Joe Silva's Shoes: What's next for Robert Whittaker and UFC Fight Night 101's other winning fighters?

UFC Fight Night 101’s main card, which aired Saturday on FS1 from Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, featured stoppages in three of six bouts.

The headlining act, however, finished in perhaps the most crushing fashion of all when Robert Whittaker (17-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) brutalized Derek Brunson (16-4 MMA, 7-2 UFC) for a first-round knockout victory to further establish himself at a top middleweight contender.

Whittaker was a big winner on the card, but so were Andrew Holbrook (12-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), Omari Akhmedov (15-4 MMA, 4-3 UFC), Alex Volkanovski (14-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC), Tyson Pedro (5-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and Danielle Taylor (8-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who all picked up wins over their respective opponents.

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 for UFC Fight Night 101’s winning fighters.

* * * *

Danielle Taylor

Jocelyn Jones Lybarger

Should fight: Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger
Why they should fight: After losing an underwhelming fight in her promotional debut, Taylor picked up her first UFC victory with a largely forgettable and somewhat debatable split decision over Seo Hee Ham.

Taylor is the shortest fighter with the smallest reach of anyone in the women’s strawweight division, so most fights are going to be difficult matchups for her. She hasn’t much lived up to her “Dynamite” nickname, but there will be more chances going forward.

Jones-Lybarger (6-3 MMA, 0-2 UFC), who has yet to pick up a UFC win but has faced solid competition in Tecia Torres on Randa Markos, would push Taylor into a more challenging fight because she’s eager to get her own first UFC win.

Tyson Pedro

Jared Cannonier

Should fight: Winner of Jared Cannonier vs. Ion Cutelaba at TUF 24 Finale
Why they should fight: Pedro joined the UFC’s light-heavyweight division on a positive not with a first-round submission of “The Ultimate Fighter 23” runner-up Khalil Rountree. Pedro’s undefeated and looked promising, which is a good thing for any fighter coming in to arguably the weakest division the organization has to offer.

Granted, Pedro beat only a similarly inexperienced fighter with a clear ground deficiency, but it’s a good start. Fighting someone like Cannonier (8-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) or Cutelaba (12-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who have slightly more experience than Rountree and a more well-rounded game, could be a good measuring stick to see how good the Australian really is.

Those 205-pounders fight next weekend at The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale in Las Vegas. Pedro should keep a close eye on that fight; he could easily be paired against the winner or the loser sometime down the line.

Alex Volkanovski

Marco Polo Reyes

Should fight: Marco Polo Reyes
Why they should fight: Volkanovski’s start to his UFC career was about as good as it gets. He largely had his way with Yusuke Kasuya en route to a second-round TKO victory, and with an 11-fight winning streak and impressive overall record, the Australian lightweight is worth keeping an eye on.

Kasuya isn’t the type of opponent who’s going to tell the story of Volkanovski’s potential for greatness in the 155-pound class, but the fact he put away the Japanese fighter just as convincingly as he did many pre-UFC opponents is a good sign.

Volkanovski battered and stopped a primarily grappling-based fighter in his rookie UFC appearance. It’s only fitting he moves on to a dangerous striker for his sophomore bout, and with more than 70 percent of his career wins coming by knockout, Reyes (7-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) would look to do damage to Volkanovski.

Omari Akhmedov

Darren Till

Should fight: Darren Till
Why they should fight: In what was arguably the most significant moment of his MMA career, Akhmedov sent Kyle Noke packing from the sport and into retirement with a unanimous-decision win in their welterweight bout.

As is the case for what feels like most of Akhmedov’s wins, there wasn’t much of substance to the fight. He caused damage to Noke’s face, but after entering the fight on a two-bout skid, he was clearly fighting more for the win than style points.

Akhmedov’s UFC career has been up and down, but he appears to be finding his comfort zone at 170 pounds after dropping down to the division several years ago. Beating a veteran such as Noke is a nice feather in his cap, but a big question of whether he can match that success against a fighter who’s not on his way out of the sport still lingers.

Till (13-0-1 MMA, 1-0-1 UFC) is just 23, and despite only two UFC fights to his name, he’s already made an impression on the big stage with a stoppage win in his octagon debut and then a “Fight of the Night” draw in his second fight. He hasn’t competed since the draw with Nicolas Dalby at UFC Fight Night 76 in October 2015, but he should be on his way back to fighting soon, and Akhmedov would be a solid test for the prospect.

Andrew Holbrook

Josh Emmett

Should fight: Winner of Josh Emmett vs. Scott Holtzman at UFC on FOX 22
Why they should fight: Holbrook cashed as the biggest underdog of the card when he upset hometown fighter Jake Matthews with a split-decision victory in a workman-like performance.

Many believed, and the oddsmakers agreed, that Holbrook was simply an opponent who could help Matthews rebound from a tough loss earlier this year. Holbrook clearly had different plans, though, and he did what was necessary to take the shine from “The Celtic Kid” and point it directly on himself.

Holbrook came into the UFC known almost exclusively for his submission game, but he’s slowly showing in each fight he has more to offer. His big problems are going to come against opponents with a wrestling base, solid takedown defense and good striking, and unfortunately for him, that style of fighter crowds all corners of the lightweight division.

Both Emmett (10-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and Holtzman (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), who fight at UFC on FOX 22 on Dec. 17, have well-rounded games. Neither fighter has been submitted in his career, which means Holbrook would either have to try to be the first or resort to other methods of victory as he has in his two UFC wins so far.

Robert Whittaker

Should fight: Ronaldo Souza
Why they should fight: Watch the video above to see why Whittaker should fight “Jacare” Souza (23-4 MMA, 6-1 UFC) next.

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 101, check out the UFC Events section of the site.