What’s next for the stars of UFC 314?

The UFC was in Miami, Florida, for a stacked UFC 314 card on Saturday. The main event saw the vacant featherweight title up for grabs as Alexander Volkanovski took on Diego Lopes.

UFC 314 also saw Paddy Pimblett taking on Michael Chandler in a five-round co-main event fight at lightweight.

Ultimately, it was Volkanovski who reclaimed his featherweight belt with a decision win over Lopes. Pimblett, meanwhile, dominated Chandler en route to a third-round TKO. Following UFC 314, here is what I think should be next for the stars of the event.

Alexander Volkanovski

Alexander Volkanovski had a lot of questions to answer at UFC 314, mostly about his chin after back-to-back knockout losses. Volkanovski proved some doubters wrong as he took some good shots and fought smartly en route to a clear-cut decision win.

Following the win at UFC 314, Volkanovski’s first title defense should be against Movsar Evloev. Evloev deserves a crack at the belt, and they can fight in late summer or the fall in what would be a tough first title defense for Volkanovski.

Diego Lopes

Diego Lopes had a chance to become the featherweight champ. Lopes had some moments in the fight, but the experience of Volkanovski proved to be the difference as the Brazilian suffered a decision loss.

Following the loss at UFC 314, Lopes remains right near the title and will likely only need another win or two to get another title shot. After UFC 314, the next fight is clear, and that should be against Yair Rodriguez, who beat Patricio Pitbull on the card. Rodriguez and Lopes have a feud, and it’s a perfect co-main event for Noche UFC in September.

Paddy Pimblett

(via Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

Paddy Pimblett picked up the biggest win of his career on Saturday as he dominated Michael Chandler en route to a stoppage win at UFC 314. Pimblett looked good on the feet and was also able to outgrapple Chandler as he showed off all his skills to get the win.

With the stoppage win, Pimblett is now likely a win or two away from a title shot and should get a top-five opponent. If Islam Makhachev faces Ili Topuria next, as many hope, Pimblett should fight Justin Gaethje in a No. 1 contender fight with the winner of the title fight.

Michael Chandler

Michael Chandler suffered a stoppage loss to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 314, and his future in the division is very murky.

Chandler is now 23-10 and is on a three-fight losing streak and is 2-5 in the UFC. However, Chandler is in exciting fights and will get another fight. Chandler will need a step-down in completion, and one fight that could make sense is to face Renato Moicano, who’s coming off a loss to Makhachev.

Chandler vs Moicano can be a Fight Night main event or a featured fight on a main card of a pay-per-view, which should be an all-action fight.