Matches to Make After UFC 305

The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to Australia for an exciting pay-per-view. The UFC 305 main event was a grudge match between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya for the middleweight championship. An entertaining night up and down the main card, there’ll be plenty of fallout from the event in the months ahead.

Here are five matches to make following UFC 305.

Dricus Du Plessis vs. Whittaker-Chimaev Winner

Du Plessis (22-2) solidified his championship run by submitting Adesanya (24-4) in the main event with a rear-naked choke. “Stillknocks” will now need to play the waiting game as he’s already defeated Sean Strickland and most of the division is currently booked. The winner of Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev would make plenty of sense as the next title challenger, especially if “Borz” wins as that would be a fresh matchup. Not many would complain about a rematch against Whittaker either, as Du Plessis shockingly finished the former champ last year but “The Reaper” has been in top form since then.

Kai Kara-France vs. Muhammad Mokaev

Kara-France lived up to his "Don't Blink" nickname by needing less than a round to put away Steve Erceg in the co-main event. The victory snaps a two-fight losing streak for Kara-France (25-11, 1 NC), who came up short against Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi. The recent defeats make a fight against many of the top five unlikely, so it makes matchmaking tricky. While he might be persona non grata with the UFC currently, I’d like to see the New Zealand fighter go up against Mokaev next if the talented undefeated flyweight can mend fences with the promotion. It’d be the perfect type of win that would make Kara-France ready for another crack at the elite, while also providing Mokaev (13-0, 1 NC) with his toughest test yet.

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Dan Hooker vs. Charles Oliveira

Mateusz Gamrot vs. Hooker was the spirited, back-and-forth affair that fans expected. Ultimately, the judges preferred the work of Hooker (24-12), which led to the Australian taking a split decision win. “The Hangman” has now won three straight at lightweight and I’d love to see him go up against former champion Oliveira next. “Do Bronx” has lost two of his last three, most recently a decision to Arman Tsarukyan, and this would be a great contender fight that would be entertaining to watch and put the winner in prime position for a title fight down the line.

Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs. Sergei Pavlovich

Rozenstruik put plenty of leather on Tai Tuivasa, who showed one heck of a chin by staying in the fight for the full 15 minutes. However, it was a one-sided beatdown, despite the asinine split decision, and Rozenstruik (15-5) will move back up the heavyweight rankings as a result. "Bigi Boy" has now won three of his last four fights and has quietly rebuilt himself back into a contender. A fight against Pavlovic, who has lost back-to-back bouts against Tom Aspinall and Alexander Volkov, would make a lot of sense. It would give the Russian a chance to rebound while also showing us exactly where Rozenstruik stands in the division.

Carlos Prates vs. Kalinn Williams

Prates scored a vicious knockout of Jingliang Li in the pay-per-view’s opening bout. As a result, Prates (20-6) deserves a step up in the welterweight division and to go up against an opponent with more name value. Considering the Brazilian can crack, a fight against Williams would be a blast to watch unfold. “Khaos” has won two straight fights, including a terrific KO of Carlston Harris, and it would be a great brawl between two fighters with serious power.