5 fights to make after UFC 292: Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O'Malley

UFC 292 went down in Boston last night and, as per usual with a major pay-per-view, we were treated to some major happenings in the octagon, including a title change.

Following UFC 292, then, what is next for the fighters involved, including the afore-mentioned new champion? Thankfully, in many cases, the promotion’s matchmakers don’t exactly have a difficult job.

Here are five fights to make after UFC 292: Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O’Malley.

---

#5. UFC middleweight bout: Andre Petroski vs. Brad Tavares

Andre Petroski picked up his fifth octagon win last night [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

As everyone knows, the UFC’s matchmakers love pitting fighters who win their bouts on the same card against one another at some point down the line.

With that in mind, three middleweights won their fights last night: Brad Tavares, Gregory Rodrigues and Andre Petroski. Looking at those three, the fight that probably makes the most sense would be Tavares vs. Petroski.

Tavares has been in the promotion for a surprisingly long time now – 13 years to be exact. While he’s never quite risen into contention, he’s still a very solid veteran who is tricky to beat, and he impressed against former champ Chris Weidman.

Petroski, on the other hand, has used his slick grappling to win five in a row in the octagon, with his victory last night over Gerald Meerschaert being his biggest to date.

It’s clear that he needs a step up in competition, and if he could beat Tavares, then a push towards a ranked opponent would definitely work. Overall, this would be a logical piece of matchmaking.

---

#4. UFC welterweight bout: Ian Machado Garry vs. Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson

Ian Machado Garry looked excellent in his win over Neil Magny [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

Welterweight star Ian Machado Garry went from prospect to contender last night, destroying veteran gatekeeper Neil Magny across three rounds.

Garry has always looked like a great striker, but his leg kicks utterly dismantled ‘The Haitian Sensation’, and the lopsided scorecards were an indication of his utter dominance.

It’s likely that the Irishman will move up into the top 10 at 170 pounds following this win, so who should be next for ‘The Future’?

Thankfully, Garry himself has already set his sights on a perfect opponent: two-time title challenger Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson.

Thompson should’ve fought a few weeks ago against Michel Pereira, only to see the bout fall apart due to the Brazilian botching his weight cut.

It’s unlikely that the UFC will keep that pairing together, so pitting him against Garry in a battle of high-level strikers seems like an excellent idea. It also feels like the kind of torch-passing bout that the promotion loves to book.

With any hope, then, it can be put together before the end of 2023, and in fact, it could easily headline a Fight Night event.

---

#3. UFC bantamweight bout: Aljamain Sterling vs. Rob Font

Aljamain Sterling may need a bounce-back fight after his loss last night [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

It’s fair to say that Aljamain Sterling suffered an absolutely devastating defeat last night. Not only did he lose his UFC bantamweight title to Sean O’Malley in a fight he was favored to win, but he was also knocked out for just the second time in his career.

Since the loss, Sterling has essentially scrapped the idea of moving up to 145 pounds, and has instead called for an immediate title rematch with ‘Sugar’.

Despite this, it seems unlikely that the promotion will give him what he wants. ‘Funk Master’ never felt like the most popular champion, and it’s likely they’ll have different plans for O’Malley instead.

If Sterling remains at 135 pounds, then, a viable opponent for him might be Rob Font. Font lost his last fight to Cory Sandhagen earlier this month, but he’s still a heavy puncher who could prove to be dangerous for the fallen kingpin.

Sure, ‘Funk Master’ would be favoured to win again, but Font would be a live underdog, and due to his No.7 ranking, a win over him could give Sterling a path back to a title shot. Therefore, this would be a fight worth taking for him.

---

#2. UFC strawweight title: Weili Zhang vs. Tatiana Suarez

Could Weili Zhang face Tatiana Suarez in her next fight? [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

Reigning strawweight champion Weili Zhang was thoroughly dominant in her defense against Amanda Lemos last night. While she didn’t finish the Brazilian, she never looked in any danger, and beat her challenger down for almost 25 full minutes.

So can anyone in this division beat ‘Magnum’? There’s one fighter who would almost be certain to test her, and that’s No.4-ranked Tatiana Suarez.

The TUF 23 winner has still not been beaten in 10 fights, and after returning from a serious injury she’s won twice this year, submitting Montana De La Rosa and Jessica Andrade.

Thus far at least, nobody has been able to stop Suarez’s takedown, and so if she could plant Zhang on her back, it’d be easy to imagine her finding success.

However, it’s also fair to say that Suarez has never fought anyone on the level of ‘Magnum’, which would make this bout a remarkably interesting one. In fact, it could be the best strawweight title fight the UFC has seen in years.

Zhang has already stated that she’d be well open to fighting Suarez in her next fight, and so hopefully the matchmakers can put the bout together in the near future.

---

#1. UFC bantamweight title: Sean O’Malley vs. Marlon Vera

Sean O'Malley now holds all the cards as bantamweight champion [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

In one of the best big-fight showings in recent memory, Sean O’Malley reached the top of the mountain last night, knocking out Aljamain Sterling to claim the bantamweight title.

With the win, ‘Sugar’ is likely to be positioned as one of the promotion's poster-boys going forward, meaning that his future booking will be crucial if he wants to retain that spot.

It’s unlikely that the promotion will hand Sterling an immediate rematch, and so that leaves a handful of potential challengers to O’Malley’s newly won crown.

Merab Dvalishvili and Cory Sandhagen would both have a fair claim at taking their shot at ‘Sugar’. However, it seems like the most likely path would be a rematch with Marlon Vera.

‘Chito’ defeated O’Malley back in 2020 after ‘Sugar’ suffered a foot injury, and he also won last night, beating Pedro Munhoz.

The win was the Ecuadorian’s fifth in six fights, and given that the only loss in that sequence came to Sandhagen – who is now on the shelf – it’d be hard to argue he hasn’t earned a shot.

When you consider the ready-made storyline and rivalry between these two, a title bout in late 2023 or early 2024 would absolutely work.