Matches to Make After UFC on Fox 16
T.J. Dillashaw left no doubt: He is indeed the better man.
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Team Alpha Male’s Dillashaw overwhelmed the Brazilian with pace, output and accuracy, and after a quasi-competitive first round, he found another gear. Barao could not keep up, undone by another difficult weight cut and the increasing amount of damage he was absorbing. A left hook marked the beginning of the end for him early in the fourth, as Dillashaw swarmed, flurried and finished. The 29-year-old champion connected on 54 percent of his significant strikes and 62 percent of his total strikes, according to preliminary FightMetric data. In two bouts with Barao, he has out-landed the Brazilian by an astounding 337-133 clip.
In wake of UFC on Fox 16 “Dillashaw vs. Barao 2,” here are six
matchups that ought to be considered:
T.J. Dillashaw vs. Dominick Cruz: There is only one big-money fight to be made at 135 pounds, and it hinges on the health of the oft-injured Cruz. Sidelined with another ACL tear, the Alliance MMA cornerstone has not fought since he blitzed Takeya Mizugaki in a 61-second knockout at UFC 178 on Sept. 27. Most projections have him returning around the start of 2016. Should Cruz be unable to compete by then, another injured contender -- Raphael Assuncao -- could be slotted in to fill the void. Assuncao was the last man to defeat Dillashaw, having done so by split decision in October 2013.
Miesha Tate vs. Ronda Rousey-Bethe Correia winner: While no one is clamoring to see it, Tate appears ticketed for a third shot -- they fought once in Strikeforce -- at Rousey, provided the champion can get past Correia at UFC 190. Tate took a unanimous decision from Jessica Eye in the UFC on Fox 16 co-main event, as she overcame a slow start to daze the Strong Style Fight Team upstart with right hands and dominate her on the mat. “Cupcake” has pieced together a four-fight winning streak since she failed to unseat Rousey at UFC 168.
Edson Barboza vs. Tony Ferguson: While still in search of a breakthrough performance against an upper-tier lightweight, Barboza remains very much a part of the picture at 155 pounds. The former Ring of Combat champion menaced the previously unbeaten Paul Felder with leg and body kicks en route to a three-round unanimous decision. Barboza, 29, has won six of his past eight bouts, losing only to Michael Johnson and Donald Cerrone. On a six-fight tear, Ferguson made significant noise at a UFC Fight Night event on July 15, as he blew out a bloodied Josh Thomson over three rounds in San Diego.
Joe Lauzon vs. Joseph Duffy: Lauzon added a win over another MMA pioneer to his resume, as he dispatched former Pride Fighting Championships titleholder Takanori Gomi with first-round ground-and-pound. Their encounter came to an end 2:37 into round one, as Lauzon jumped to Gomi’s back, flattened out the Japanese veteran and tore into him with punches. Duffy’s star is on the rise. The Irishman has posted back-to-back finishes since arriving in the UFC to much fanfare in March. Duffy submitted Ivan Jorge with a triangle choke at a UFC Fight Night event on July 18.
Renan Barao vs. Nik Lentz: Barao seems to have reached the point of diminishing returns with his weight cut at 135 pounds. The Nova Uniao standout ran out of gas in the second round of his rematch with Dillashaw, making him an easy target for the bantamweight champion. Barao has long resisted a move to the featherweight division because of the presence of longtime teammate Jose Aldo. However, Aldo appears destined for a switch to 155 pounds in the not-too-distance future, perhaps clearing a path for Barao. Such a transition would open new opportunities for “The Baron” and allow him to avoid taxing his body beyond its bounds for the sake of the scale. Lentz last fought on May 30, when he submitted to a guillotine choke from Charles Oliveira. The 30-year-old grinder already owns a victory over Barao’s Nova Uniao stablemate Hacran Dias.
Jessica Eye vs. Marion Reneau: Eye fell short in her bid to get past a divisional mainstay, losing a three-round decision to Tate. The Strong Style Fight Team export punched well in combination, countered effectively and gave Tate fits, right up until she was floored by an overhand right in the first round. Eye was never the same, ultimately bowing to the former Strikeforce champion. She now owns a 1-2 mark in the UFC. The 38-year-old Reneau saw her five-fight winning streak snapped in a decision loss to Holly Holm at UFC Fight Night “Mir vs. Duffee” on July 15.
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