Unfortunately, fight fans have been left with more questions than answers after UFC 321.
Tom Aspinall‘s heavyweight title fight with Ciryl Gane ended in an eye poke no-contest to top off what Henry Cejudo has called the worst card of all time.
Umar Nurmagomedov snapped Mario Bautista’s 8-fight win streak, but got dropped and probably didn’t do enough to secure another shot at bantamweight gold.
Alexander Volkov vs Jailton Almedia was supposed to be a heavyweight title eliminator. However, a combination of the inconclusive main event result and the somewhat controversial scorecards means ‘Drago’ won’t be fighting for UFC gold in his next fight.
With so many unanswered questions, Bloody Elbow has put together a list of five fights to make after UFC 321.
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Tom Aspinall vs Ciryl Gane 2
A rematch between Tom Aspinall and Ciryl Gane is a no-brainer after their fight on Saturday night.
UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that it is going to happen during his post-fight press conference.
The only question that remains is when Aspinall vs Gane 2 will take place. In an ideal world, the heavyweight duo will be able to settle their rivalry before the end of 2025.
UFC 323 in December seems like the perfect card for the rematch. White wants to end his ESPN deal in style before starting a $7.7 billion partnership with Paramount in January 2026. So, what better way than adding a third title fight to 2025’s final pay-per-view show?
Aspinall is waiting for more tests on his injured eyes, which could derail our plan. But whatever happens, it’s clear he must fight Gane before moving on with his career.
Umar Nurmagomedov title eliminator
Dana White issued a challenge to Umar Nurmagomedov when he asked for a title shot ahead of UFC 321.
“Go out there and put on a show on Saturday that makes people go, ‘Damn! One of these guys should be fighting for the title next,’” the MMA mogul said at Thursday’s pre-fight press conference.
Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s cousin was good, but certainly didn’t wow anyone with his performance against Mario Bautista.
In our opinion, now is not the time to rush Nurmagomedov into another title shot. The 29-year-old needs to beat another top contender after falling short against bantamweight king Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 311 earlier this year.
A win over former 135lb titleholder Sean O’Malley would definitely be enough to earn Nurmagomedov a second shot at UFC gold.
Alexander Volkov vs Derrick Lewis rematch
Alexander Volkov can sit out and wait for a potential title shot that might not happen or keep racking up wins to prove he’s the best of the rest at heavyweight.
The 37-year-old is at a point in his career where he’s fought most of the top guys in his division and probably isn’t interested in revisiting many of those rivalries.
However, we think the chance to avenge his famous knockout loss to Derrick Lewis may appeal to Volkov.
‘The Black Beast’ has recently revived his career by winning back-to-back fights by KO, but in the eyes of many, his win over Volkov is seen as a fluke.
A rematch is the perfect way for Volkov to stay busy and potentially get revenge, while Lewis tries to prove he’s the better man by repeating the shock UFC 229 result.
Valter Walker against top opposition
Valter Walker continued his stunning UFC record with his fourth heel hook finish in a row at UFC 321.
We’re really keen to see if his unique party trick will work against the upper echelons of the heavyweight division.
Jailton Almeida would be the perfect opponent for his next fight. The Brazilian’s fighting style is all about outgrappling his opponents, so it’ll be interesting to see how he approaches someone so dangerous when he is put on his back.
As a top-five heavyweight, Almeida will be hoping for someone ranked ahead of him, but after the poor reaction to his latest performance, the ‘Malhadinho’ will most likely be forced to fight down the rankings next time out.
Nathaniel Wood deserves a top 15 fight
A dodgy decision is all that separates Nathaniel Wood from a seven-fight UFC win streak.
Muhammad Naimov landed multiple low blows, grabbed the fence, and his opponent’s gloves en route to a controversial win over the English featherweight at UFC 294 in October 2023.
Since then, Wood has won three straight fights, the latest coming against Jose Delgado at UFC 321.
Wood deserves to test himself against the very best after a 10-3 run inside the famous UFC Octagon.
Former two-weight Bellator champion Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire is the opponent Wood wants and should get next.