Fortunately for the rowdy Texans, the fights lived up to the expectation with nine finishes from 12 fights. Let’s take a look at what could be next for the winners on the night.

Arman Tsarukyan

The Armenian extended his win streak to three in a row with an emphatic win over Beneil Dariush.

Throughout fight week, the 27-year-old’s attention seemed elsewhere as he was involved in two separate hotel scuffles with Bobby Green. Come fight night though, he was all in on “Benny D”, and it didn’t take long for him to show once again, why he is a clear contender.

It’s performances like that, that normally cause a mix up in a division. Charles Oliveira is seemingly the next contender for Islam Makhachev, but since losing his title to the Russian, has only fought once. Because of how dominant the loss was, I believe he needs to do more to claim another title shot.

There is undoubtedly more demand for “Do Bronx” to get the next title shot, but that is because of his sheer popularity and not how competitive the fight would be. I would opt for a more competitive fight and that’s why I’d edge with Tsarukyan getting the next title shot, although it likely goes against the grain and won’t become a reality.

If “Ahalkalakets” doesn’t get the next title shot, it begs the question who will he fight? The current issue with the deepest division in MMA, is there are three-four fighters at the top who feel entitled. Dustin Poirier has grown stubborn as his career has gone on, Charles Oliveira’s popularity just gets him places and Justin Gaethje is the BMF, so he feels he can makes demands.

If Tsarukyan’s next fight isn’t for a title, then Dustin Poirier has to finally defend his ranking.

Tsarukyan’s Next Fight: Islam Makhachev or Dustin Poirier 

Jalin Turner

All week, all signs led to Jalin Turner walking in to the Octagon underprepared and uninterested in being there. At the UFC Austin media day, Turner admitted that he felt obliged to take the fight and wasn’t prepared.

Then weigh-ins came and it’s fair to say you could tell it was late notice for him. But then Saturday came. “The Tarantula” flipped a switch and entered his danger zone. Despite some of the worst refereeing in MMA history, Jalin Turner scored a flash KO over the extremely durable, Bobby Green.

After the performance fellow lightweight, Renato Moicano, immediately threw his name in the hat to fight Jalin Turner next. As much as that’d be a fun fight, I think there are more meaningful fights to make for the 28-year-old. Rafael Fiziev is scheduled to return from injury early next year, and for me, that fight could make sense for both.

Turner’s Next Fight: Rafael Fiziev

Deiveson Figueiredo

“Dues da Guerra” entered the picture at bantamweight this past weekend, with a solid performance over the always gritty, Rob Font.

Despite the big size disadvantage, the former flyweight champion made some great adjustments to pick up a win in his maiden voyage at 135lbs. The 35-year-old has made it clear that he hasn’t moved up just to become a place-holder. With the win, he will now enter the bantamweight top 10.

Despite Petr Yan being on a three fight losing skid, he still occupies rank five in the division. With his future looking uncertain, it is hard to predict what his next move will be, but I like the thought of Yan vs Figueiredo.

Figueiredo’s Next Fight: Petr Yan

Sean Brady

The 31-year-old Brady welcomed Kelvin Gastelum back down to the 170lb division at UFC Austin, whilst bouncing back from his first career loss.

After being knocked out by Belal Muhammad, Brady lost a lot of stock as he was a blue chip prospect prior to that. The Philadelphian seemed to hit a turn of luck after his first loss, as he picked up a few injuries along the way, and it kept him out of the Octagon for over a year, despite being booked on two separate occasions.

Despite Brady currently being ranked ninth in the welterweight division, he only has one win against a current ranked welterweight, and that is Michael Chiesa who will likely fall out of the top 15 before the year is wrapped up.

With Brady returning to the win column, it is time for him to rebuild some momentum, and not to be thrusted back into a top five fight. Geoff Neal could make sense with that in mind.

Brady’s Next Fight: Geoff Neal

Joaquim Silva

The Brazilian upset the majority of fans on Saturday night, edging a decision over the fan favourite, Clay Guida.

Ultimately the decision could’ve gone either way and some fans were trying to make their case for why Guida should’ve been awarded the win. Despite Silva being the one with green next to his name, it wasn’t impressive enough that it’ll catapult him up the division.

The first name that comes to mind for Silva next, is Claudio Puelles.

Silva’s Next Fight: Claudio Puelles

Dustin Stoltzfus

Looking the best he’s possibly ever looked on Saturday at UFC Austin, was Dustin Stoltzfus. The Pennsylvanian nullified the power of “Puna” Soriano, and eventually found the submission, to return to the win column.

