UFC London featured a 13-bout card as well as a potential early Fight of the Year candidate on the undercard between Mason Jones and Axel Sola. Another six fight main card for this Fight Night featuring a rare title eliminator (maybe) bout between two undefeated fighters in Mosvar Evloev and Lerone Murphy in the main event. And in the co-main event another seldom seen feat, as Luke Riley took on Michael Aswell Jr. with both fighters combining for just two UFC wins heading into that co-headlining bout.
We’ve got a little bit of everything on this edition of Losers matchmaker, from fighters likely facing the promotional axe to fighters suffering their first ever loss.
Lerone Murphy
(#1) Movsar Evloev relied on his endless gas tank and grappling base to narrowly edge out (#3) Lerone Murphy via majority decision in the main event on Saturday. The loss was Lerone’s first of his entire pro MMA career and his UFC record now falls to 17-1-1.
Given how this one went down, five rounds, close fight, Murphy took some damage with at least an injured hip and a nasty gash. Best pairing here would be to match him up against the loser of Steve Garcia vs Diego Lopes. That fight goes doesn’t go down till mid-June, so it’d give Lerone plenty of time put still present a worth adversary.
If Diego loses, he’s lost three of his last four yes, but two of those being matchups against the Volk for the belt. If Steve loses, he’s still ripped off a seven-fight win streak with six finishes, with one stumble against a highly ranked guy. Both fighters would add nothing but legitimacy to Murphy’s already stellar record and present a good amount of time to heal up. Easy main event of a Fight Night or on a main card of a numbered event.
Murphy’s next fight: Steve Garcia vs Diego Lopes Loser
Michael Aswell Jr.
Luke Riley landed the more damaging shots on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Michael Aswell Jr. in the co main event of UFC London. Aswell was landing punches, but Riley was able to walk through them and return shots that forced big reactions out of Aswell. Michael is now 1-2 in the UFC since being signed and making his promotional debut on short notice last May.
Michael should take on either Kurtis Campbell or Yi Zha. Just depends on if it the matchmakers want to give Campbell another tall task or a more manageable one. Michael Aswell is no easy fight in the featherweight division, but he is a fight that’d be on Campbell’s level. A good back up would be Yi Zha. Yi Zha is 1-2 with the UFC after coming off of Road top UFC in 2023. He’s lost two of his last three fights with his lone victory coming against Westin Wilson who is no longer with the promotion. Yi Zha does have over 30 pro fights despite his 1-3 UFC record, so it’s a good challenge for Aswell.
Aswell’s next fight: Kutis Campbell or Yi Zha
Sam Patterson
Michael Page out pointed Sam Patterson on Saturday in a very disappointing and lackluster standup affair. Despite the fight not living up to the hype, Patterson still logged a loss, which was his second in the UFC. Sam was actually riding a four-fight win streak where he had stopped every opponent in round one. Tough break for the 29-year-old 2022 Contender Series alum as he losses all his momentum and slips to 4-2 with the UFC.
Good next fight for Sam would be for him to take on Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani. Jean-Paul is a 2025 Contender Series vet that is 1-0 with the promotion. He defeated Phil Rowe in his debut back in February via split decision. Rowe was cut after the bout, though it’s worth mentioning that he did miss weight. Jean-Paul was supposed to draw former Bellator standout, Austin Vanderford in his UFC debut, before Austin withdrew. So obviously, the matchmakers expect a lot out of him. Patterson seems like an excellent matchup for Lebosnoyani, despite coming off of a loss.
Patterson’s next fight: Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani
Austen Lane
Iwo Baraniewski starched Austen Lane in under 30 seconds to earn a performance bonus on the main card of UFC London on Saturday. Terrible showing for Lane who had been out of the octagon for nearly a year and was making his debut at 205lbs. Lane now has the incredibly ugly UFC record of 1-5 with 1 no contest. Lane’s lone win, and the reason why he’s still with the promotion, came in October of 2024 when he derailed the hype train that was Robelis Despaigne by logging a unanimous decision victory.
Lane should fight the loser of the Brendson Ribeiro vs. Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev fight. That fight goes down on April 4th so potentially the timing could work. If Ribeiro loses it’d be perfect as he’d be 2-5 with the UFC. If Abdul were to lose, he’d be 1-1 with the UFC. This is also assuming that Lane stays with the UFC and at 205lbs.
Lane’s next fight: Brendson Ribeiro vs. Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev Loser
Roman Dolidze
Christian Leory Duncan looked quick and dangerous on the way to his unanimous decision victory over Roman Dolidze on Saturday. The loss is devastating for Dolidze as CLD entered the fight unranked while Roman was ranked at #11 in the middleweight division. Even worse, Dolidze is now riding a two-fight losing streak and is 9-5 within the UFC. Dolidze’s other loss was to Anthony Hernandez via submission in August of last year.
Little bit of a weird pick here but it could make sense. Jared Cannonier. Cannonier hasn’t fought since last August when he lost a unanimous decision to Micheal Page. He’s lost three of his last four fights despite being ranked at #10 in the division currently. Jared recently turned 42 and is likely looking upwards in the rankings for fights. But the two were matched up to fight in 2023 before Cannonier injured his knee, cancelling the bout. Cannonier is 1-3 since then with a win over Gregory Rodrigues in February 2025. Dolidze is 2-3 in the division (3-3 total) in that time period. Still could be main card territory of a fight night, especially if Dolidze stays in the rankings.
Doldize’s next fight: Jared Cannonier
Kurtis Campbell
Danny Silva kicked off UFC London’s main card with a bang on Saturday, as he flattened undefeated Kurtis Campbell in “The Pink Panther’s” UFC debut. The loss was the first of 23-year-old Liverpool native’s pro MMA career as he falls to 8-1.
The UFC obviously expect a lot out of the youngster as Silva went the distance with newly ranked featherweight, (#10) Kevin Vallejos, last August. ‘The Pink Panther’ should take on Michael Aswell Jr or Kaan Ofli. Michael lost earlier on the card to an undefeated prospect, so it’d be right up his alley. Or if the UFC wants to continue to push the youngster they could match him against Kaan Ofl. Kaan is 2-2 with the UFC. Olfi is an The Ultimate Fighter Season 32 runner-up, and even though he’s riding a two-fight win streak, one of those fighters is no longer with the promotion (Ricardo Ramos).
Campbell’s next fight: Michael Aswell Jr. or Kaan Ofli
