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The first UFC event of 2025 is in the books. The Las Vegas APEX was treated to a show that ended up being a fun one, featuring plenty of cool finishes.
UFC Fight Night: Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas 2 saw some fighters pick up some huge wins, so what is next for them?
As always, the matchmakers have plenty of options to explore going forward.
Here are five fights to make following UFC Fight Night: Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas 2.
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#5. UFC middleweight bout: Roman Kopylov vs. Chris Curtis
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Last night's 'Fight of the Night' award went to middleweights Roman Kopylov and Chris Curtis. The two men put on a pretty epic brawl that ended in controversial fashion in the final second of the third round.
While Kopylov was declared the winner via TKO after dropping Curtis with a head kick, it was clear that 'Action Man' wasn't unconscious, and ref Mark Smith had erred.
Curtis would arguably have gone onto win a very tight judges' decision had the bout not been stopped. Therefore, the only fair thing for the UFC to do is to book an immediate rematch.
In many ways, this would be win-win for the UFC. The fight was so good that it'd be easy to book it as a co-headliner for a smaller Fight Night event and get plenty of fan interest. It'd also ensure that there would be no doubt as to who the better fighter is, which isn't the case today.
Given the damage both men suffered, it might be some time before this one could be booked, but it'd still make sense.
#4. UFC welterweight bout: Jacobe Smith vs. Khaos Williams
Jacobe Smith made a big splash in his UFC debut last night. Taking his fight with Preston Parsons on just a week's notice, the graduate of Dana White's Contender Series needed just over a minute to dispatch his foe violently.
While he was unfortunate not to win a $50k bonus for his work, he's now got a lot of hype around his name, meaning he's a fighter to watch going forward.
There's no point rushing 'Cobe' up the ladder just yet. At just 10-0 he's still quite inexperienced, and the welterweight division is quite loaded.
Therefore, a good pick for a future opponent for him could be striker Khaos Williams.
'The Ox Fighter' is 6-2 in the UFC, with four of his wins coming via KO. It's notable, though, that his two losses came to his best two foes in Randy Brown and Michel Pereira - making him the perfect test for a prospect like Smith.
Whether 'Cobe' would stand with Williams - or whether he'd look to lean on his NCAA Division I wrestling - would be a fair question. Overall, this would definitely be a good bout to book for this blue-chipper.
#3. UFC middleweight bout: Cesar Almeida vs. Shara Magomedov or Michael 'Venom' Page
With an extensive background in kickboxing - including a win over Alex Pereira - Cesar Almeida came into the UFC in 2024 with plenty of hype.
After a loss to Roman Kopylov, though, it was quickly apparent that 'Cesinha' probably wouldn't follow in the footsteps of 'Poatan', though.
However, a striker of Almeida's ability is always going to be useful to the UFC when it comes to producing fun fights. Last night proved that, as he uncorked an incredible left hook knockout of Abdul Razak Alhassan.
Booking Almeida going forward should be easy, then. The matchmakers shouldn't worry at this stage about pushing him up the ladder, and should instead focus on finding him opponents willing to stand and duke it out with him.
Therefore, the best option for him would be to face the winner of the upcoming fight between wild strikers Shara Magomedov and Michael 'Venom' Page.
Either man would look to match fire with fire against 'Cesinha', and given the striking talents of the Brazilian, he'd stand a chance of taking out either.
Basically, the matchmakers should put this fight together, and watch the fireworks ensue.
#2. UFC welterweight bout: Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Punahele Soriano
Last night's event featured two main card bouts in the UFC's welterweight division. Both fights were memorable, and both for different reasons.
Punahele Soriano needed just 31 seconds to violently dispatch Uros Medic with a rocket of a right hand, knocking him senseless in one shot.
Santiago Ponzinibbio, meanwhile, had to come from behind to dispatch Carlston Harris in the third round of the event's co-headliner. 'Gente Boa' showed tremendous durability to survive a horrible first round, and then used all of his experience and striking ability to claim a semi-controversial win.
Why not match the two men together for their next bout, then? It would make sense in a lot of ways.
Neither man is in title contention right now. Both men can produce thrilling fights with their striking styles, and there are questions around both men and where they sit on the ladder right now.
Therefore, with the potential for a thrilling bout being high, the matchmakers may as well put these two action heroes together for a clash in the near future.
#1. UFC strawweight bout: Mackenzie Dern vs. Yan Xiaonan
Last night's biggest winner was undoubtedly strawweight contender Mackenzie Dern. She showed dramatic improvements in her win over Amanda Ribas, avenging her 2019 defeat to the Brazilian in the process.
Dern has always been the strawweight division's most dangerous pure grappler, as she showed with her armbar finish here.
However, she also showed better striking than before, set up a nice takedown in the first round, and looked better from the bottom position, too.
Dern probably needs one more win to climb into title contention at 115 pounds, and so the best opponent for her could be former title contender Yan Xiaonan.
The Chinese star rebounded from her failed title challenge to defeat Tabatha Ricci late in 2024, and already holds a win over Dern from 2022.
Given that win came via a tight decision, though, Dern could be confident of avenging it due to her more recent improvements.
If Dern could avenge another one of her losses, a title shot could definitely lie in the future for her. In a division where most of the top fighters have already faced off, this is probably the bout that makes the most sense for her.
