Let’s take a look at what could be next for Allen, along with the other standout winners on the night.

Brendan Allen

“All In” Allen’s last loss was back in 2021, and you’d have to go back six fights to get there. The 27-year-old has put on an incredibly impressive streak of performances, scoring a rear-naked-choke win in four of his last four fights, tying the longest active submission record.

There is no doubt that since that loss to Chris Curtis two years ago, the Louisiana product has improved leaps and bounds, and now finds himself ranked in the top 10 at 185lbs, above the aforementioned “Action Man”.

Allen is now in a position where he is knocking on the door of the top five, in a division that has seemingly been screaming out for new title contenders for the past few years. The submission artist has already shared the cage with the current champion, Sean Strickland, in which he was finished, but that was going back to 2020. Strickland will defend his title against Dricus Du Plessis, who you could say would be a favourable matchup for Allen and his grappling upside.

With the rest of the top five already being booked into fights, there is one name that stands out more than most for me, and that is, Marvin Vettori.

The Italian is seemingly struggling to find a fight and this one makes perfect sense. He is coming off a loss to Jared Cannonier and needs to defend his ranking.

Allen’s Next Fight: Marvin Vettori 

Michael Morales

When thinking of the most impressive prospects in the UFC, Michael Morales must be a name that comes very close to the top of the list.

The 24-year-old now boasts a professional record of 16-0, with four of those coming under the UFC banner. Jake Matthews proved to be his toughest outing thus far, but the Ecuadorian showed a different side to his style, and proved to be the better fighter over a technical three rounds.

That is now back-to-back wins over fighters with 15 or more UFC fights, providing the youngster with integral experience.

Despite being just 24-years-old, it seems as though Morales is ready for the next step in his UFC tenure. There are several fighters inside the top 15 who make sense for him moving forward.

Of course, when talking about welterweight prospects who are nearing the rankings, Neil Magny’s ears must run hot. “The Haitian Sensation” is already booked to fight Canadian prospect, Mike Malott though.

The occupant of rank 15 though, is someone Morales has been slated to fight previously but due to injury, he had to withdraw from the scheduled bout. Rinat Fakhretdinov could make a lot of sense again now, being as though he sits upon a ranking that Michael Morales could be coming for.

Morales’ Next Fight: Rinat Fakhretdinov  

Chase Hooper

“The Dream” Chase Hooper marked his second lightweight outing with another extremely impressive performance. In this one, he had to face some early adversity when he was rocked with some heavy Leavitt ground-and-pound. From there though, he was able to win the grappling exchanges, subsequently getting the first round sub.

Before the fight, Hooper told Cageside Press, that he wanted to enter the unofficial ‘best grappler in the lightweight division rankings’ and with the rear-naked-choke, he may have done exactly that.

With him looking increasingly more comfortable with each 155lb outing, the 24-year-old will likely want to take a little bit of time off as he and his wife expect a baby.

With that being Hooper’s 8th UFC fight despite only being 24-years-old, there is no reason to try and rush him up the rankings of the lightweight division.

Someone who I think could be a fun next matchup for Hooper, is Lando Vannata. Despite his recent skid, the losses have come to some of the higher echelon fighters in the division.

Hooper’s Next Fight: Lando Vannata

Payton Talbott

After a highly impressive performance on the Contender Series earlier this year, Talbott came into his UFC debut with a lot of eyes on him.

The 25-year-old didn’t disappoint as he put on another emphatic performance, submitting Nick Aguirre in the final round. It is going to very interesting to see Talbott’s UFC career unfold.

Selfishly I would love to see a fight between Payton Talbott and Da’Mon Blackshear, however that’s quite farfetched for Talbott’s second UFC outing. A fight that would be more realistic would be, Dan Argueta.

Talbott’s Next Fight: Dan Argueta

Amanda Ribas

The Brazilian striker bounced back from her loss to Maycee Barber, with a great third round KO over Luana Pinheiro, in her strawweight return.

Once again Ribas showed a full arsenal of striking, and began her final finishing sequence with a picture perfect spinning wheel kick, which wobbled and subsequently dropped Pinheiro.

