Coming into the fight, Dawson made it clear that he believed a win over Green would be more valuable than a couple of wins over top 15 opponents. Unfortunately for him though, Green was up for the challenge of being the underdog and stole the headlines.

Let’s take a look at what could be next for the standout winners.

Bobby Green

The aforementioned Green never fails to entertain. After the UFC took a weeks hiatus, there were a lot of eyes on this event, and that’s when you can rely on Bobby Green to show out.

The 37-year-old was coming in off his win over the regressing Tony Ferguson, and it was seemingly a steep step-up in opponent, especially when you factor in Dawson’s skillset. “KGD” couldn’t make the wrestling advantage pay though as he quite simply didn’t have time to after Green shut his lights off after 33 seconds.

Ultimately, Green as well as everyone else knows that he won’t be causing a shake up anywhere near the top five, and the veteran seems to be content with the fact that he won’t compete for a title before his career is all said and done.

That doesn’t stop him from having several more fun fights though. After the impressive win on Saturday night, Green called the name of Dan Hooker. Of course, in typical Hooker fashion, he relished the thought of it.

Let’s boogie @BobbyKGreen 🥳

Moicano can suck it pic.twitter.com/2WLgRwvsVa

— Dan Hangman Hooker (@danthehangman) October 8, 2023

That fight makes complete sense for them both and should be the one that is made next.

Green’s Next Fight: Dan Hooker

Joe Pyfer

“Bodybagz” continues to impress on the big stage. Coming into this fight with Alhassan, there were a lot of people who believed this step-up came too soon and that it would be detrimental.

The 27-year-old successfully picked up his third career submission though and exhibited that he is rapidly ascending up the middleweight tree. Having said that, depending on where the UFC see his potential, he may not fight a ranked opponent for a few more fights.

Someone who sits just outside of the rankings and is on a similar time scale to Pyfer, is Brad Tavares. I feel this would be a justified step up for Pyfer, but would be a relatively even match-up.

Pyfer’s Next Fight: Brad Tavares

Joaquin Buckley

Buckley registered back-to-back wins this past Saturday with an impressive performance over the dangerous and unorthodox, Alex Morono.

Since moving down to welterweight, Buckley has looked increasingly impressive and is seemingly fighting at a far more comfortable and natural weight to him. As well as that, “New Mansa” has shown that his power has most certainly carried down with him to 170, as a few times in this fight, he rocked Morono.

The 29-year-old now needs to build on his momentum instead of going straight into a fight with another top contender. Before his fight on Saturday, Buckley mentioned how he’d like a rematch with Kevin Holland at some point as they previously fought at middleweight back in 2020. That however, should come later down the line if Buckley carries on impressing.

A fight between Joaquin Buckley and Randy Brown could sure make me excited.

Buckley’s Next Fight: Randy Brown

Drew Dober

Saturday saw the emergence of a new mythical fighter, ‘Daddy Dober.’

The 34-year-old bounced back from just his second career KO, with yet another first round finish of his own, making it seven first round finishes during his long UFC tenure.

For a few weeks now, Renato Moicano has been calling the names of Dan Hooker and Bobby Green, but now with them two looking like they want to fight each other, Moicano is without a dance partner.

Can you imagine a scrap between Moicano and Dober? I don’t want to just imagine it, I want it.

Dober’s Next Fight: Renato Moicano

Bill Algeo

“Senor Perfecto” picked up his most impressive performance thus far, with a win over Alexander Hernandez.

Algeo is now 4-1 in his last five fights, and with his extremely fun style, there are a multitude of fights that could be very fun. The one I like the thought of most though, is the battle of the Bill’s. Bill Algeo vs Bill(y) Quarantillo.

Quarantillo is a popular name amongst fans, and winning in his last outing against Damon Jackson, he has recaptured a bit of the momentum lost in the Barboza loss. The fight would be utter fireworks. Plus, Billy Q already responded and said he’s game.

Algeo’s Next Fight: Billy Quarantillo

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Bobby Green always had a good chance of beating upstart Grant Dawson, but few would have predicted it to come by a 33-second knockout. Dawson now needs to regroup, so let’s take a gander at what comes next for the lightweight, and others who struggled on Saturday.

Grant Dawson

Grant Dawson’s first UFC loss, against the unranked Bobby Green will necessitate that he fight down in the rankings in his next fight. There are several up-and-comers in the UFC lightweight division that he could test with his grappling-heavy skillset and try to get back on track against. Two such fighters are Esteban Ribovics and Elves Brener.

