Earning wins in the UFC is certainly no easy task, but what comes next is often even more important: the post-fight callout.
So after Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 30 event in Abu Dhabi, who took advantage of their time on the mic? See below for this week’s Callout Collection – and just how realistic each one is.
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First up, let’s take a look at the preliminary card …
Arman Tsarukyan
Wants to fight:Al Iaquinta
The callout: “Next fight, I want to fight with Top 15, Top 10 guys. Maybe (Al) Iaquinta because he is a very strong guy and he fought with Khabib Nurmagomedov. I want to fight with him because it’s a good fight for me. I’m a very young fighter, every day I will get better and better. I can destroy my whole division.”
The reality: Arman Tsarukyan may not be the most well-known name in the UFC’s stacked 155-pound division, but if he keeps on getting past tough names, it won’t be long before he’s thrown in there with one of the division’s more prominent figures.
Tsarukyan says he’s ready for that push right now, but I suspect he’ll have to work his way through one or two more unranked guys before the likes of Iaquinta appear as legitimate options. That’s not to say it won’t happen eventually – Tsarukyan was very competitive in his debut defeat to Islam Makhachev and has looked solid in each of his subsequent octagon appearances.
Another win, and perhaps a finish, in his next outing would strengthen Tsarukyan’s case but, after three UFC appearances, he’s certainly trending in the right direction.
Next up:
Brett Johns
Wants to fight: Urijah Faber
The callout: “I’m happy to fight anybody in this weight division. It is the ‘anyone can get it’ tour. If you ask me a name, I’d like to fight a legend, a legend of the game. I’d like to fight someone like Urijah Faber, a guy who has been there and done it and fought the best guys.
“Was that the performance to really shout and scream about it? Probably not, but if Urijah is watching, that’s a fight I dream to have. I think about getting my shorts framed after the fight and imagine fighting Urijah Faber and them shorts, that would be a dream come true.”
The reality: Welsh bantamweight Brett Johns arrived in the UFC as a Cage Warriors champion and has found his feet on the big stage. Now he says the time is right for him to take on another big name.
Johns’ only two defeats have come against contenders Aljamain Sterling and Pedro Munhoz, and he took both men the distance in competitive outings. But he’s improving with each fight, and sees a fight with Faber as the chance to score a marquee win against one of the biggest names in the bantamweight division. From Johns’ perspective, it certainly makes a load of sense. But I’m not sure how Faber is treating his career at this point.
“The California Kid” certainly isn’t a man to shy away from a challenge, but after his knockout loss to Petr Yan at UFC 245 last December, it remains to be seen how he’ll handle his career from here on out. Will he slot back into the 135 mix and look to work his way back into a ranked position, or is he now exclusively looking at big-name fights at this point?
If it’s the former, a matchup with Johns would certainly make for an interesting booking. However, I suspect it’s more likely to be the latter, and the prospect of Faber pursuing a fourth fight with old rival Dominick Cruz might not be out of the question in the coming months.
Next up:
Jack Hermansson
Wants to fight: Darren Till or Robert Whittaker
The callout: “Mainly, I should fight the winner of that fight between Robert Whittaker and Darren Till. I’m gonna fight the winner of that fight. You’re gonna see Adesanya vs. Costa, and then the winner of that fight is gonna fight Jared Cannonier, and the winner between me and the winner of Whittaker and Till is going to go for the next title shot!”
The reality: Jack Hermansson delivered the biggest statement win of his UFC career, then clearly laid out how the middleweight division is set to pan out – and his place in it.
Hermansson’s explanation of how he sees the division progressing in 2020 certainly seems credible, and his suggestion that he fight the winner of the UFC on ESPN 14 clash between Whittaker and Till seems perfectly pitched. He recognizes how the division is currently laid out, sees the route he needs to take to get to a title shot and described it in clear, consise terms on live TV.
It wasn’t so much a callout as a perceived matter of fact. I suspect “The Joker” will be proved right in his assessment, too.
Next up: New champion wants to face a legendary former champ
Deiveson Figueiredo
Wants to fight:Demetrious Johnson
The callout: “That’s definitely a fight that all the fans would want to see – me against Demetrious Johnson. If the UFC wants to bring him back, I’m going to be very happy. I’m going to knock him out and with a lot of pride. I’m very happy to do that.”
The reality: If you can’t shoot your shot as the champion, then you’re never going to shoot it, so it’s hard to hate on Deiveson Figueiredo’s call for a fight with former flyweight king Johnson. But, of course, there’s a pretty major stumbling block between the Brazilian and “Mighty Mouse,” namely the fact that they don’t fight for the same promotion.
Figueiredo proved his legitimacy as champ by making weight, then demolishing Joseph Benavidez, who has been a Top 3-level flyweight in the UFC since the division was created. But after finishing him in such dominant fashion, it will be interesting to see who gets the first crack at the Brazilian’s belt. Askar Askarov has a strong claim after his impressive win over Alexandre Pantoja, while Brandon Moreno is waiting in the wings for his shot at the gold.
Of course, there’s always the possibility of a return for the man who relinquished the title earlier this year. Henry Cejudo has arguably made more noise on social media since he retired than he did when he was fighting, and “The King of Cringe” congratulated Figueiredo for winning the “interim” title. A matchup with Johnson may be out of reach, but perhaps Cejudo could be persuaded to return and give the Brazilian a huge fight in the UFC’s smallest men’s division.
