In the main event of UFC Vegas 36, Derek Brunson submitted Darren Till by rear-naked choke. Till was able to make it to the third round but was taken down in every round and had a hard time getting back to his feet. Tom Aspinall had a first-round TKO victory over Sergey Spivak in the co-main event. Today we will be looking into what is next for the winners of UFC Vegas 36.
Derek Brunson
Following his win on Saturday, Brunson called out middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. He even mentioned that he would not mind waiting until after Robert Whittaker fights Adesanya later this year. Although waiting could be a good idea, it would be a better idea for him to stay active and take on Jared Cannonier in his next fight. A win over Cannonier would leave no doubt that he is the rightful number one contender. On the flip side, a win from Cannonier would establish his own spot.
Brunson’s next fight: Jared Cannonier
Tom Aspinall
Tom Aspinall should be looking to climb the heavyweight ranks following his win over number 14 ranked Sergey Spivak. A perfect opportunity for Aspinall would be fighting the winner of Walt Harris vs. Tai Tuivasa. Both Harris and Tuivasa have power in their hands and Aspinall has shown over and over again that he has knockout power of his own. Aspinall also has an exceptional ground game and a fight with Harris or Tuivasa would be the perfect opportunity to showcase those talents.
Aspinall’s next fight: Winner of Walt Harris vs. Tai Tuivasa
Alex Morono
Alex Morono defeated David Zawada by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 36, dominating the entire fight, and winning the fight 30-27 on all three judges’ scorecards. This win extends Moreno’s win streak to two. His next fight should be against Kevin Lee. Lee just lost a few weeks ago to Daniel Rodriguez. Following his win, Rodriguez was pushed into the number 15 spot in the welterweight rankings. Morono should be looking to get into those rankings soon and a win over Kevin Lee would help significantly in that regard.
Moreno’s next fight: Kevin Lee
Khalil Rountree Jr
Khalil Rountree Jr made headlines following his TKO win over Modestas Bukauskas this past weekend. Rountree landed a straight oblique kick to Bukauskas’ knee as Bukauskas was throwing a jab. The kick injured Bukauskas and ended the fight immediately. Roundtree has had a pretty up and down career in the UFC but he is looking to get it back on track following this win. This was his first win since April 2019 and he should be looking to fight an up-and-coming star for his next fight. William Knight would be a great adversary for Roundtree’s next fight.
Knight is 2-1 in the UFC and is coming off an impressive TKO win over Fabio Cherant a few weeks ago. Nine of Knight’s 10 wins are by knockout which plays right into Roundtree’s kickboxing style of fighting. A win over a newcomer like Knight would prove the Roundtree is ready to make another run at the light heavyweight rankings.
Roundtree’s next fight: William Knight
Paddy Pimblett
Paddy Pimblett impressively won his UFC debut by knocking out Luigi Vendramini in the first round. Pimblett appeared to be hurt twice in the first round and was able to overcome adversity to get the win. Pimblett seems to think he is the new big name in the UFC but it seems very unlikely that he gets a ranked opponent in his next fight.
Mateusz Gamrot is currently 2-0 in the UFC, knocking out Scott Holtzman in his UFC debut and submitting Jeremy Stephens in his second fight. Gamrot has never been finished in his professional career. He is also a former KSW lightweight champion while Pimblett is a former Cage Warriors lightweight champion. This fight makes sense for both parties and gives Pimblett the chance to legitimize his hype train.
Pimblett’s next fight: Mateusz Gamrot
