UFC Fight Night 38 on Saturday night was the night of the underdogs as a whopping nine fighters defied the oddsmakers and garnered victories in their respective contests.
None more so than former PRIDE and Strikeforce Champ Dan Henderson, who found himself in the midst of retirement reports ahead of his much anticipated main event rematch with former UFC champ Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. Once again, however, the grizzled veteran proved to the masses he still had more fights left in him.
UFC Fight Night 38 took place at the Ginásio Nélio Dias in Natal, Brazil.
Henderson struggled to get the best of “Shogun” in the first two rounds, and was even clipped twice by the Brazilian legend. But, the 43-year-old demonstrated why he had the one of the best chins around in MMA, surviving the onslaughts and finishing the fight via TKO in the third stanza.
Rua bested his opponent to the punch in the opening ten minutes, but fell victim to Henderson’s vintage ‘H-Bomb’ which sent him tumbling onto the canvas. A few punches for good measure then forced veteran referee Herb Dean to make an intervention.
In the co-main event, C.B. Dolloway needed less than 40 seconds to dispatch ‘TUF: Brazil’ winner, Cezar Ferreira. ‘The Doberman’ was backed off with strikes against the cage in the opening stages, and for a moment or two, Ferreira looked to be in control of the situation. Dolloway, however, countered with a right and left hook combination that sent Ferreira crashing to the mat and a few punches after that was all she wrote.
Elsewhere on the main card, there were wins for Rony Jason, Michel Prazeres, Fabio Maldonado and Leonardo Santos.
So with that, it’s that time again where we at MMASucka.com play “matchmaker” and derive match-ups that could materialize for the main card winners. Sitting on the matchmaker’s armchair is no easy task by any standards so if your solutions differ from ours, state them in the comments section below.
Let’s get started!
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- Name: Rony Jason (14-4)
- Who he should contest next: Diego Brandao (18-9)
Although Rony Jason picked up a victory over Steven Siler, it was nothing short of controversial, as fans and fighters alike felt the stoppage was premature. Nonetheless, with Jason leaving the fight relatively unhurt, it would be practical to assume he might make a quick trip back to the octagon soon enough. And with Diego Brandao raring to taste some action after his scheduled bout with Will Chope was scratched from the UFC Fight Night 38 line-up, to have this match-up take place on a future UFC card makes sense on a lot of levels.
- Name: Michel Prazeres (18-1)
- Who he should contest next: Joe Proctor (9-2)
Both Prazeres and Proctor are coming off victories in their respective outings, and with identical 2-1 records under the UFC banner, this match-up could very well materialize later in the year. Prazeres brings a wealth of experience to the octagon and looked impressive in his lopsided decision triumph over Mairbek Taisumov. Proctor, meanwhile, is an alumnus of ‘TUF: 15’ who featured just last month at UFC Fight Night 36.
- Name: Fabio Maldonado (21-6)
- Who he should contest next: Ilir Latifi (8-3, 1 NC)
Fabio Maldonado dug deep and picked up a victory over Gian Villante, in classic Maldonado fashion. The Brazilian has amassed a reputation of putting on eye-catching performances in both victory and defeat, which has pretty much made him a fan favorite on all accounts. Although the 34-year-old has rebounded with three-straight victories following a three-fight losing streak, Maldonado isn’t quite near the title contenders’ pit yet. A victory over Swedish prospect Ilir Latifi in his next outing could change everything, however, in what would be a classic striker vs. grappler spectacle.
- Name: Leonardo Santos (12-3-1)
- Who he should contest next: Norman Parke (19-2-1)
A rematch should be in order following the majority draw outcome of Parke-Santos on Sunday night. The match-up could have so easily seen a winner if it weren’t for Parke’s silly point deduction for grabbing a hold of Santos’ shorts in their cagey 155-lbs affair. Nova Uniao’s Santos and Parke are considered to be prospects in the stacked division, so it would only be fitting if both guys crossed paths once again to decide who deserves to move up the ladder, and who does not.
- Name: C.B. Dollaway (14-5)
- Who he should contest next: Francis Carmont (22-8)
The commentary team were in agreement that Dollaway deserved a crack at a top 10 Welterweight fighter following his recent run of fine form. In my humble opinion, I think he does too. And Tristar’s Francis Carmont would be a perfect opponent for the ‘The Doberman’ to test his ever-improving skills. Dollaway has always been known as a grinder but his stand-up skills were on point in his TKO victory over Cezar Ferreira on Saturday night. Carmont’s physique and similar style could pose the 30-year-old some serious problems but at the same time, it’d be a splendid match-up that fans will look forward to.
- Name: Dan Henderson (30-11)
- Who he should contest next: Daniel Cormier (14-0)
The Light-Heavyweight division is filled with a couple of legitimate title contenders and Dan Henderson now finds himself in the mix after his spectacular TKO victory over ‘Shogun’. With Alexander Gustafsson almost guaranteed a title shot against the winner of Jon Jones vs. Glover Teixeira at UFC 172 in April, there’s only one other top-tier fighter that ‘Hendo’ is yet to face – Daniel Cormier. This is a fantastic match-up between two outstanding fighters and the winner could so easily be awarded with a title shot.
*Pictures credit: Ultimate Fighting Championship
For full UFC Fight Night 38 results, click here.
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