A matchup that could be fun stylistically, is Dustin Stoltzfus vs Jacob Malkoun.

Stoltzfus’ Next Fight: Jacob Malkoun

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Where do the losers go from here? Here’s our take.

Beneil Dariush

When 2023 started Beneil Dariush was on an eight-fight winning streak and within spitting distance of a title shot. Now, after his loss to Arman Tsarukyan, he has been knocked out twice in a row and has some tough decisions to make at age 34. The entire lightweight division is available though, so there are plenty of options for his next fight, like rising stars Benoit St. Denis and Jalin Turner.

Benoit has not lost at lightweight in his career and is carrying a five-fight finish streak into this bout. He is probably most deserving of a massive step up in competition at this point, and Beneil has been consistently willing to give guys below him a chance to fight him. It is a crucial fight for Beneil to regain momentum in the tail end of his career, but Benoit is a dangerous opponent for anyone. Their well-rounded and dangerous skillsets would make for a compelling matchup.

Dariush’s Next Opponent: Benoit St. Denis

Bobby Green

Bobby ‘King’ Green had just the second finish streak of his UFC career (the first came in back-to-back stoppages way back in 2013) snapped when Jalin Turner knocked him out cold in the first round of UFC Austin’s co-main event. Green was ranked thirteenth in the UFC lightweight division coming into the fight. He will likely hold onto his ranking when the update comes out on Tuesday, but he may have to give a chance to an unranked fighter in his next fight.

Bobby could defend his ranking against fighters like Mateusz Rebecki, Terrance McKinney, or Drakkar Klose, all of whom bring winning streaks and impressive resumes to the table. At this point, Rebecki is most deserving of a shot at the rankings; he’s won all three of his UFC fights by different methods and has not lost an MMA fight since 2014. The Polish powerhouse has the potential to go far in this sport if he can get past a veteran like Bobby Green, though Green is far from nearing the end.

Green’s Next Fight: Mateusz Rebecki

Rob Font

The Bostonian bantamweight Rob Font fell to 1-4 in his last five with his loss to Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC Austin. Although all of his losses are to elite competition, it is still time for Font to take a decent-sized step back in the rankings, like when he fought and beat Adrian Yanez earlier this year. Jonathan Martinez, who also beat Yanez, is most deserving of a step up in competition given his six-fight winning streak. This fight would be a strikers delight in a stacked bantamweight division, with the winner securing their place in the top ten.

Font’s Next Fight: Jonathan Martinez

Kelvin Gastelum

Former middleweight title challenger Kelvin Gastelum thought to retake the welterweight division by storm at UFC Austin. Sean Brady had other plans as he dominated Kelvin with his wrestling en route to a third-round Kimura submission. This is not to say Gastelum cannot have success at welterweight. He is more appropriately sized for this weight and would likely be competitive against a number of welterweights.

A fighter like Kevin Holland, who is all about fun fights, would make a good opponent. Alternatively, Michael Morales is an option if the UFC do not feel Kelvin deserves another shot at a ranked opponent yet. But Holland and Gastelum are both names, so that fight would draw a lot of attention and makes sense as a match-up of exciting strikers.

Gastelum’s Next Fight: Kevin Holland

Clay Guida

After a two-fight losing streak at age 41, Clay Guida should seriously consider retirement. He has fought 36 times for the UFC, going 18-18 in those fights and achieving near-unrivaled longevity. Guida also had one of the best fights ever and most recognizable looks ever, as his rugged caveman hair makes him stand out in any crowd. Maybe at this point he is just doing it for the love of the fight, but he should probably call it quits now, or soon, before damage catches up to him and he takes some bad knockouts like so many others have in their twilight fights. He may, however, opt to stick around at least to the milestone UFC 300 event, expected sometime around April 2024. If that happens, book him against a fellow veteran— Ricky Glenn could work.

Guida’s Next Fight: Ricky Glenn

Punahele Soriano

After going 1-4 in his last five to fall to a 3-4 UFC record, there is not much doubt that the promotion will part ways with Hawaiian middleweight Soriano. His Xtreme Couture coaches and teammates will surely have his back and Puna has the talent to succeed elsewhere, but the UFC generally does not keep fighters around after going 1-4 unless they are long time veterans or top ranked fighters. He may now be fighting to work his way back. If he does stick around, expect a fight against someone in similar dire straits.

Soriano’s Next Fight: Likely outside of UFC

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The Fight Night card had a main event that felt a bit understated, overshadowed by a budding feud between co-main event lightweight Bobby Green and headliner Arman Tsarukyan. But Tsarukyan, who had been criticized by Green as “boring,” came through in a big way, knocking out Beneil Dariush in just over a minute at the Moody Center in Austin.

