Matches to Make After Noche UFC

Noche UFC took place on Saturday in San Antonio, with a night full of action-packed finishes and new contenders taking center stage at Frost Bank Center. As the Ultimate Fighting Championship celebrated Mexican Independence Day, all five of the Mexican fighters on the card showed up and delivered in a major way, as they went undefeated on the night to cap a memorable event.

The headliner delivered the chaos that most expected. A stellar first round from Diego Lopes nearly saw him net the victory, but Jean Silva answered with a thunderous response early in the second. Lopes would close the show by blasting Silva with a spinning back elbow and finishing him with follow-up punches. With Noche UFC now in the rearview mirror, a look at four matches that ought to be made:

Diego Lopes vs. Movsar Evloev: Lerone Murphy undoubtedly has earned the next title shot against champion Alexander Volkanovski, especially after his brutal first-round finish of Aaron Pico. Lopes got his own fantastic finish in the victory over Silva, and while he called it an easy fight for him, there’s an opportunity for revenge to cement himself as the top contender. After coming up short against Volkanovski in a recent showing, the best move for Lopes would be to face Movsar Evloev—am opponent who defeated him back in 2023. Both fighters are ranked near the top of the featherweight division, and if Murphy is indeed the next title challenger, Lopes and Evloev can run it back to determine who will be waiting in the wings.

David Martinez vs. Yadong Song: The Top 10 contenders in the bantamweight division are pretty active with their upcoming schedule, but after Martinez had a short-notice opponent change and defeated Rob Font, he looks like he’s ready for more big tests. Song is one of the few fighters at the top of the division who is not currently booked, and he would present a real test for Martinez after just two fights in the UFC. It will be quite the jump in competition, but after defeating a Top 10 opponent in Font, Martinez has proven himself worthy of another big test. Song has not competed since he picked up a win over former two-division champion Henry Cejudo back in February. It what was a controversial fight due to an eye poke. When he’s ready to step back in the cage, he could have a young challenger in Martinez champing at the bit.

Rafa Garcia vs. Mauricio Ruffy: Having just fought at UFC Paris and taking a loss to Benoit St. Denis by second-round submission, Ruffy needs a challenge to protect his spot in the Top 15 lightweight rankings. After defeating Jared Gordon by third-round TKO with a vicious volley of elbows, Garcia should get an opportunity to crack the Top 15 at 155 pounds. Ruffy has only lost twice in his career, and while a matchup against Alexander Hernandez, who also won at Noche UFC could work, Garcia should get his deserved shot at a ranked opponent. Gordon had been hovering around the lightweight rankings in his last few fights, but Garcia putting him away gives him the edge to compete for a spot higher on the 155-pound ladder.

Tatiana Suarez vs. Xiaonan Yan: In what could have been viewed as a title eliminator between Suarez and Amanda Lemos, there was much left to be desired in the end. Suarez got the victory over Lemos by unanimous decision, but the performance was anything but dominant and left the door open for her to need another victory before getting put back into a title fight conversation. Although Yan is coming off a loss in her most recent fight against Virna Jandrioba, she’s still a top contender in the women’s strawweight division. Jandrioba will now face Mackenzie Dern for the vacant strawweight title, and with both Suarez and Yan needing another victory to get themselves back into contention, this feels like the right matchup for both women.