prospect’s habit of dropping his right nearly cost him his undefeated record (11-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in the first round. Song cracked Garry on the button, dropping the Irishman before following up with a barrage of punches. Garry recovered and went back to his gameplan — viciously peppering Song with jabs, leg kicks and straight rights — before closing the show. Garry’s dance moves need some work but it’s time for the 25-year-old to tangle with another talented striker. Brown was surging on a four-fight win streak before running into Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 284. Brown (16-5) has shared the Octagon with the likes of Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad and his 78-inch reach could negate Garry’s lengthy frame.