Brener and Ribovics will square off at UFC Sao Paulo in November. These two South American fighters have both been impressive in the UFC so far and the winner could earn a ranked opportunity against someone like Dawson, who presents a stylistic challenge that neither of them have yet faced.

Dawson’s Next Fight: Winner of Brener/Ribovics

Abdul Razak Alhassan

‘Judo Thunder’ lost to Joe Pyfer in UFC Vegas 80’s co-main event and has now traded losses and wins for five consecutive fights. Still, Alhassan remains an exciting fighter with serious knockout power in the middleweight division and can be comfortably placed against a lot of other explosive 185ers to create a banger. Someone like Punahele Soriano is also coming off of a loss and is also an exciting middleweight striker. Either man could win that fight and on paper it would seem to be an action-packed brawl that would likely not see the scorecards.

Alhassan’s Next Fight: Punahele Soriano

Alex Morono

Morono lost just his second fight in his last seven at UFC Vegas 80 when he ran into the best version of Joaquin Buckley that has been seen to date. Next up will be someone like Phil Rowe, who also saw a good run of form come to an end when he lost to Neil Magny earlier this year. Rowe and Morono both have striking chops, good jiu-jitsu, and somewhat of a weakness to strong wrestling, making them well-matched if they were to fight.

Morono’s Next Fight: Phil Rowe

Ricky Glenn

The cliff comes fast at lightweight and Ricky Glenn may be halfway down it after losing two straight by first-round knockout just two years after battling UFC Vegas 80 headliner Grant Dawson to a draw. At thirty-four Glenn needs to be tested to see what exactly he has left in the tank. He would be well-matched against more inexperienced UFC competition who have fewer miles on them, such as Yanal Ashmouz and his 1-1 UFC record. Ashmouz has the striking power to see if Glenn is still able to hang in the UFC.

Glenn’s Next Fight: Yanal Ashmouz

Alexander Hernandez

Hernandez’s gas tank issues seemed to be solved as he paced himself better against Bill Algeo in their featherweight scrap, but it was not enough as Algeo’s kicks and movement carried him to a clean decision victory. Still, Hernandez is 6-6 in the UFC and is always exciting so he is in little danger of losing his job. But if he ever wants to make a run he will have to start now. Assuming he stays at featherweight and looks for his first win there, Hernandez would be well-matched against Fernando Padilla, a fellow flawed but exciting striker coming off of a loss to veteran Kyle Nelson at Noche UFC.

Hernandez’s Next Fight: Fernando Padilla

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The lightweight pair headlined Saturday’s UFC Vegas 80, with the promotion once again holed up at the UFC Apex rather than out on the road. Quite the shame, because Saturday’s main card had plenty to crow about, and no doubt would have been a hit with fans in any building able to house more than a handful of them.

It was Green capping off the night with a 33-second KO of Dawson, care of a straight left hand than seemed to put the budding prospect down out of nowhere. Coming on the heels of a win over fan-favorite Tony Ferguson, the Dawson stoppage has Bobby “King” Green poised for great things — though if he gets his way, he’ll simply take another fight in December, looking to stay busy.

Still, in an era of fighters being marched in off the Contender Series conveyor belt, an outspoken veteran with the quirks of Green is exactly the sort of fighter the UFC needs out front and center at the moment. And in front of fans.

For his efforts at UFC Vegas 80, Green picked up one of four Performance of the Night bonuses. No Fight of the Night was awarded; instead, the promotion dished out extra cash to Joe Pyfer, Nate Maness, and Drew Dober.

Dober set a lightweight record with his latest knockout, against Ricky Glenn (technically a TKO); he now leads the 155lb division with nine. Nate Maness cashed in for a first-round TKO of Mateus Mendonca in the pair’s flyweight fight, while co-headliner Joe Pyfer collected the final bonus.

Pyfer, one of the bigger stars to come off the Contender Series in more recent years thanks to Dana White’s “Be Joe Pyfer” line, put away fellow hard-hitting middleweight Abdul Razak Alhassan. Blessed with a bit of personality (though maybe not to the extent of Green, but really, few can say that), Pyfer a.k.a. “Bodybagz” has the potential to be another star for the promotion, should he keep piling up the wins. And bodies.

All four bonus-winners will pocket $50,000 for their efforts on Saturday, on top of show/win money.