Boring? That electrifying finish capped off a night full of them. And with that in mind, White, the longtime UFC President and now CEO, opened up the pocket books, rewarding every finishing fighter with a Performance of the Night bonus.

Which means, alongside Tsarukyan, Jalin Turner will cash in for knocking out Bobby Green in the co-headliner. The biggest win of Turner’s career was unfortunately marred by a terrible stoppage by the ref, who stepped in so late it felt as if he had an axe to grind with the unconscious Green.

Sean Brady, Dustin Stoltzfus, and Miesha Tate also secured finishes on the night. But nothing was more surprising than back-to-back slam KOs, nearly identical, secured by Drakkar Klose and Cody Brundage.

Jared Gooden had the first finish of the night, a submission in a war with Brazilian welterweight Wellington Turman. And there was one other finish at UFC Austin — in a bout rewarded with Fight of the Night honors. That went to Ihor Potieria vs. Rodolfo Bellato, which saw Bellato earn a TKO finish late in the second.

Bellato did not double up on the bonus money, despite getting the finish. In total, eight Performance of the Night bonuses were awarded at UFC Austin, plus the Fight of the Night bonus. All bonus-winning fighters will pocket an additional $50,000 for their efforts, on top of their show/win money, outfitting pay etc.

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Jalin Turner, known as one of the largest lightweights ever, shocked fans by making weight at 156-lbs for this contest, redeeming himself for his weight miss in his ‘Fight of the Night’ loss against Dan Hooker. Turner was Hooker’s replacement for this bout, in fact, leaving Bobby Green facing another tall, dangerous striker. Bobby’s fast hands and slick boxing carried him to a two-fight winning streak and the thirteenth spot in the lightweight rankings, but it was his fight week confrontations with Arman Tsarukyan’s team which drew headlines heading into the event. The potential for a high-action fight meant fans had this one circled on their calendars long before that controversy, however it would be another controversy which followed the fight due to the actions of referee Kerry Hatley.

Bobby Green opened the fight with a spinning back kick to the body, showcasing his usual flair. They traded punches while still figuring out the range, Bobby switching stances and making that range difficult to manage for his opponent, as usual. Jalin’s incredible length helped him though, and they seemed well-matched early on. Suddenly, Jalin turned the tides by landing a short double jab right hand which caught Bobby on the way in. Green’s legs went wobbly and a massive right hand put him facedown, seemingly either un- or barely conscious. Referee Kerry Hatley refused to stop the fight as Jalin Turner pounded away on a defenseless, facedown, and soon clearly unconscious Bobby Green.

Unfortunately the refereeing display overshadowed what was a brilliant finish from Jalin Turner on short notice. He was all class in his post-fight interview and should feel great about his performance against a long-time veteran in the biggest win of his career. With that he will regain a lot of the momentum he lost with the Dan Hooker loss, especially because of his 100% finish rate in his victories.

Official Result: Jalin Turner def. Bobby Green by Knockout (right hand to ground strikes), Round 1, 2:49

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Figueiredo, a former, two-time UFC flyweight champion, was looking to start a new chapter in his career with the move— with the possibility of another title run no doubt tantalizing.

Early on, Figueiredo’s strength at 135lbs was tested, with Font clinching up with him. Moments later, Figueiredo landed a takedown, but Font quickly elevated Deivson off him, and scrambled back up.

From there, the round played out on the feet, with Font ripping the body, and Figueiredo answering back. With about a minute to go, Figueiredo appeared to hurt Font, who backed up to the fence, bounced off it, then pressed forward once more. Figueiredo then drove Font into the fence in a clinch, only to be pushed off.

Round two played out on the feet, with Deiveson Figueiredo still holding his own at the higher weight. Font seemed to be no worse for the wear from being hurt towards the end of the first, but with about two minutes to go in the round, the Brazilian changed things up and landed a takedown. Figueiredo spent a bit of time on top before Font was able to escape, and in a close round, that might have been enough to sway the judges.

Round three saw Rob Font tie up with Deiveson Figueiredo early, but the ex-champ was able to fight him off. That led to Font once again trying to walk Figueiredo down, an approach that had not given the New England Cartel fighter a clear edge through the first two rounds. Moments later, Figueiredo rocked Font, who stumbled back, allowing Figueiredo land landed another powerful shot. Blood was in the water, and Figueiredo looked to pick his shots — a wise move, since Font then began firing back at a high clip. But when that volley subsided, Figueiredo landed a takedown with apparent ease, reaching for a leg and dumping Font.

