Potential matchups for UFC 324 main card winners

Justin Gaethje takes on Ilia Topuria to unify the lightweight belt

After Gaethje’s underdog victory over Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324, he will be facing Topuria to unify the belt. Topuria has been inactive while handling matters in his personal life. Assuming Topuria can return in a timely manner, he will remain the champion and take on Gaethje. 

If Topuria were to vacate the title, Gaethje would be promoted to undisputed lightweight champion. In that scenario, a perfect next fight for Gaethje would be No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan. Tsarukyan was not chosen to compete for the interim belt but is undoubtedly the true No. 1 contender of the lightweight division. 

Having a title defense over Tsarukyan would potentially be Gaethje’s greatest accomplishment in the sport.

Sean O’Malley fights Petr Yan

O’Malley had a decisive victory over Song Yadong. It was a great bounce-back performance by O’Malley with a strong third round. O’Malley definitely should be in the mix for a title shot, but it depends on the outcome. 

After Yan took back the belt from Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 323, it seems like Yan and Dvalishvili will be running it back to finish their trilogy. If Yan were to defend the belt, it would make perfect sense for a Yan and O’Malley rematch. 

O’Malley won a contentious split decision over Yan at UFC 280. This would give Yan an opportunity to prove he should’ve won their first fight. O’Malley would be able to fight for the title again and be vindicated for his win on the judges’ scorecard. 

If Dvalishvili were to win the title back in the trilogy fight, it would still make sense for O’Malley and Yan to fight again. A Dvalishvili win would be a worst-case scenario for O’Malley. O’Malley has two losses against Dvalishvili, and other contenders like Umar Nurmagomedov would most likely have priority over O’Malley.

Waldo Cortes-Acosta fights Curtis Blaydes

After getting the TKO stoppage against Derrick Lewis, Cortes-Acosta needs to be taken seriously as a contender. 

With champion Tom Aspinall still rehabbing his eye injury sustained from a foul at UFC 321, the division is halted at the top. 

Cortes-Acosta and Blaydes could be a great matchup to potentially be used to decide the next title shot in the division. Blaydes would be Cortes-Acosta’s hardest test in the grappling department. If Cortes-Acosta can finish Blaydes, he would be all but undeniable for the next title shot. 

This fight makes sense for Blaydes as well. His last fight was a split decision against unranked debutant Rizvan Kuniev. A win over Cortes-Acosta would bolster Blaydes right back into title conversations as well.

Natalia Silva fights for the title

Silva was able to defeat Rose Namajunas by decision. Silva is undefeated in her eight fights with the UFC. She has defeated three former champions in her last three fights. It’s time she gets her shot against champion Valentina Shevchenko. 

Shevchenko has pretty much cleared out the flyweight division, so a fresh face would make total sense for her. Silva’s striking against Shevchenko’s grappling could be a great matchup to see.

Jean Silva takes on Yair Rodriguez

Silva had an amazing fight with Arnold Allen at UFC 324. He was able to get the judges’ nod by dominating the third round of the fight. Silva will most likely take Allen’s spot at No. 6 in the featherweight division. A good test would be No. 3-ranked Rodriguez. 

Rodriguez has phenomenal unorthodox kicks and an unpredictable style. Silva is very similar in that way of being unorthodox. A win over Rodriguez could put Silva in the mix for the next title shot. Rodriguez isn’t necessarily close to a title shot, so he will probably need to fight down in the division to prove he’s still a contender.