7 Fights We Need to See After UFC 300

7 Fights We Need to See After UFC 3000 of 7

Alex Pereira reacts to his knockout of Jamahal HillJeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Saturday’s stacked UFC 300 card in Las Vegas was expected to be one of the biggest events in the promotion’s history, and it surpassed all expectations, with wild brawls and finishes from beginning to end.

The card was headlined by a light heavyweight title fight, with Alex Pereira defending his belt against Jamahal Hill. It looked like a tough matchup for both men, but the Brazilian proved to be levels above Hill, waving off an accidental low blow to flatten his foe with a blistering left hook in Round 1.

Strawweight champ Zhang Weili also defended her belt, surviving several knockdowns to defeat Yan Xiaonan by unanimous decision in the UFC’s first all-China title fight.

Far and away the biggest moment of the night came courtesy of former featherweight champ Max Holloway, who left jaws on the floor by flattening Justin Gaethje in the final second of a thrilling clash for the BMF title at lightweight.

Arman Tsarukyan also impressed in the lightweight division on the card, fighting through two deep submission attempts to defeat former champion Charles Oliveira by split-decision—and all of that happened on the main card.

The undercard was no less entertaining, as former light heavyweight champ Jiri Procházka burst back into title contention with a thrilling knockout of Aleksandar Rakic, and former bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling made a successful debut at featherweight with a wide decision defeat of Calvin Kattar at featherweight.

Former two-time PFL champ Kayla Harrison also debuted, mauling former UFC champ Holly Holm to a second-round submission, while former flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo scored a second-round submission win of his own, tapping former bantamweight champ Cody Garbrandt in the first bout of the night.

All of this unforgettable card’s big winners can expect huge opportunities in their next fights. Keep scrolling for the contests we’re hoping will be made when the dust has settled.

Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Procházka 1 of 7

Alex Pereira knocks out Jamahal Hill at UFC 300Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Alex Pereira got the job done quickly in the UFC 300 main event, felling Jamahal Hill with a first-round left hook to defend the light heavyweight title.

Ahead of the fight, the South American repeatedly expressed interested in making an extremely quick turnaround to fight at UFC 301, set for May 4 in his native Brazil—potentially at heavyweight.

That’s definitely a fun idea, but it seems a smarter idea to book the 36-year-old for a light heavyweight title defense sometime this summer.

After all, there are two deserving contenders awaiting their chance: Magomed Ankalaev and Jiri Procházka.

Ankalaev is on an eight-fight unbeaten streak, which includes impressive finishes of Anthony Smith and Johnny Walker. He also looks like one of the toughest stylistic challenges in the division for Pereira, as a dangerous wrestler with a great chin. He definitely deserves his shot, but it feels like Prochazka has a greater claim here.

The Czech striker is a former champion and suffered a knockout loss to Pereira in his next most recent fight. However, that contest was, arguably, stopped early and his UFC 300 win over Aleksandar Rakic was more impressive than anything Ankalaev has done recently.

Give Procházka the next crack at the belt, and then Ankalaev. If Pereira wins both fights, then it might be time to send him to heavyweight.

Zhang Weili vs. Tatiana Suarez2 of 7

Zhang Weili reacts after successfully defending her strawweight title at UFC 300. Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Zhang Weili had to work hard in her latest title defense.

The champ was dropped several times in her UFC 300 co-headlining fight with Yan Xiaonan, but she controlled enough of the fight to leave the Octagon with a unanimous decision win—and the belt still wrapped around her waist.

While the champ could probably use a break after Saturday, there is an obvious No. 1 contender waiting for a crack at the title: Tatiana Suarez.

The American is unbeaten in her first 10 fights and already holds decisive wins over current and former champions Alexa Grasso, Carla Esparza and Jessica Andrade.

Suarez, 33, is more deserving of a title shot than anyone else in the division, and as a world-class wrestler with ever-improving striking, she seems to have all the skills to give Zhang a tough fight—and maybe even dethrone her.

Max Holloway vs. Ilia Topuria3 of 7

Max Holloway reacts to his knockout of Justin GaethjeJeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Max Holloway’s last-second knockout win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 will go down as one of the greatest performances in MMA history. It also set him up for title fights at both lightweight and featherweight.

