We’re nearly halfway through the year, and title races in several UFC divisions are heating up. Others? Not so much. Where are the title pictures in the promotion’s weight classes headed as we enter the second stanza of 2018?
Due to injuries, bad weight cuts, and more, the year has had a start-and-stop feel to the title races in many of the UFC’s divisions. We’ve still had several title fights, but haven’t seen any UFC championships change hands yet this year. That is likely to change at some point in 2018.
Despite the messy matchmaking, we’ve been treated to some impressive performances, fun match-ups, and even some dolly-drama that still boggles the mind. Given the less-than-straightforward action atop many of the UFC’s weight classes thus far this year, what do we have to look forward to the rest of 2018?
We decided to take a look at the title races in each and every division in the promotion, and where they could be headed during the next six months. We’ll have four parts, with a few weight classes featured in each part. For part three, we’re breaking down the title picture in the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions. Don’t miss part one and part two!
Light Heavyweight: The End of an Era?
The reign of Daniel Cormier as King of the Light Heavyweight division has been anything but straightforward. It would only make sense for the potential end to be foggy as well. The 205-pound title-holder will be moving up to heavyweight for the immediate future, taking on Stipe Miocic at UFC 226 for his belt.
The match-up is one of the best in the promotion’s history, and will be a huge moment regardless of who comes out on top. From Cormier’s perspective, another belt solidifies his already incredible resumé. It also gives him an accomplishment that not even Jon Jones can claim (for now). But, what if D.C. loses? Cormier could obviously return to 205-pounds and call upon the next deserving contender. But predicting when he could be ready to return after a loss, assuming he doesn’t retire, could be tough.
Do you smell that? Oh yeah, it’s pungent. That’s the signature scent of an interim title.
We’ve already been treated to a couple of interim title fights this year, and we won’t be surprised if there’s one on the way for light heavyweight. Given the uncertainty regarding Cormier’s future, having a title-holding challenger waiting in the wings isn’t the worst idea.
There’s already been talk of Alexander Gustafsson, the current number one contender, taking on former UFC middleweight champ Luke Rockhold for an interim 205-pound belt. Gustafsson has won his last two bouts, competing once in each of the last two years. Meanwhile, Rockhold is fresh off of his loss to Yoel Romero for the interim middleweight belt earlier this year.
Talk of Rockhold moving to light heavyweight has been buzzing for more than a minute. Regardless of what weight his next fight is at, Rockhold’s next appearance won’t be for a while. He injured his leg in the bout with Romero, and is unable to kick until September.
If the promotion gets impatient, they could give Volkan Oezdemir the interim title shot against Gus or Rockhold. He’ll have to get through Shogun Rua first, though. The duo were initially slated to headline UFC Chile earlier this year. But due to visa issues, the bout was moved to UFC Hamburg in mid-July. Oezdemir was one of the fighters of the year in 2017, but was defeated handily by Cormier for the belt at UFC 220 in January.
Another important light heavyweight fight is taking place at UFC Hamburg, between Glover Teixeira and Ilir Latifi. They are third and fourth ranked 205ers respectively, and aren’t too far away from the title-picture in a very shallow division. Most recently Teixeira defeated Misha Cirkunov in late-2017. On the other side, Latifi has won back-to-back bouts, including a win over Ovince Saint Preux earlier this year.
It’s an interesting time at light heavyweight in the UFC. The hierarchy in the title picture has been the same group of guys for years, and it’s looking like now could be the beginning of a transition period. A transition to what remains to be seen, but the days of the D.C., Jones, Gus, and Rumble merry-go-round at light heavyweight may be coming to a close.
Heavyweight: Is Stipe the Greatest UFC Heavyweight of All Time?
You might’ve heard, Stipe Miocic is defending the heavyweight title at UFC 226 against light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier. We can’t wait. A win for Miocic would firmly place him at the top of the heap for UFC heavyweight champions. He’s already defended his belt more times than any champion before him. Giving Cormier his first career loss at heavyweight would cement his legacy as an all-time great.
Whoever is left holding the title after UFC 226 will probably find themselves defending the belt later in 2018. Ending the calendar year with a few high-profile pay-per-views, the promotion will want their heavyweight title available for a card. Dana White and co. will have a few interesting options for their choice of challenger for the heavyweight champ later this year.
Curtis Blaydes officially entered the title picture at UFC 225, defeating Alistair Overeem via third-round TKO. That win improved his career record to 10-1 as a pro. It also gives Blaydes two marquee victories in 2018, after he earned a decision victory over Mark Hunt in February.
The one guy to defeat Blaydes, Francis Ngannou, has the opportunity to get back into the discussion as well. The former title-challenger returns to the Octagon for the first time since his loss to Miocic at UFC 220, taking on Derrick Lewis at UFC 226 in July. It doesn’t take much more than a win and the ability to draw eyeballs to earn a title shot in a division as shallow at heavyweight. As long as Ngannou can get back on the winning track, he’ll be up for title-fight consideration.
Don’t forget about Alexander Volkov, either. He’s gone 4-0 since joining the promotion in November of 2016, and managed to impress everyone in his most recent performance. The Russian handled former title holder Fabricio Werdum with relative ease in March, ending the fight with a fourth-round KO. A title shot in 2018 might be a bit of a stretch, but he deserves a match-up with another title contender later this year.
We should probably mention Brock Lesnar, too. There are rumors he’ll be at UFC 226 for Miocic-Cormier, and talk of his return to the Octagon has been going on for months. Would Lesnar get a title fight right away? Maybe. Maybe not. But as we’ve mentioned, heavyweight isn’t full of fresh contenders at the moment.
Lesnar has his issues to deal with reagrding USADA, but we’re sure the promotion could figure something out. They’ve gamed the system with Lesnar before. They could easily do it again. Whether or not Lesnar as the potential heavyweight champion is the right move for the promotion is a different discussion. Don’t be surprised to see the WWE Superstar mentioned as a potential title fight option.
We’d prefer Lesnar stay away from the belt, and closer to a bout with Jon Jones. But we’re not getting our hopes up with anything related to Jones. We’ll be happy with our Miocic-Cormier match-up, and take everything else as icing on the cake.
Let us know what you think about the title-races in these divisions, and where you think they’re headed for the final half of the year! Comment below, on Facebook, or reply on Twitter! Don’t forget to check out the parts that follow this piece for a look at the rest of the title-pictures in each and every UFC division for the rest of 2018. Here’s part one, and part two, of the series thus far.
