Three months after coming up short in his bid for an interim lightweight title, Max Holloway reasserted himself as the king of the featherweight division at UFC 240 in Edmonton.
This time, it was at the expense of former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, who fell to 0-5 in his last five title fights. At 37, there is plenty of speculation that was his final shot at UFC gold, but don’t tell him that. Edgar continues to say he has plenty left.
And of course, one of the biggest stories going into UFC 240 was Cris “Cyborg” Justino fighting out her current UFC contract.
What’s next for Holloway, Edgar, Justino and some of the other names of UFC 240? Here’s ESPN’s take.
Max Holloway, featherweight champion
Result: Defeated Frankie Edgar via unanimous decision Next: Alexander Volkanovski
Not much to discuss here. Volkanovski is clearly next in line. Many felt he was actually ahead of Frankie Edgar in line, but I, personally, didn’t have a problem seeing Edgar get his shot as long as Volkanovski was waiting in the wings for the winner — which he is.
The only question is when and where this fight will take place. The perfect spot is Oct. 5, at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. Just picturing Holloway walk out to a crowd of 50,000 Aussies, to defend his crown against a contender from New South Wales … you can’t beat that. But Holloway has fought three title fights in the last eight months. If he accepts this, it would make four in 11 months. That’s a lot. The decision is up to Holloway. If it doesn’t land in Melbourne, think Las Vegas at the end of the year.
Frankie Edgar, featherweight
Result: Lost to Max Holloway via unanimous decision Next: Dominick Cruz
One of the most defining things of Edgar’s career is his desire (and stubbornness) to fight bigger men. UFC president Dana White, media, and even Edgar’s own team have implored him to move down at various points in his career. And for whatever reason, he always resists.
For the record, I’m not suggesting the only reason he lost to Holloway on Saturday is he was undersized. Obviously not. Holloway is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. Skill won that fight. But you heard it in Edgar’s own post-fight comments. Holloway was long, he said. He was hard to take down. Just take a look at the two standing next to each other, the size difference is apparent. If Edgar agrees to move down in weight, he’ll need a great reason to do it. How about the greatest bantamweight of all time?
Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino, featherweight
Result: Defeated Felicia Spencer via unanimous decision Next: Amanda Nunes
I’m throwing the Nunes rematch out there out of hope. And principle, I suppose. I mean, it’s clearly the right fight. From the moment Nunes knocked Justino out in the opening round of that fight in December, it demanded a rematch. Justino hadn’t lost in 13 years. It was a quick knockout. These are two of the top female fighters in the world. Of course, run it again.
I will admit, however, I’m pessimistic on the chances of this actually happening. Justino and the UFC have always had a hard time finding common ground. They were able to put together the two fights that really needed to happen (Holm and Nunes), but I’m not sure if they’ll be able to come to terms on the rematch. My guess is Saturday was Justino’s last appearance in the UFC — but the Nunes rematch is such a desirable fight, I’m not ruling it out as a possibility.
Felicia Spencer, featherweight
Result: Lost to Cris Justino via unanimous decision Next: Cat Zingano
Spencer had a great week in Edmonton. There’s no debating it. She seemed to enjoy the process. It did not overwhelm her. There was always a real chance of that happening. This was 0 to 60 really fast for Spencer, and she handled it like a pro. She endeared herself to fans with her toughness and gave Justino some legitimate problems in the process. No, she didn’t win a round against the former champ, but she proved she definitely belonged.
Now, the age old question at female featherweight: What next? There’s just not a lot of options. Zingano has said she would like to fight by the end of the year, and she fought at 145 pounds in her last contest. For Zingano, the path to a title would be much quicker at 145 than 135. This one makes sense.
Result: Defeated Niko Price via second-round TKO Next: Kevin Lee
Geoff Neal wants a top 15 welterweight and dang it, I believe Geoff Neal looks very ready for a top 15 welterweight. I don’t know if four wins in the UFC, as impressive as they’ve been, is enough to crack into that upper tier though. A lot of the highly ranked welterweights already have fights booked, or are looking up the rankings, not down.
Lee is a bit of an anomaly. He’s new to the division, and coming off a loss to Rafael dos Anjos. He’s in need of a win. I think Neal has made enough noise as a new contender, four wins (three finishes) in 15 months. I like the fight stylistically. I think this matchup might surprise people at first, and then they’d come around on it immediately. A former lightweight interim title challenger in a new weight class, against one of the most exciting new names of that weight class? Come on.
2:15
Geoff Neal looks back at his action-packed fight vs. Niko Price at UFC 240 and what he’s looking forward to next. For more UFC, sign up here for ESPN+ http://plus.espn.com/ufc.