It would be great to see Holloway stay at lightweight, but given that it was recently announced that reigning champ Islam Makhachev will defend his belt against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302, it makes sense for the Hawaiian to head back down to featherweight to challenge new champ Ilia Topuria.

Topuria won the belt with a devastating knockout of Alexander Volkanovski earlier this year. Even before Holloway beat Gaethje one division up, he looked like the top contender at featherweight, with two impressive wins in the rear-view mirror.

His win over Gaethje made him undeniable and also made him a credible threat to the new champ, who has looked almost unbeatable so far.

Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mateusz Gamrot II4 of 7

Arman Tsarukyan celebrates his win over Charles OliveiraJeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Arman Tsarukyan’s UFC 300 win over former lightweight champ Charles Oliveira has put him in position to rematch Islam Makhachev for the division’s title, but that opportunity has already been promised to Dustin Poirier, who will challenge the champ at UFC 302.

That means the Armenian will either need to wait for his opportunity or take another fight in the meantime.

Given how infrequently Makhachev fights, it seems like it’s in Tsarukyan’s best interest to stay busy, even if he’s risking his title shot in the process. If that’s the way he decides to play it, then a rematch with Mateusz Gamrot seems like the best bet.

The Pole is the last man to beat Tsarukyan after a unanimous-decision victory in 2022. He’s also arguably of deserving of a title shot himself, with wins over Jalin Turner, Rafael Fiziev and Rafael dos Anjos behind him.

Might as well have these two run it back for the No. 1 contender spot while we wait for Makhachev and Poirier to settle their business.

Aljamain Sterling vs. Alexander Volkanovski5 of 7

Aljamain Sterling slams Calvin Kattar at UFC 300Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Former bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling could not have looked more dominant in his featherweight debut, as he grappled an outmatched Calvin Kattar to a clear-cut unanimous-decision win.

The victory separated Sterling from a knockout loss to Sean O’Malley in his last bantamweight fight and asserted him as one of the top contenders at featherweight.

As a new face in the division, Sterling has plenty of options for his next fight, but our pick is a clash with former featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski.

The 35-year-old lost the title to Topuria earlier this year, and he has been adamant that he’s holding out for a rematch. But if the title shot goes to Holloway, he’ll need to look elsewhere for his next opponent.

A fight with a decorated champ like Sterling seems like just the ticket. Both guys are among the best fighters of this generation, and whoever wins a potential scrap between them would be hard to deny for a shot at the belt, whether it’s wrapped around Topuria or Holloway’s waist at the time.

Raquel Pennington vs. Kayla Harrison6 of 7

Kayla Harrison reacts after a strong first round against Holly Holm. Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

UFC bantamweight champ Raquel Pennington’s title reign is suddenly under serious threat. That’s thanks to one Kayla Harrison, a former PFL champ who made her UFC debut with a mauling of the great Holly Holm on the UFC 300 undercard.

Pennington, 35, had been leaning toward defending her belt against Julianna Peña in her next fight, but Peña is an ugly 2-2 in her last four fights and hasn’t fought since being walloped by Amanda Nunes nearly two years ago. The hard truth is that, outside of being a big name, she has zero claim to a title shot in 2024.

Harrison, meanwhile, is extremely deserving. She is a two-time former Olympic gold medalist, a two-time PFL champ at lightweight, and she made one of the best female fighters in UFC history look mediocre on Saturday.

Forget Peña. Book Pennington vs. Harrison this summer, and give Peña a title shot if she can beat a top-five bantamweight in the meantime.

Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Cory Sandhagen7 of 7

Deiveson Figueiredo attacks a rear-naked choke against Cody GarbrandtChris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

After choking out Cody Garbrandt in the opening bout of UFC 300, former flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo is now 2-0 as a bantamweight, having also defeated Rob Font by decision late last year.

Garbrandt, 32, wasn’t ranked heading into their fight, but the American is a former champ. Beating him in such impressive fashion should give Figueiredo a big step toward the bantamweight belt.

We’d like to see him take another step toward the belt against Cory Sandhagen. With three strong wins behind him, Sandhagen is closing in on a title shot himself, but he will have to wait for Merab Dvalishvili to get the opportunity challenge the champ Sean O’Malley.

A fight with Figueiredo would be a great way for him to stay busy in the meantime, and the winner of their fight would be hard to deny a shot at the O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili winner.