With Font already down in the round, on his back was not where he wanted to be. He could not escape out from under the former flyweight, however, with Deiveson Figuiredo riding out the round on top, save for the final few seconds.

Official Result: Deiveson Figueiredo def. Rob Font by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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Gastelum once won a ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ tournament championship at 170-lbs but had not fought there in seven years. After an up-and-down run at middleweight, he decided to slim down and move back to the division where he began his career. Across the cage from him stood Sean Brady, a Philadelphia native who dominated with powerful wrestling and grappling en route to a 15-0 record before falling to Belal Muhammad last year. The matchup seemed fairly binary; although Gastelum has a wrestling base of his own it seemed as though he would win if he could keep it on the feet, and vice versa. In the end Sean Brady proved to be a spoiler to Gastelum’s hopes of taking the division by storm, and his grappling dominance became the sole focus of the fight.

Sean Brady immediately chased a takedown when the fight started. The pair ended up in an extended over-under clinch. From there, Brady pushed Gastelum to the fence, changed levels, and got a takedown. When the fight hit the mat Kelvin tried to turn to his knees to get up, but Brady instantly slid a hook in, then another, then a body triangle. He had more than three-and-a-half minutes to hunt a rear-naked choke if he could hold that position, but only thirty seconds later Kelvin was able to explode into him and end up on top. He landed a few shots before Brady wrestled up.

On the feet, Brady landed a short punch that dropped Kelvin to a knee, more from surprise than anything. Brady soon landed a left hook which stunned Kelvin Gastelum as Sean was already chaining it into a takedown. He again slid to the back like lightning and then got a hook in as Kelvin crawled to the fence. Kelvin was still able to create space to stand up but Brady tripped his leg out with a neat move. Again he rode Gastelum like a backpack, with one hook in against the fence before transitioning to both hooks as the ten second clapper sounded before the end of the round.

The second round began with another early takedown from Sean Brady, this time off a caught kick. He smothered Gastelum from top half-guard before transitioning to full mount ninety seconds in. When Gastelum bucked and scrambled to get up, Sean went back to his old move of taking the back, which forced Kelvin to again give up mount. This cycle repeated itself for the rest of the round, one where Brady never allowed Kelvin Gastelum back into it but action remained at a low.

Sean Brady penetrated deep with a strong double leg thirty seconds into the round and again took Gastelum down into half guard. He isolated an arm and stepped over the head of Gastelum with a slick move, locking up a submission which has become rare in modern MMA: a Kimura. Kelvin held on for as long as he could but he was soon forced to tap. The boos of the crowd for the dominant wrestling turned to cheers somewhat as fans appreciated a skillful finish.

He got the crowd back even more by shouting out the state, Texas. He then turned to business and called out undefeated striker Ian Garry, if the Irishman manages to get through Vicente Luque in his upcoming fight.

Official Result: Sean Brady def. Kelvin Gastelum by Submission (Kimura), Round 3, 1:43

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Guida had been trading wins and losses over his past six fights or so, while Silva was 1-3 through four fights, with the lone win coming over now-former UFC fighter Jesse Ronson.

Clay Guida started the fight with his patented awkward movement, which seemed to be confusing Silva as he was hit with some clean shots at the start of the round. Silva was clearly being patient and trying to pick his shots throughout the opening frame.

Guida over-committed on a right hand later in the round and ate a fight-changing uppercut that led to huge shots from Silva. Guida was able to survive and land a takedown to bring about an end to a crazy back half of the first round.

The second round saw Guida start strong, slamming Silva on the mat for the takedown. Silva was able to find his way up and get control in the clinch landing huge shots but Guida was continuing to make Silva work. Clay Guida landed yet another takedown in the round but Silva jumped guillotine and it seemed to be tight. Guida muscled out of it and was able to get up leading to both fighters back on their feet. Guida finished the round strong heading into round three where he was looking to win the fight.

Heading into the third round Silva seemed to have control of the round as Guida was looking to get the fight to the mat, but Silva was able to stuff the early attempts. Guida was relentless trying to get the fight to the mat but Silva continued to stuff the head and use his forward pressure to try and get round three in his favor. Silva continued to try and jump guillotine but Guida defended it and ended the round with Silva on top to end the fight.

This was a potential fight of the night but the judges ultimately scored the 29-28 unanimous decision for Joaquim Silva. Silva said after the fight he expected this fight out of Clay Guida saying “This guy is amazing!”