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Speaking at the UFC Vegas 80 post-fight press conference, White revealed that the promotion’s recent Noche UFC card celebrating Mexican Independence Day had changed his mind. The decision, in fact, appears to be one White simply went along with originally.

“Flags are back,” White said following Saturday’s Fight Night card, which saw Bobby Green knock out Grant Dawson in a lightweight main event. “I was on vacation during the Mexican Independence Day, and the no flag thing drove me crazy. I was like ‘f*ck that, we’re bringing flags back.’ It drove me crazy.”

Noche UFC on September 16 was staged with the Mexican audience in mind, and it’s a tradition White is hoping will continue year after year. White expanded on his choice to lift the flag ban, explaining that “there’s a lot of things that go on in a company this big. You can’t micromanage everything. And sometimes things are done for the intentions of the right reasons and whatever.”

“Everybody in this room knows how I feel about a lot of things. Basically ‘I don’t give a f*ck’ is the answer to most things. Everybody’s too soft, everybody’s too sensitive about everything.”

“When the decision was made to do this, I was just kind of like ‘eh. What’s the big deal if they don’t have flags?'” The event honoring Mexico changed his opinion on that. “Mexican Independence Day flipped the switch for me. I was like ‘that’s enough, I’m done with the no flags.'”

“Flags are back, if any flags hurt your feelings, too f*cking bad,” White finished. That should be music to the ears of many fighters, as the promotion has cards in Brazil and Canada coming up over the next few months.

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Beg to differ.

Coming off a win over Tony Ferguson and having hit a new level of fan recognition ever since his short-notice fight with Islam Makhachev in February of 2022, Green was exactly where he was supposed to be. You could do worse than Green as an Apex-card headliner, and if there was cause for criticism, it was that the UFC stubbornly refused to exit the Apex for good despite the world having opened back up following COVID.

As for Dawson, Saturday was his first chance to headline a UFC card, and in a sense, it was a trial run and a chance to bag a win over a fan favorite.

He might want a do-over.

Green came out in his traditional stance, hands low, off the opening bell, backing Dawson up to the fence. Dawson responded with a big swing, and a miss, as both men looked to feel each other out. Moments later, Green made Grant Dawson’s first-ever UFC main event a memorable one for all the wrong reasons.

Green unleashed a straight left hand, and Dawson immediately hit the dirt. He was covering up almost instantly, but even the ref appeared stunned by what had happened, leaving Green to land a few more follow-up strikes before the fight was finally called. An absolutely shocking, quick finish and a stunning defeat for Dawson, who was previously unbeaten in the UFC.

Official Result: Bobby Green def. Grat Dawson by knockout (straight left), Round 1, 0:33

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This was the biggest fight of Pyfer’s young MMA career, with his first co-main event slot coming in only his third UFC fight after knockout out veteran gatekeeper Gerald Meerschaert in his second. However it was a tough test to try and get past the heavy hands of Alhassan, who has won all twelve of his professional fights by knockout, including six in the UFC across two weight classes.

Joe Pyfer shot a takedown from the opening bell but Alhassan stood back up. Abdul was stuck in a standing arm-triangle but was able to free himself and get to striking range. The two fighters traded power punches and kicks until Joe shot another takedown. Alhassan defended with a guillotine and could not finish it but used it to get back to his feet. The pace slowed somewhat after that.

A big right hand from Pyfer froze Abdul momentarily against the fence with two minutes left and Joe upped the pace, thinking he had a hurt opponent in front of him. However Abdul hung in there and recovered, even though he ate a body kick. Pyfer had one more good swarm before the bell but Alhassan was still standing at the horn, albeit down on the scorecards.

The second round started with Pyfer still being the aggressor, moving forward and initiating most exchanges. Alhassan had a good leg kick early that backed Joe up though, changing the flow until Pyfer came back with punches and a takedown a minute later. He slammed Alhassan to the mat and settled in top half guard. Pyfer also had an arm-triangle locked up and was able to pass the guard while holding onto that. Alhassan seemed to try to tap but did it with a closed fist, confusing the referee long enough for him to go unconscious.

Joe Pyfer improved to 3-0 with three finishes in the UFC and became the first man to ever submit Abdul Razak Alhassan. In his post-fight interview he called for a new contract and upon leaving the octagon he shared a moment with Tom Brady, who was in attendance in the UFC Apex.

