Our first Apex show of 2026 had some good offerings. UFC Vegas 113 gave us names like Dustin Jacoby, Farid Basharat and Michal Oleksiejczuk who added on to their win streaks, as well as a pair of important ranked matchups at the top of the card. Mario Bautista sent us home on a high note, putting on what might be his best UFC performance thus far. With the first Fight Night of 2026 behind us, let’s look at what’s next for Saturday’s winners.
Mario Bautista
He may not ever become a fan favourite, but Mario Bautista keeps proving he’s a world class fighter. While his previous eight-fight win streak started with four consecutive finishes, the back half was all decisions, including the infamous one against Jose Aldo. It was those decisions that left a sour taste in the fan base’s mouth. This methodical domination of Vinicius Oliveira, capped off by a second round stoppage is exactly what the doctor ordered for Bautista.
Everybody is foaming at the mouth at the idea of Sean O’Malley fighting Cory Sandhagen. After all, it is one of the very best non-title fights the UFC could book right now. However, I do believe the promotion will try to book O’Malley in a Petr Yan rematch, leaving Cory Sandhagen as the odd man out in this equation. That leaves the door open for another rematch, the one Bautista called for in his post-fight interview.
Bautista’s next fight: Cory Sandhagen
Kyoji Horiguchi
Poor guy Amir Albazi has had to endure two separate layoffs of over a year, with the bad Brandon Moreno loss sandwiched in between. And what does he get after overcoming those layoffs? A red hot, rejuvenated Kyoji Horiguchi.
The Japanese fighter made sure Albazi had nothing for him, having him beat everywhere. That’s two very convincing wins for Horiguchi since coming back to the UFC. Usually, he might be in line for a title shot, but the title picture at flyweight has been chaotic since Alexandre Pantoja injured his arm against Joshua Van. And with Manel Kape seemingly at the top of the contenders list, that unfortunately leaves Kyoji on the outside looking in. Taking all of this into account, I think a main event in Japan against Tatsuro Taira is the best way to go.
Horiguchi’s next fight: Tatsuro Taira
Rizvan Kuniev
I would bet a substantial amount of money that this fight will not win Fight of the Year, but Rizvan Kuniev got his first UFC victory and that’s all that matters to him. It’s not just any victory, it’s one that will put him inside the top10. The downside of the fight’s utter lack of drama and entertainment value is that the UFC will be in no rush to put Kuniev in a big fight despite the fact that he just defeated a top5 heavyweight. I think the winner of the upcoming Sergei Spivac/Ante Delija bout is the best he can hope for.
Kuniev’s next fight: Spivac/Delija winner
Michal Oleksiejczuk
It wasn’t that long ago that Michal Oleksiejczuk was staring down the barrel of a three-fight skid with, perhaps, his job on the line. He has since won three straight, with this Fight of the Night over Marc-André Barriault as his latest offering. It’s easy to forget how young he was when he first joined the UFC and after going through some ups and downs, maybe the now 30-year-old Oleksiejczuk is starting to put it all together. I think a fight against fellow middleweight riser Cam Rowston would be a good test for both fighters involved.
Oleksiejczuk’s next fight: Cam Rowston
Farid Basharat
After seeing his brother Javid get back in the win column on the prelims, Farid Basharat made sure that the duo would leave the Apex with two wins. Regardless of what you may think of his actual upside, Basharat has now won 6 UFC bouts while keeping his undefeated record intact. Hardcore fans will tell you how good Jean Matsumoto is despite being 1-2 in his last three outings. Beating him is no easy task and you can add him to the list of fighters who have failed to get hand raised against Basharat. He is long overdue for a shot at a ranked opponent and I think the man who lost in our main event makes a perfect sense as his next opponent.
Basharat’s next fight: Vinicius Oliveira
Dustin Jacoby
After getting knocked out by Dominick Reyes in June of 2024, it looked like Dustin Jacoby’s UFC career was nearing its end. But since then, he has since rattled off three straight KO victories, this latest one earning him a shoutout from his former Glory Kickboxing foe Alex Poatan Pereira. There is no doubt that Jacoby has fought his way back into ranked contention.
There is a card in Macau scheduled for late May. I think Zhang Mingyang versus Dustin Jacoby is a good fight to put on that main card.
Jacoby’s next fight: Zhang Mingyang
