UFC Vegas 89 results: Matches to make for ‘Ribas vs. Namajunas’ main card winners

By MySportsHeaven Content Team On Mar 24, 2024

Rosa Namajunas snapped her two-fight losing streak last night (Sat., March 23, 2024) inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, defeating Amanda Ribas via unanimous decision in the main event of the evening (see it again here), her first win as a Flyweight. In the co-main event, Karl Williams defeated Justin Tafa, also via a clean sweep on the judges’ scorecards in a hard-hitting Heavyweight affair.

Winner: Rose Namajunas

Who She Should Face Next: Maycee Barber

After “Thug Rose” got back in the win column, she called for a fight against Barber. And why not book it? Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot will throw down next week to see who will likely get the next title shot, so Namajunas has no business calling neither one of them out. Barber is on a six-fight win streak and is currently ranked No. 4, so she is much closer to title contention that Namajunas is. If the promotion can convince “The Future” to take the fight, then she will definitely be in line for a title fight should she prove victorious. For Namajunas, she will likely be ranked in the Top 10 come next week, and if she can take out Barber, then she could be one more win away from a title fight.

Winner: Karl Williams

Who He Should Face Next: Marcos Rogerio de Lima

Williams picked up his third straight win under the UFC banner by defeating Tafa, upping his win streak to seven in a row, so why not put him up against de Lima next? De Lima is coming off a win over Junior Tafa — Justin’s brother — who Williams was supposed to face at this event.

Winner: Edmen Shahbazyan

Who He Should Face Next: Eryk Anders

Shahbazyan picked up a huge come-from-behind win over A.J. Dobson, but the fact remains “The Golden Boy” is still only 2-4 in his last six fights with the promotion. I am feeling a fight against Anders next for Shahbazyan. Like “The Golden Boy,” Anders — who is coming off a win over Jamie Pickett — hasn’t exactly been to consistent with the wins, so both men are in the same boat at the moment.

Winner: Payton Talbott

Who He Should Face Next: Aiemann Zahabi

Talbott remained undefeated (8-0, 2-0 UFC) by defeating Cameron Saaiman, so the up-and-coming Bantamweight contender continues to climb the ranks slowly, but surely. A fight against Zahabi sounds about right. Winner of four straight, Zahabi is on quite a run, and would be a great measuring stick to see where not only he is, but Talbott, as well.

Winner: Youssef Zalal

Who He Should Face Next: Gabriel Miranda

Since Zalal did UFC a solid and stepped in to face — and the defeat — Billy Quarantillo after Miranda bowed out of the fight for undisclosed reasonds, then booking this fight seems like a no-brainer. Miranda is 1-1 inside the Octagon. Zalal was out of the promotion before he agreed to the short-notice fight, but he did go 3-3 in his initial first run in 2021.

Winner: Fernando Padilla

Who He Should Face Next: Nathaniel Wood

Padilla got back into the win column with an impressive first-round submission win over Luis Pajuelo, bringing his UFC record to 2-1. As for Wood, he is coming off a tough loss at the hands of Muhammad Naimov at UFC 294. Prior to that, he was on a three-fight win streak. Wood has a lot of experience inside the Octagon, but has never reached the heights that a lot of people thought he would have by now already six years into his UFC career.

For complete UFC Vegas 89 results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

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