Joe Silva's Shoes: What's next for UFC Fight Night 70's winners?

Ronaldo Souza

Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 70 event at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., featured a five-fight main card with Yoel Romero (10-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) capping off the card with a third-round knockout of Lyoto Machida (22-7 MMA, 14-7 UFC).

In the co-main event, Lorenz Larkin (16-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC) continued his resurgence since dropping to the welterweight division with a second-round TKO of Santiago Ponzinibbio (20-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC).

Antonio Carlos Junior (5-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), Thiago “Marreta” Santos (11-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Hacran Dias (23-3-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC) also picked up wins to round out the FOX Sports 1-televised main card.

After every event, fans wonder whom the winners will be matched up with next. And with another night of UFC action in the rearview mirror, it’s time to look forward, put on a pair of Joe Silva and Sean Shelby’s shoes, and play UFC matchmaker.

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Hacran Dias

Zubaira Tukhugov

Should fight: Zubaira Tukhugov
Why they should fight: Throughout his UFC career, Dias has faced mostly established competition at featherweighr, including Darren Elkins, Ricardo Lamas and Nik Lentz. He took a step back for a bout with prospect Levan Makashvili and won by split decision.

Dias has strung together back-to-back wins for the first time in the UFC. With five octagon appearances under his belt, the 31-year-old has established his style as a hard-nosed grappler with competent striking ability.

“Barnabe” is winning, but his game lacks a certain flare that would draw interest in big-name fights. He must prove he can take out middling competition in decisive fashion before receiving a step up. Tukhugov (17-3 MMA, 2-0 UFC) would present an opportunity for him to do that.

The 24-year-old Russian is 2-0 since he joined the UFC roster and has the potential to do longterm damage at 145 pounds. Dias would be a considerable bump in talent compared to Tukhugov’s previous opponents, but he appears ready for it.

Thiago “Marreta” Santos

Josh Samman

Should fight: Winner of Josh Samman vs. Caio Magalhaes at TUF 21 Finale
Why they should fight: Santos’ UFC losses have been uninspiring at best. His victories, however, are quick, one-sided and violent, as he showed with an incredible 29-second head-kick knockout of Steve Bosse.

“Marreta” has earned all three of his UFC wins in less than two minutes each. The finish of Bosse was the shortest of them all; Santos needed just one perfectly timed high kick to shut out his light outs in spectacular fashion.

Santos’ knockout will live on UFC highlight reels for years to come, and the once-unsuspecting Brazilian has now become a fighter to watch in the UFC middleweight division.

There’s still work to be done before Santos deserves a top-15 ranking. However, a fight with the winner of Samman (11-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) vs. Magalhaes (9-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) next month at The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale would help move him along.

Samman would be a more favorable matchup for Santos since he is also a striker who recently also scored a memorable head-kick knockout under the UFC banner. Magalhaes would likely be the more revealing matchup because he’s a grappler who would look to take Santos off his feet and test his grappling, which has been revealed as a flaw in the past.

Antonio Carlos Junior

Chris Camozzi

Should fight: Winner of Chris Camozzi vs. Tom Watson at UFC Fight Night 73
Why they should fight: When critics complain that “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series no longer produces quality prospects, Carlos Junior is the counter to that argument.

The 25-year-old struggled to find his footing earlier in his UFC career, but now that he’s settled in the middleweight division, he looks like he could be a serious factor in the weight class s he gains more experience in the sport.

Carlos Junior won “TUF: Brazil 3? at heavyweight and has moved all the way down to 185 pounds. He shined in his divisional debut, dominating “TUF 19? winner Eddie Gordon for almost an entire fight before he finished the job with a late third-round submission.

“Shoeface” is enormous for the weight class, which only makes his overwhelming grappling ability and improving striking a more difficult package to handle for his opponents. Carlos Junior is still young, and there’s no legitimate reason to rush his development.

A matchup with the winner of Camozzi (21-10 MMA, 6-7 UFC) and Watson (17-8 MMA, 2-4 UFC), who meet at UFC Fight Night 73 on Aug. 8, would perfectly suit his career trajectory.

While Camozzi and Watson both have as many or more UFC fights than Carlos Junior has pro bouts overall, neither fighter would seem to be an overwhelming matchup for the Brazilian on paper. In fact, strong grapplers have exposed Camozzi and Watson in the past, and Carlos Junior would be more than capable of doing it again.

Lorenz Larkin

Alex Garcia

Should fight: Winner of Alex Garcia vs. Mike Swick at UFC 189
Why they should fight: During his run at middleweight, Larkin was solid but not ranked among the world’s best. Since he dropped to the welterweight division, though, “The Monsoon” has become extraordinary.

Larkin’s second-round TKO of Ponzinibbio was a masterful performance and moved him to 2-0 at 170 pounds. His timing and striking combinations were on point, but the most noticeable and frightening aspect of his game was speed. Larkin attacks at a pace few will be able to keep up with, and it may not be long before the 28-year-old has a ranking attached to his name.

Welterweight is among the UFC’s deepest weight classes, and there’s no shortage of matchups to throw Larkin’s way. A bout with lots of potential would be Larkin against the winner of UFC 189’s showdown between Garcia (12-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) and Swick (15-5 MMA, 10-4 UFC).

Garcia has been out of action since August due to a knee injury, but before he went down, he’d shown to be a dangerous fighter with explosive fight-ending ability. Similarly, Swick has built his brand and career with “Quick” fights and knockouts.

Swick hasn’t fought in more than two years, but the last time he appeared in the octagon, he seemed to have most of the same traits that have made him successful. If Swick still possesses the speed he once did, a matchup with Larkin would be one in which viewers couldn’t blink.

Yoel Romero

Ronaldo Souza

Should fight: Ronaldo Souza
Why they should fight: With Luke Rockhold set to challenge middleweight champion Chris Weidman later this year, Romero and Souza (22-3 MMA, 5-0 UFC) will have to fight once more before a title shot. It only makes sense to book them against each other. Again.

Romero and Souza were supposed to collide at UFC 184 in February. Souza withdrew from the event due to an illness, and the bout was pushed back to UFC on FOX 15 in April. Just days before the fight, though, Romero suffered a knee injury and was replaced by Camozzi, who was submitted in the first round.

The matchup generated a lot of interest both times it was booked. No other fight outside of Souza or a title shot makes sense for Romero after his knockout of Machida. So, hopefully, the third time’s the charm.

For more on UFC Fight Night 70, check out the UFC Events section of the site.