Matches to make for Justin Gaethje, Henry Cejudo and other UFC 249 winners

Check out our choices of who should be the next opponents for Gaethje, Cejudo and the other winners from the UFC 249 main card.

After an eight-week pause in fight action, the UFC finally returned, delivering a great card with plenty of highlights. Francis Ngannou solidified himself as the next title contender with a vicious knockout, Cejudo retained his belt against Dominick Cruz via stoppage, and Justin Gaethje had the fight of his life and earned himself the interim lightweight strap. All that and more happened on the main card on Saturday night in the center of an empty arena in Jacksonville, FL.

Now that the action is complete, let’s take a look at what’s next for all of the UFC 249 main card winners.

Justin Gaethje

Next Opponent: Khabib Nurmagomedov

Tony Ferguson was taken into deep waters tonight. Usually Ferguson is the one pushing the pace and breaking his opponents. Saturday night, however, was different. Gaethje looked better than ever as he finished Tony Ferguson standing up in round five, handing Ferguson his first loss since 2012.

Conventional wisdom tells us that Gaethje’s next opponent will be lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, considering the interim champion’s next fight should be with the current champion. The belts need to be unified and an undisputed champion needs to be crowned. Hopefully that is the case and there are no bumps in the road on the way to securing that fight. We’ve all longed for Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson, but Gaethje has earned the right to fight for the lightweight title. Gaethje looked phenomenal tonight and it makes you wonder what kind of success he might have on the feet against Nurmagomedov.

Henry Cejudo

Next Opponent: None

Well, it seems that Henry Cejudo won’t have a next opponent. Cejudo announced in his post-fight Octagon interview that he was retiring from the sport. Whether he stays retired or not, that remains to be seen. As we know in the world of mixed martial arts, retirements don’t often last long, with fighters usually getting the itch to come back at one point or another. Cejudo is an Olympic gold medalist, former UFC flyweight champion, and now former UFC bantamweight champion. He’s defended both belts at least once, and whether you like him or not, he truly is one of the greatest combat athletes of all-time. However, if Cejudo changes his mind and decides to stay in the sport for one more fight, it could be against either Jose Aldo like the UFC had originally planned, or perhaps Petr Yan or Aljamain Sterling. Maybe even Cory Sandhagen. All we know as of right now is that Henry Cejudo retained his bantamweight strap with a fantastic performance against a legend in Dominick Cruz.

Francis Ngannou

Next Opponent: Winner of Miocic vs. Cormier III

Heavyweight Francis Ngannou did it again at UFC 249. Ngannou absolutely erased Jairzinho Rozenstruik via KO just 20 seconds into the bout.

The next opponent for Ngannou is a no-brainer. Ngannou’s next fight should be against whoever is the UFC heavyweight champion. The timeline is still unclear as to when we’ll get Stipe Miocic vs. Daniel Cormier III, or if we’ll even get it at all, but whoever comes out on top of that fight should see Ngannou next. If Miocic wins, it should be Miocic vs. Ngannou II. Cormier has repeatedly said that his next fight will be his last, so we are unlikely to see Cormier vs. Ngannou. Regardless of the outcome of that bout, Ngannou is next in line for a title shot. Ngannou has defeated everyone the UFC has thrown at him, besides his title fight loss to Miocic and the lackluster affair against Derrick Lewis, and he’s more than earned his shot at gold again.

Calvin Kattar

Next Opponent: Yair Rodriguez

What an outing for Calvin Kattar at UFC 249. Kattar defeated No. 7 contender Jeremy Stephens via second-round TKO. Kattar secured arguably the biggest win of his career on Saturday night when he finished a long-time UFC Veteran in Stephens with a nasty elbow followed by punches. Kattar was extremely poised and his boxing looked very sharp. Kattar improved to 5-2 in the promotion, with losses only to Renato Moicano and current No. 3 contender Zabit Magomedsharipov. With another top ten victory under his belt, Kattar should get a top five opponent next. Barring a rematch with Magomedsharipov, Kattar should fight Yair Rodriguez. Both men are coming off victories over Jeremy Stephens, with Kattar actually finishing Stephens in the process. A five round main event would suit both of their fighting styles and give the fans a chance to see what they couldn’t when Kattar vs. Magomedsharipov ended after only three rounds, despite being in the main event slot. The winner would likely emerge as new blood for the lightweight title or a No. 1 contender fight.

Greg Hardy

Next Opponent: Maurice Greene

Greg Hardy won a clean sweep on the judges’ scorecards (30-27 x3) to open up the UFC 249 main card, handing the previously undefeated Yorgan De Castro his first professional loss. Only nine fights into his professional mixed martial arts career, Hardy has already compiled three official UFC wins, with two more coming via Dana White’s Contender Series. Hardy is still an up-and-comer at best, and his next opponent should reflect that. Hardy’s next opponent should be fellow heavyweight Maurice Greene. Greene currently sits at 3-2 in the promotion, winning his first three fights before dropping his last two via stoppage. Regardless of age, both fighters are still relatively young in their mixed martial arts careers, and a fight between the two makes sense. Greene was a competitor on season 28 of The Ultimate Fighter. Greene lost his semi-final bout on the show but ended up winning his UFC debut against Michel Batista on the season finale card.

UFC 249 took place on May 9, 2020, live from the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Follow along with FanSided MMA for all your UFC news and highlights.