Official Result: Joe Pyfer def. Abdul Razak Alhassan by Submission (arm-triangle choke) Round 2, 2:05

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Despite a finish loss last year, veteran striker Morono has won five of his last six fights in the division he has been part of since 2016. Meanwhile Buckley made a name for himself off of one of the best knockouts ever but was unable to break into the top-15 at middleweight, and is now 1-0 in his new weight class as he looks to become a ranked fighter there. Morono is known as a smart and technical fighter while Buckley is known as a wild banger with knockout power, making this clash of styles an interesting one for fans.

Buckley opened the fight by charging into a takedown by sprinting across the octagon. Morono got back to his feet and clipped Buckley with a right, staggering him briefly before recovering and settling into a calmer pace. Joaquin fought southpaw while Alex fought orthodox. Two minutes in, the tables were turned when a big right hand from Buckley made Morono’s legs wobble for a moment, but he also recovered quickly. Joaquin regularly blitzed forward, swinging wildly while Morono backpedaled and looked to counter, with mixed results.

These big exchanges were interspersed with periods of both men feinting heavily with few real attacks. With fifty seconds left Buckley changed levels and shot into a double leg takedown which he landed. Morono quickly swiveled and almost arm-bar’d Joaquin, who managed to pull out and stand back up. Buckley shot another takedown in the last seconds of the round. Morono defended with a guillotine until a slam from Buckley bounced his head out.

The second round started with Buckley throwing a headkick and eating a clean counter which made him stumble back, but he was not really that hurt, moreso off-balance. Morono had trouble initiating exchanges, instead focusing on countering when Buckley attacked. Joaquin Buckley landed a big body kick halfway through the round that may have hurt Morono, but Alex played it off well after a brief moment where he looked about to double over. Buckley continued to hunt his prey, and despite having no huge moments he controlled the exchanges for the rest of the round.

Buckley opened the final round by swinging big and hurting Morono with a left hook in a wild exchange. Alex bled from the mouth thereafter. Joaquin simply walked down his foe, using his athleticism to control the pace and flow of the fight. Even an inadvertent groin strike did not stop Buckley. Morono tried to counter but when he did land it was ineffective, and his clean lands were few and far between.

Buckley had a moment of uncertainty when he got taken down off of a spinning wheel kick, but Joaquin got back up to his feet and kept pouring it on. Morono began to look badly hurt and even attempted a woeful takedown. Alex’s toughness was on full display as he continued to eat clean hooks. He dove for a leg and ended up on bottom in his guard as Buckley rained down hammerfists. Morono tried to get his legs high enough to land a submission but he had no such luck as Buckley was aware of it.

When Bruce Buffer read the scores it was no surprise that Joaquin Buckley was the unanimous winner, getting every round on all judges’ scorecards, with one judge throwing in a 10-8 for good measure. This was one of the best performances of Buckley’s career as he declared his destiny to “take the throne,” and asked for a chance to main event in the UFC in his post-fight interview.

Official Result: Joaquin Buckley def. Alex Morono by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

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“I came in with zero expectation, only reaction,” Dober said in his post-fight interview, mentioning that he knew Glenn to be a tough opponent.

Many were expecting this fight to be “Fight of the Night” worthy. Dober happened to own five post-fight bonuses in his past eight fights, and while Glenn had lacked in that department, his past three fights (which had seen him go 1-1-1) certainly did not lack in terms of entertainment. Most recently, he’d been knocked out by Christos Giagos.

A smile on his face before the first round began, Dober looked completely at ease. The moment the cage doors closed and the ref came to the middle, the smile turned serious as the two stared each other down.

Glenn opened round one with a bang, racing toward Dober the moment the round started. He shot in for a single and briefly off-balanced Dober before he regained his footing. The two came back to the center and, after circling each other trying to find opening, Dober let his hands fly.

Like a missile, heavy and precise shots from Dober quickly dropped Glenn. Taking advantage of the head, Dober attempted to grab a guillotine, but Glenn quickly reversed the position. He shot under for a deep half guard position before trying to pull Dober completely into full guard. Having none of it, Dober, who was still standing, backed out of the guard. Glenn was stood up by the referee for grabbing onto Dober’s glove.

The return to the middle of the cage spelled the end for Glenn.

Dober connected a huge shot to Glenn who dropped like a rock. Dober followed him to the ground, raining punches on “The Gladiator” before the referee stepped in and ended the fight, making this Dober’s first win as a father.

Returning to his corner, Dober knelt, a smile on his face, as he waited for the win to be made official. His wife and brand-new daughter were in the audience, cheering on the first-time father to victory.