With Ribas hoping for a resurgence at strawweight, there is female who is on her rise up the rankings, and sits just one spot behind Ribas. That is Loopy Godinez who has continued impressing. That is a fight I could see next.

Ribas’ Next Fight: Loopy Godinez

Myktybek Oralbai

Marking his UFC debut with a second round finish was, Myktybek Oralbai. The Kirghiz native had a slow round one against the powerful, Uros Medic, but was able to capitalise with his grappling advantage in round two.

There are plenty options for the 25-year-old, but one I’m keen on is, Ange Loosa.

Oralbai’s Next Fight: Ange Loosa

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Orolbai was competent on the mat, but whether he could get Medic there was a question.

The fight opened up with some body kicks from Medic. He quickly was using his range very well with those kicks. Medic stuck Orolbai with a jab and a knee as Orolbai went in for a takedown. Orolbai took a few hard shots to get inside but ended up getting the takedown.

Medic got back up, but Orolbai hit a mat return twice. Orolbai was trying to inch his way to the back but the fence was in the way. Medic got to his feet again but Orolbai was a dog on a bone getting it back down. Medic wouldn’t be flustered as he kept getting back up. Back down went Medic and that time he stayed there until the bell rang.

In round two it seemed like Medic was too nervous to over-commit to anything. Orolbai quickly cut the cage off and got an easy takedown. Orolbai was using wrist control and keeping Medic grounded. He used it to make Medic work and Orolbai ended up taking the back. Quickly, Mecdic scrambled and got to his feet. But while Medic could get back to his feet, he couldn’t get the separation. Another easy takedown from Orolbai and he was halfway on the back. Orolbai had in a choke that wasn’t under the chin. With that said, the pressure was so tight on the chin that Medic had to tap.

Official Result: Myktybek Orolbai def. Uros Medic by Submission (neck crank), Round 2, 4:12

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Myktybek Orolbai
Standing at five-foot-ten
Fighting at 170 lbs (welterweight)
25-years-old
Fighting out of Osh, Kyrgyzstan
Training out of Team Alpha Male
A pro record of 11-1
6 KO/TKOs, 4 Submissions

How Orolbai will fare in the UFC:

Orolbai started off fighting in Kyrgyzstan, where he’s originally from, but he has since moved to the US and trains out of Team Alpha Male. Orolbai’s last three fights have been in the LFA cage and he’s gone 3-0. What’s helped his case is he’s coming off a highlight-reel knockout. It’s a good thing he landed that because his prior tape isn’t all too exciting.

I like the signing of Orolbai especially on short notice. Some may say he’s some sort of striker but he’s a serious wrestler. Orolbai is a strong wrestler who could just muscle guys around. I don’t rate his grappling all too high but he’s mauling with ground and pound and is heavy on top. Once he gets on the inside with his hands locked he’s a problem to get away from. It seems like he can fight at a hard wrestling pace for three rounds.

Striking, he’s limited. Orolbai throws a one-two and has a dangerous overhand. He’s not out-striking anyone from a technical standpoint. He will overwhelm guys with his pressure and his power. He can put the lights out with one punch. I’ll say everyone he’s beaten is low-level. The only truly good fighter Orolbai has fought, he lost to. Orolbai is good but there is no proof he’s UFC-level. I can see him as mid-tier right in the division. I don’t think his striking and other fundamentals are good enough to reach a top 15 or anything.

How he matches up with Medic:

I like Medic a lot more than I thought I would when he came to the UFC. Orolbai has the potential to catch Medic but he has to wrestle this fight. Medic isn’t bad on the mat but it’s a grey area as he’s not as confident.

On the feet though Medic is nasty. Orolbai is basic at striking whereas Medic is throwing a ton of output giving a lot of different looks. Medic throws in straights, volume, power, goes to the body, and mixes in a lot of kicks. He should be too much to handle for Orolbai. Orolbai could bring in a heavy wrestling pace but I can’t be sure he does that nor do I believe he can close the distance effectively. I like Medic by TKO.

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