UFC Fight Night 190: Five Fights To Make
Providing another reminder of why so many have tipped Ciryl Gane to be a future UFC champion, ‘Bon Gamin’ would extend his perfect record to 9-0 as the Frenchman bested his heavyweight counterpart Alexander Volkov on the judge’s scorecards.
Racking up two 50-45 cards, as well as a 49-46, Gane’s technical and tactical acumen is far beyond his experience as he effectively shut out a fighter with nearly five times as many contests in the main event of UFC Fight Night 190.
Elsewhere at Saturday’s event, Timur Valiev would edge out Raoni Barcelos in a clash between bantamweight prospects, Tanner Boser would quickly rebound into the win column at Ovince Saint Preux’s expense while Renato Moicano would use his grappling expertise to set up a second-round rear-naked choke against Jai Herbert.
Now with a two-week hiatus until the decisive rubber match between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor, the UFC matchmakers can take their time and mull over ReadMMA’s latest five fights to make in the aftermath of UFC Fight Night 190:
Ciryl Gane vs. Stipe Miocic
Calling for a fight between arguably the greatest heavyweight of all time and one with nine professional fights to his name would normally be one of insanity but Ciryl Gane’s rapid ascension in the sport means that that fight should probably come next.
Due to champion Francis Ngannou set to face Derrick Lewis and the promotion unwilling to bend to Jon Jones’ demands for a fairer pay structure, a Gane – Miocic clash would put a new definitive #1 contender in place.
Timur Valiev vs. Raphael Assuncao
Rebounding from a tough second round to claim the third and final stanza, Timur Valiev would earn a majority decision against the highly touted Raoni Barcelos.
Now holding a big win and a 2-0 with one no-contest promotional record, Valiev should see another step-up in competition in a stacked division.
With Raphael Assuncao pulling out of his scheduled bout with Kyler Phillips due to an injury, a fight with Valiev should line up nicely for both men later in the year.
Tim Means vs. Alex Morono
Using his experience to ride out a tricky final round against Nicolas Dalby, Tim Means extended his current winning streak to three in the welterweight division.
At 37-year old, ‘The Dirty Bird’ remains a tough opponent for most at 170 lbs and he could be on the precipice of a top 15 ranking.
With Alex Morono stopping Donald Cerrone in his last outing, a Means – Morono fight could see the winner emerge with an all-important number next to their name.
Renato Moicano vs. Nasrat Haqparast
Adding another submission win to his resume, Renato Moicano bounced back into the win column at 155 lbs with a second-round rear-naked choke of Jai Herbert.
With a well-rounded skillset, the Brazilian has picked up some big wins in his career but never put together a consistent run against the best that the UFC has to offer.
Operating within such a talent-filled division, Moicano will need to put together a decent winning streak to climb into the top 15 and a fight with Nasrat Haqparast would certainly be a tough test for both men.
Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Randy Brown
Handing the talented grappler Michel Prazeres his first submission loss, Shavkat Rakhmonov is a name to look out for if you weren’t already aware of his talents.
At just 26-years old, Rakhmonov is remarkably skilled in all aspects of MMA and his flawless 14-0 record attests to his quality.
While there is no rush to fast-track the Kazakh fighter, it’ll surely be no time at all before he is facing some of the biggest names in the welterweight division.
For the here and now, however, a bout with the fellow rangy Randy Brown would see him square off against a physically well-matched opponent.
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