Sean Shelby's Shoes: What's next for Cub Swanson and UFC Fight Night 108's other winning fighters?

UFC Fight Night 108’s main card, which aired Saturday on FS1 from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, featured a mixed bag of knockouts, submissions and hard fought decisions.

Cub Swanson (25-7 MMA, 10-3 UFC) picked up his fourth consecutive victory in the headlining act when he delivered a superior performance to Artem Lobov (13-13-1 MMA, 2-3 UFC) and was rewarded with a unanimous decision victory.

Al Iaquinta (13-3-1 MMA, 8-2 UFC), Ovince Saint Preux (20-10 MMA, 8-5 UFC), John Dodson (19-8 MMA, 8-3 UFC), Stevie Ray (21-6 MMA, 5-1 UFC) and Mike Perry (10-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) proved to be better than their opponents, as well. Each earned wins that ranged from highlight-reel finishes to competitive fights decided by the scorecards.

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 Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard’s shoes, and play UFC matchmaker for UFC Fight Night 108’s winning fighters.

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Mike Perry

Thiago Alves

Should fight: Thiago Alves
Why they should fight: A matchup proposed following Alves’ victory over Patrick Cote at UFC 210 earlier this month, Perry would be a perfectly suitable foe for the UFC welterweight veteran after his highlight-reel knockout victory over Jake Ellenberger.

Perry rebounded from his setback against Alan Jouban at UFC Fight Night 22 in December, the first loss of his career, and showed he can still live up to the promise attached to his name after a hot start to his UFC tenure. Beating Ellenberger in the fashion he did is a statement, but an argument can be made “The Juggernaut” is beyond his best days.

The same could be said for Alves (22-11 MMA, 14-8 UFC), but “The Pitbull” claimed after his win over Cote that he’s still a top fighter at 170 pounds. Defeating Perry wouldn’t prove that statement entirely true, but it would be a promising start for Alves, who since 2008 has only strung together consecutive UFC wins once.

Stevie Ray

Leonardo Santos

Should fight: Leonardo Santos
Why they should fight: Beating Joe Lauzon is a true accomplishment and Ray did it in dramatic fashion when he rallied from a first-round deficit for a unanimous decision victory over the 24-fight UFC veteran.

Although he’s only four years younger than Lauzon, Ray represents the next generation of UFC lightweight fighter. Earning a victory over an opponent who has spent more than a decade under the UFC banner competing against some of the biggest names validates the Scotsman in a whole new light.

Ray isn’t the type who will turn down a fight, but he’s not much for calling out opponents, either. That leaves UFC matchmakers to pit whomever they wish against the 27-year-old, and Santos (16-3-1 MMA, 5-0-1 UFC) could be an interesting fight for him next.

Like Ray, “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 2” winner has picked up five wins through his six UFC appearances. He hasn’t suffered a loss since May 2009, and Santos has surprised pretty much everyone he’s shared the octagon with. The Brazilian might be 10 years the elder to Ray, but at this point both men are in a similar spot at 155 pounds and a pairing between them on July’s UFC Fight Night 113 event in Ray’s native Scotland would show who gets to take the next step forward.

John Dodson

Aljamain Sterling

Should fight: Aljamain Sterling
Why they should fight: Dodson’s decision to return to the bantamweight division further proved to be wise for his career. The former two-time flyweight title challenger improved to 2-1 since moving up in weight with a unanimous decision victory over Eddie Wineland.

Although Dodson suffered a split-decision loss to John Lineker at UFC Fight Night 96 in October, a real argument can be made that he should have won that fight and therefore would be undefeated inside the octagon at 135 pounds. A loss to Lineker isn’t seriously damaging, though, and Dodson didn’t allow the outcome to seep into his performance against Wineland.

If Dodson can settle in to a standup fight, his power gives him the chance to beat anyone. The ground game can at times be problematic, though, and if he wants to show he can again be a serious contender in the 135-pound division, taking out a grappling-based rising star like Sterling (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) would be telling.

Sterling is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Augusto Mendes at UFC on FOX 24 earlier this month and is looking to fight established names going forward. Dodson claims “The Funkmaster” has already turned down fights with him in the past, but Sterling denies that notion. Now would be the perfect time to go through with it.

Ovince Saint Preux

Ilir Latifi

Should fight: Winner of Ilir Latifi vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC Fight Night 112
Why they should fight: Saint Preux avoided what would have been a disastrous loss for his career when he got back on track with a second-round submission victory over Marcos Rogerio de Lima in his front of a home-state crowd.

“OSP” had lost three consecutive fights prior to the encounter with de Lima, but hung on to his remaining relevance in the light heavyweight division with an important win. Although it’s only been a year since Saint Preux fought Jon Jones for the interim 205-pound belt at UFC 197, it feels like he’s fallen off the map in terms of the top-tier fighters at 205 pounds. There’s work to do to put himself back in his previous spot, but with the top of the division occupied between Jones, Daniel Cormier and Jimi Manuwa, he should be in no rush.

Saint Preux has already shared the octagon with many of the best in his division over his more than four-year career with the promotion. Latifi (12-5 MMA, 5-3 UFC) and Nogueira (22-8 MMA, 5-5 UFC) are two of the names he hasn’t, though, and the winner of June’s UFC Fight Night 112 matchup between the pair would be a fresh foe for Saint Preux to fight next.

Al Iaquinta

Rustam Khabilov

Should fight: Rustam Khabilov
Why they should fight: After more than two years away from competition, Iaquinta made his triumphant return to the octagon with a 98-second starching of “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner Diego Sanchez.

Sanchez is as durable and difficult to beat as anyone in the UFC, but Iaquinta simply tore through him in a performance that should catapult him back to the top-10 position in the lightweight rankings he occupied before the long layoff.

Iaquinta has won five consecutive fights dating back to his most recent loss in May 2014. If he can compete consistently going forward, which, given his post-fight comments, seems like a big if, the 29-year-old has the potential to do some serious damage against the other top fighters in his weight class.

Khabilov (21-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) is as difficult of an opponent to fight as anyone, but Iaquinta would surely relish the challenge. Russian fighters have taken a prominent role in the UFC over the past few years but somehow Iaquinta has yet to be matched up with a fighter from that region. Khabilov would be a curious test, because like Iaquinta, he brings a complete set of skills to the cage.

Cub Swanson

Should fight: Chan Sung Jung
Why they should fight: Watch the video above to see why Swanson should fight Jung (14-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC) next.

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 108, check out the UFC Events section of the site.