Outlook: Other than Imavov beating Adesanya, de Ridder’s gritty decision win over Whittake is probably the most significant non-championship result of the year so far in the division. The Dutchman has acquitted himself to the organization well, scoring four wins in eight months and could arguably be one win away from a title shot. He could do just that with a win in Vancouver over Hernandez.
Outlook: There might not be a fighter outside of their division’s top 5 hotter than Anthony Hernandez. Since his loss to Kevin Holland in May 2020, “Fluffy” is on a hellacious tear. Eight wins, six finishes and four performance bonuses decorate the 31-year-old’s record over the last five years, and his latest win over Roman Dolidze seemed to finally convince the wider fandom of his excellence. With an endless gas tank, nonstop pressure and a sickening love for a gritty fight, Hernandez is becoming a fan-favorite, and he can parlay that into “title contender” with another big win. In October, he gets the chance to secure just that when he faces de Ridder in a main event clash in Vancouver.
With teammates Carlos Prates, Jean Silva and Mauricio Ruffy stealing headlines over the last 20 months or so, it’s kind of easy to forget Borralho was the first one to get the Fighting Nerd hype train going. Since earning his contract on Dana White’s Contender Series in October 2021, Borralho is perfect through seven trips to the Octagon, with his latest two wins standing as his finest. First came a knockout win in Brazil over Paul Craig at UFC 301 followed by a Fight of the Night decision win over Cannonier. “The Natural” gets his big crack at the title picture as he wades into enemy territory against Imavov, but a win could certainly put the Brazilian across from Chimaev sooner rather than later.