Official Result: Joaquim Silva def. Clay Guida by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

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While Dariush vs. Tsarukyan was a key lightweight fight for both men’s careers heading into 2024, Arman and Bobby Green was something more personal. The two were involved in not one but two altercations at the UFC Austin host hotel starting on Wednesday, with Tsarukyan confronting Green and putting hands on him, and Green later seeking out revenge.

All that, as Green later noted, because he had called Tsarukyan’s fights “boring.” But were the UFC so inclined, given both men fight in the same division, this particular beef could be settled in the octagon.

In the mean time, Green had Jalin Turner to contend with (who was stepping in for Dan Hooker), while Tsarukyan had Dariush. The rest of the Austin card was solid as well, with Miesha Tate looking for a strong return to form against Julia Avila, and Kelvin Gastelum making the move back to welterweight, after seven years at 185lbs, against Sean Brady.

Following UFC Austin, tune in for the post-fight press conference to stay on top of all the latest angles. Especially true this week, given Green and Tsarukyan’s extra-curricular activities. A live stream is available above.

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Hawaii’s Soriano was just 1-3 in his last four, while Stoltzfus, fighting out of Germany, had a similarly bleak 1-4 record through five fights. Both men were looking to return to the win column, with Stoltzfus falling to Abus Magomedov last time out.

The first round found Punahele Soriano having early success landing some hard combinations in the pocket and countering well with the left hand. Stoltzfus attempted three takedowns and Soriano was able to stuff them two of them; he ended up back on his feet quickly on the successful third attempt. Dustin Stoltzfus was able to catch Soriano at the end of the round with a right hand after a dangerous opening frame.

Following the first round both fighters had seemed to settle into the fight a little more slowing things down. Stoltzfus was doing a good job of landing kicks and using his jab in the second. Soriano was over-committing to the left hand and seemed to have slowed down quite a bit from the pace in the first. Stoltzfus was able to capitalize and level change to find his fourth takedown of the fight, which led to him taking the back of Soriano. Dustin Stoltzfus was able to find the rear naked choke for a second round finish over Punahele Soriano in a fun fight while it lasted.

Dustin Stoltzfus said after the fight that “I knew I was the better grappler and I also knew he was strong, so I did not know how I was going to muscle him and take him down but it ended up working out.”

Official Result: Dustin Stoltzfus def. Punahele Soriano by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 4:10

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Taking time off to give birth to her daughter, and thanks to injury, Avila was returning to action for the first time in nearly two years. “Cupcake” Tate, meanwhile, was looking to get back in the win column after an unsuccessful move down to flyweight.

Tate came right out and punched her take into a takedown attempt, putting Julia Avila’s back to the fence. Avila seemingly thought of defending with a guillotine, but didn’t have it and Tate completed the attempt moments later. “Cupcake” soon moved to side control, then spun around, moved to north-south, then side control on the opposite side. After a bit of knee-on-belly, Tate again landed in north-south, and in the next transition took the back, getting one hook in.

Unable to get her second hook in, Tate settled for applying a neck crank. Avila didn’t seem to have much answer, and simply tried to survive. Which she did, in a sense— but Tate wound up in full mount with Avila on her back, trying to buck the ex-champ off. Tate mixed in a wee bit of ground n’ pound before taking the back, and though she was a bit high up, Tate recovered, got a body lock in place, and began dropping elbows. As Avila tried to cover up, Tate dropped more punches and elbows, alternating those with choke attempts. After five minutes, Tate had an argument for a 10-8 round, and Avila had to go back to the drawing board.

Julia Avila tried to come out firing in the second. Miesha Tate, however, quickly changed levels, got her hands on Avila, hoisted her up, and slammed her down. Avila looked for a choke off her back, but Tate freed herself, and went to work in guard. Not for long, as the transition to north-south followed, though Tate was warned for holding the fence. Tate began dropping hammerfists, hit the body, then went to the head some more, with a “Miesha” chant breaking out in the arena. Tate was just about in side control, and Avila, again, appeared to have no answer for Miesha Tate’s top game. From a knee-on-belly position, more ground n’ pound flowed for Tate, who transitioned to the back with about 30 seconds left in the round.

Another dominant round from the former champ, leaving Avila no choice but to find a finish in round three. Instead, she was taken down early once again. Avila was back up to her feet quickly this time— only to be planted on her back once more.

This time, Avila got to her knees. The problem being, Miesha Tate was on her back. Tate got under the neck, and this time, there was no mistake— Avila tapped to the rear-naked choke, and Miesha Tate had her most dominant win in years!

Official Result: Miesha Tate def. Julia Avila by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 3, 1:15

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