Joe Silva's Shoes: What's next for UFC 166's winners?

The UFC’s 11th pay-per-view event of 2013 took place Saturday as “UFC 166: Velasquez vs. dos Santos III” went off without a hitch inside Houston’s Toyota Center.

UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez (13-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) again displayed his unparalleled dominance inside the octagon with a fifth-round knockout of Junior dos Santos (16-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) to hang on to his belt and take the 2-1 edge in his trilogy with “Cigano.”

Velasquez’s one-sided victory was just one of the highlights from the unforgettable night of action. Daniel Cormier (13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC), Gilbert Melendez (22-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC), Gabriel Gonzaga (16-7 MMA, 11-6 UFC) and John Dodson (15-6 MMA, 4-1 UFC) also delivered tremendous winning performances on the pay-per-view 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’s (and Sean Shelby’s) shoes, and play UFC matchmaker.

JOHN DODSON
Should fight: Winner of John Lineker vs. Phil Harris at UFC Fight Night 30
Why they should fight: Dodson rebounded from his title loss to champ Demetrious Johnson with a thrashing of the much-hyped Darell Montague (13-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in the UFC 166 PPV opener.

Dodson solidified his standing as one of the top three flyweights in the world, and he could find himself back in another title fight sooner rather than later.

Seeing as “The Magician” is just one fight removed from a loss to the champ, it’d be nice to see him build up a bit of a resume before getting another shot at the belt.

The winner of next weekend’s UFC Fight Night 30 showdown between Lineker (22-6 MMA, 3-1 UFC) and Harris (22-10 MMA, 1-1 UFC) will be in a good position in the division, and a fight with Dodson could arguably establish who should challenge the winner of next month’s Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez flyweight title affair.

GABRIEL GONZAGA
Should fight: Stipe Miocic
Why they should fight: Gonzaga has risen from the ashes of a 2012 retirement and has once again become someone to look out for in the heavyweight division following a brutal knockout of Shawn Jordan (15-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC).

“Napao” is a remarkable 4-1 since returning to the UFC this past year, and his lone defeat came to Travis Browne in somewhat controversial fashion.

Gonzaga is tied with Frank Mir for the most stoppage finishes in UFC heavyweight history and has shown that despite being 34 years old, he still has a lot left to offer inside the cage.

As the Brazilian works his way up the rankings, he’ll begin to face the true monsters of the weight class. That should start with Miocic (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC), who’s coming off a victory over another longtime veteran of the sport in Roy Nelson. Gonzaga would be the perfect next step.

With both fighters just outside the division’s elite, a victory for either would be enough to get a fight with one of the division’s top dogs.

GILBERT MELENDEZ
Should fight: T.J. Grant
Why they should fight: Melendez may have won one of the greatest fights in UFC history against Diego Sanchez (24-6 MMA, 13-6 UFC), but a victory over an unranked fighter doesn’t put him on a direct path to the belt.

Only one fight separates Melendez from his title loss to then-champion Benson Henderson earlier this year, and the 31-year-old still has more work to do before getting a second shot at the title.

The fight with Sanchez certainly benefitted “El Nino” in the eyes of the public, but the former Strikeforce champion needs to knock off a fellow UFC contender before getting serious consideration.

When it comes to lightweight contenders, there are few more highly regarded than Grant (21-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC), who’s had two title fights fall through this year due to medical issues.

Unfortunately it seems Grant has missed the boat on his opportunity to fight for the belt and will have to win another bout to reestablish himself as the top contender to Anthony Pettis’ title. Defeating someone of Melendez’s stature would do just that for the hard-hitting Canadian.

The lightweight division is as interesting as ever at this point, and a fight between Melendez and Grant could determine who should face the winner of December’s UFC on FOX 9 title showdown between Pettis and Josh Thomson.

DANIEL CORMIER
Should fight: Phil Davis
Why they should fight: Even though his run at heavyweight went unblemished, Cormier is dropping to the 205-pound weight class, where he’ll immediately become a factor.

Without ever having fought in the weight class, Cormier is already on the shortlist of contenders for Jon Jones’ belt and could earn a title shot with just one win against the right opponent.

It’d be best to avoid matching “DC” up against Alexander Gustafsson since they both have tremendous potential to give Jones competitive fights. Why eliminate one as a contender?

With that said, one of the forgotten men at light heavyweight is Davis (12-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC), who has put together a strong resume in the UFC and could be the perfect opponent to catapult Cormier into a championship fight.

Both men have decorated wrestling backgrounds with developing skills elsewhere. It wouldn’t be hard to deem this potential matchup a No. 1 contender’s affair.

CAIN VELASQUEZ
Should fight: Fabricio Werdum
Why they should fight: There isn’t much mystery as to what’s next for Velasquez following his second straight shellacking of dos Santos.

Werdum (17-5-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) is on deck, and Velasquez will look to make heavyweight history with a third consecutive title defense when he meets the submission specialist at an undetermined date and event next year.

Werdum has earned a shot at the gold with six victories in his past seven bouts and a world-class jiu-jitsu game that presents a threat Velasquez hasn’t seen in the octagon.

The champion will need some time to recover from a grueling fight with dos Santos, but don’t be surprised to see this championship battle headline the UFC’s debut event in Mexico in 2014.

For complete coverage of UFC 166, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.