UFC Vegas 64 saw Amanda Lemos pull off a moderate upset, serving up the first setback for Marina Rodriguez since a loss to Carla Esparza two years ago.
Had Rodriguez picked up the win, we might be talking title shot. Now, she’ll need to bounce back, but against who? Let’s look at that, and what comes next for the losing side of Saturday’s main card.
Marina Rodriguez
Brazil’s Rodriguez would have been a lock for a title shot had she won this weekend, and Carla Esparza claimed victory next week. Esparza has never really moved the needle, but the rematch pretty much sold itself. Now, however, the strawweight standout needs a bounce back fight.
She has a few options. There’s Jessica Andrade, who she’s never faced, and another former champ in Rose Namajunas. While the rankings will likely be updated later this week, right now, Rodriguez is #3 and Namajunas #1 in the 115lb division. That seems like the fight to make, assuming Namajunas is ready to return sometime in early 2023.
Rodriguez’s next fight: Rose Namajunas
Daniel Rodriguez
UFC Vegas 64 wasn’t a great night if your name was Rodriguez. In the co-main event, Daniel Rodriguez fell to Neil Magny via D’arce choke, part of a historic fight that saw Magny surpass Georges St. Pierre as the UFC’s all-time welterweight wins leader.
“D-Rod” had been coming off a win over Li Jingliang, and had won four straight. He took the Magny fight on a little over a month’s turnaround, so this loss won’t set him back too much. Michel Pereira is ranked #15 at welterweight, one spot behind Rodriguez. Magny was one spot ahead of him. Pereira doesn’t have a fight booked; him and “D-Rod” would be lit.
Rodriguez’s next fight: Michel Pereira
Darrick Minner
Most of the talk surrounding Darrick Minner’s loss to Shayilan Nuerdanbieke has been regarding either his injury (and when it occurred), and/or the suspicious betting activity that transpired in the hours before the fight.
None of that should matter when it comes to Minner’s future, however. What should matter is that Minner dropped his third straight loss in the bout, and is now 2-4 in the UFC overall.
Minner may be on the bubble here. If he sticks around, a match-up with Chase Hooper would be interesting. Both are adept on the ground, with a lot of fun transitions expected. Hooper is coming off a recent loss as well.
Minner’s next fight: Chase Hooper
Nate Maness
Maness looked like death cutting weight for UFC Vegas 64. He wound up caught in a guillotine, suffering his second straight loss. The question now becomes, does Maness stick around flyweight? Saturday was his debut; if he can fine tune the weight cut, he might want to give it another go.
If he does stick around 125lbs, C.J. Vergara just suffered a setback, so the timing works.
Maness’ next fight: C.J. Vergara
Mark O. Madsen
Olympian Mark Madsen (that’s Mark O. Madsen, not Mark O’Madsen, which some people still haven’t twigged to) fell to Grant Dawson on Saturday. The submission loss is the first ever suffered by the Dane, who was unbeatable up to that point. Dawson missed weight for the fight, but the result is the same.
Let’s look to have Madsen bounce back in 2023 with a fight against Mike Davis. This forgoes the UFC’s usual winner vs. winner, loser vs. loser pattern outside of the top names, but Madsen has plenty of upside, and Davis has won three straight.
Madsen’s next fight: Mike Davis
