5 fights to make in the UFC light heavyweight division

#2. Jamahal Hill vs. Anthony Smith - UFC light heavyweight division

Hill (pictured) and Smith have a combined record of 46-17 (1 NC)

Jamahal Hill appears to be a legitimate contender in the UFC light heavyweight division. He has broken into the division's top ten and competed in his first main event, taking on an established contender in Anthony Smith makes sense.

While Hill has been going back and forth with Volkan Oezdemir over Twitter, Smith seems like a more appropriate next fight for the surging talent. In fact, 'Lionheart' has gone on record to say he would accept this particular bout should the UFC offer it to him.

Smith has been busy lately, winning three consecutive first-round finishes to re-enter the title picture. He hasn't been afraid to fight lower-ranked opponents during this run and is clearly keen on this match-up with Hill. If he were able to win this, a title shot could conceivably await him.

A flash new contender flying up the rankings versus an established veteran trying to get back to the belt would be a fun narrative in this one. Both men have made quick work of their recent opponents, so this fight would be a great way of seeing which fighter is ready for the very top of the division.

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#1. Dominick Reyes vs. Paulo Costa - UFC light heavyweight division

Reyes and Costa (pictured) have a combined record of 25-5

Dominick Reyes appeared to be the heir apparent to the light heavyweight division when Jon Jones announced he was moving up to heavyweight. Reyes had just narrowly lost to Jones in a fight many people felt he won and was immediately inserted into a bout for the vacant title.

However, he was finished in that bout by Jan Blachowicz and then suffered another defeat at the hands of Jiri Prochazka in his last bout. That fight left him on a three-fight losing streak, and we haven't seen Reyes since this bout back in May 2021.

Paulo Costa has gone through a similar arc in the middleweight division. However, after failing to make weight against Marvin Vettori, he could be headed to 205 lbs. Nonetheless, he remains a very dangerous competitor and could easily become a player in the division very quickly.

This fight would be a good way to create hype around one of these fighters who might have lost some steam recently. Either Costa arrives in the light heavyweight division with a bang, or Reyes proves he is still one of the best in the world at 205 lbs.