Official Result: Drew Dober def. Ricky Glenn by TKO (punches), Round 1, 2:36

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Both fighters were coming off single wins: Algeo over TJ Brown, and “The Great Ape” Hernandez over Jim Miller in a lightweight match-up.

After the gloves were tapped, the two featherweights felt each other out before Hernandez threw a roundhouse that Algeo easily dodged, throwing in a little fun with the slip. The two traded kicks, Algeo with some neat back spins. After back and forth, Hernandez threw an overhand punch that sent “oohs” rippling through the crowd. Algeo showed off more of his spinning back-kicks. Hernandez replied with a solid shot to the body before getting out of range. Algeo ended the first round with a flurry of kicks.

Fiery exchanges erupted in round two. Hernandez came in more aggressively, a combination of punches landing on Algeo. It wasn’t long before Algeo used his length to throw more kicks. The second round came to a screeching halt at 3:13 from a potential eye poke from Algeo. Two minutes later, the round continued, Hernandez hunting for Algeo more aggressively than before. The next couple minutes involved  Algeo, with a left hand, sent Hernandez down for the second time in the fight. Hernandez quickly found his feet and recovered after clinching with Algeo against the cage. The two returned to the middle of the cage, exchanging blows until the bell rang.

Round three, Hernandez closed the distance early and forced Algeo to the cage. Easily, Algeo defended and the the two returned to the middle of the cage. Urgency between the two heated up evidenced by a few of Algeo’s punches flying wild. He pushed Hernandez from one end of the cage to the other, Algeo kept pushing the pace, forcing Hernandez to go backwards. The two battled it out for the rest of the round with Hernandez’s face taking the brunt of the damage. Algeo, with seconds left to the clock, took Hernandez down. Hernandez bounced up quickly and was met with a slick roundhouse kick from Algeo before the bell rang.

With a 30-27 scoring by all judges, Bill “Senor Perfecto” Algeo extended his win streak to two.

Official Result: Bill Algeo def. Alexander Hernandez by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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Belbita was coming off a big win at UFC 289, the promotion’s first event on Canadian soil since 2019. Looking to capitalize on that momentum, and with Karolina coming in on her own head of steam, the two got right to work on Saturday. Coming together in a clinch, they went to the ground, Kowalkiewicz coming out on top trying to flatten Belbita out. But Belbita was hip to the attempt, and managed to reverse before getting back to her feet.

Back at center, Belbita worked combinations, working in kicks. Kowalkiewicz clinched, doing her best work in close and forcing Diana Belbita to fend off a takedown. Kowalkiewicz fired an elbow off the break, but Belbita had remained upright, a small victory.

Later in the round, the pair traded across numerous exchanges, Kowalkiewicz getting the better of many. She would fire and miss with a spinning back fist, but just clipped her with another spinning attack in the dying seconds of the round. They went to the ground in a heap at the buzzer, not that it would matter.

Belbita landed a low kick early in round two, but had to fend off another takedown attempt by Kowalkiewicz. Showing some impressive balance, Belbita stayed upright, then landed a jab as the fighters reset. Kowalkiewicz answered with an uppercut. Belbita went to the body with a jab, but was having some trouble getting through Kowalkiewicz’s defenses. Kowalkiewicz, meanwhile, was finding more and more success with her jab. With about 90 seconds to go, they’d clinch up, with Belbita in control. That wouldn’t last, and in the final minute, the uppercut would again be there for Karolina Kowalkiewicz.

Mixing things up, however, Belbita caught Kowalkiewicz in a guillotine late in the round, and used it to land a throw, scoring her first takedown of the fight.

The pair went right to work again in round three, trading with Kowalkiewicz flashing a front kick at times. Belbita put a bit of power behind a kick, jumping into it. A clinch along the fence would again see Belbita fend off a takedown attempt; Kowalkiewicz backed off, then re-engaged, jabbed the body and landed a few shots as Belbita covered up.

The back-and-forth continued, with Kowalkiewicz getting the better of things. By the end of the round, Belbita was showing some damage by one eye. Kowalkiewicz would fire a spinning back kick, and the pair would trade right to the bell in an active, fun little strawweight scrap between two very game athletes. And while there might have been an argument for the first to go to Belbita, all three judges gave all three rounds to Karolina Kowalkiewicz.

Official Result: Karolina Kowalkiewicz def. Diana Belbita by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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