UFC 309 wasn’t the best PPV card of the year, but it was solid, produced plenty of finishes (maybe or maybe not because of the switch back to the promotion’s old glove design), and cleared up the title picture in a division or two. Well, sort of. Where does the losing side of the card go from here? Well, one fighter heads into retirement, and four more may be back for another showing in the UFC.
Stipe Miocic
Stipe Miocic will almost certainly go down as the greatest UFC heavyweight of all time, at least for the foreseeable future. Two title reigns. The record for most consecutive title defenses in the weight class. And he fought through overlapping time periods, defeating the likes of Mark Hunt, Roy Nelson, Andrei Arlovski, Junior Dos Santos, Fabricio Werdum, Alistair Overeem, Daniel Cormier, and Francis Ngannou (yes, Ngannou avenged that loss, but their series still ended 1-1).
Is Miocic the greatest fighter of all time? No. Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, and Jon Jones, who he lost to at UFC 309, sit ahead of him. But who cares? Miocic was a soft-spoken, hard-fighting heavyweight champ who did his talking in the cage, made a name for himself, and cashed out at the right time. Retiring following UFC 309 was the right move. With a family and a whole other career as a firefighter, Miocic has enough on his plate. He has nothing left to prove. The Hall of Fame awaits.
Miocic’s next fight: probably a fire
Michael Chandler
Michael Chandler will not be seeing anyone at the top anytime soon. Through four rounds in a rematch with Charles Oliveira that served as the UFC 309 co-main event, he was dominated. Dragged to the ground and smothered. Credit to Chandler for fending off multiple submission attempts, but surviving doesn’t win points. He did rally back in round five, and made a fight out of it, but gassed out his arms before he could end Oliveira’s night.
That former Bellator lightweight champ, who came to the UFC late after a stellar career in his old home, has a losing record in the octagon. Yet he’s capable of exciting fights that few outside the likes of “Do Bronx,” Dustin Poirier, and Justin Gaethje can match. So what’s next? Well, Conor McGregor is the obvious answer, but Dana White is now claiming he won’t return until late 2025. Should Chandler wait that long? Honestly, he lost over a year of his career playing the waiting game already. At the same time, a second loss might wipe the McGregor fight off the table. And it’s still a compelling fight. So if there is a firm offer on the table, Chandler might as well take it. If not, Beneil Dariush might be an interesting option. He’s coming off two losses as well, including one to Oliveira.
Chandler’s next fight: Beneil Dariush (or McGregor, if he actually has a date set)
Paul Craig
Scotland’s Paul Craig lost a decision against stud wrestler Bo Nickal at UFC 309, and the fans did not love it. They serenaded Nickal with boos, so in a sense, Craig got off lightly, but it takes two to tango. It didn’t help that Nickal opted not to shoot takedowns against a fighter in Craig who is above-average off his back. In any case, the end result is that Paul Craig is on an 0-3 run at the moment.
Craig’s middleweight turn has not gone as hoped, as he’s 1-3 in the weight class. Still, he’s a notable veteran and worth keeping around, and will hopefully be immune to the unofficial “three losses and you’re cut” trend. The UFC is headed to London in March, and Craig fighting there makes all the sense in the world. Marc-Andre Barriault is also an unranked middleweight on an 0-3 skid, so the pairing makes all the sense in the world. Another clash of styles, and likely a loser leaves town situation.
Craig’s next fight: Marc-Andre Barriault
Karine Silva
“Fraud check” is an overused term in MMA, so stop that storyline right there. Karine Silva wasn’t “fraud checked” at UFC 309, and no one who has 17 finishes in 18 wins is a fraud. What did happen was, she encountered a veteran opponent who had better Fight IQ, who fought a smart game plan and conserved her energy.
Silva, who many see as having title potential down the line, will learn from her decision loss at UFC 309. In the meantime, barring any medical suspension, get her back in there. Everyone below Silva in the UFC’s top 15 she’s either fought already, or is booked. So it might be someone outside of the rankings that comes next. Melissa Gatto went up to bantamweight for her her last fight, and finished Tamires Vidal. If she’s coming back down, that fight could work.
Silva’s next fight: Melissa Gatto
James Llontop
Missing weight is never a good look, but to be fair to James Llontop, he took a catchweight fight with Mauricio Ruffy on short notice to keep Ruffy on the UFC 309 card. Even Ruffy thinks the UFC should keep him, and he put on an incredible showing of toughness and durability on Saturday.
The “who” here doesn’t matter. Just give Llontop some time to recover, given him proper time for a fight camp, and pair him up with an incoming DWCS fighter or someone freshly signed.
Llontop’s next fight: DWCS/newcomer
