What’s next for the stars of UFC 323?

The UFC had its final pay-per-view card of the year on Saturday as the promotion was in Las Vegas, Nevada, for UFC 323. The main event saw Merab Dvalishvili defending his bantamweight title in a rematch against Petr Yan. The co-main event saw Alexandre Pantoja defending his flyweight strap against Joshua Van.

In the end, it was Yan who pulled off the upset as he dominated Dvalishvili in all five rounds to cruise to a lopsided decision win to reclaim his bantamweight title. Van, meanwhile, became the new flyweight champ as Pantoja suffered an arm injury not even a minute into the fight.

Following UFC 323, here is what I think should be next for the stars of the event.

Petr Yan

Petr Yan was a big underdog going into his UFC 323 title fight, as he was dominated by Dvalishvili just over two years ago. Yet, the Russian fought well as he was able to defend the takedowns and piece up Dvalishvili on the feet. It was a stellar performance from Yan, who reclaimed his belt after losing it in 2020.

Although Yan and Dvalishvili are 1-1, a trilogy likely won’t be next, as he will need a win or two. Yan’s first title defense should come against Umar Nurmagomedov, should he win at UFC 324. If Deiveson Figueiredo pulls off the upset, the winner of Sean O’Malley vs. Song Yadong likely gets the fight.

Merab Dvalishvili

Merab Dvalishvili was looking to defend his bantamweight title for the fourth time this year, but he came up short. He struggled to get Yan down and was pieced up on the feet, as it was a lopsided result for him.

Dvalishvili will likely need another win to get a title shot, but he should take some time. A logical next fight is to face Aiemann Zahabi, who’s also closing in on a title shot. The winner of that fight should be in line to fight for a title shot.

Joshua Van

Joshua Van became the UFC’s new flyweight champion on Saturday as Alexandre Pantoja injured his arm early in the fight. It was a disappointing way to become the champ, but Van became the first UFC champion born in the 2000s.

Although Pantoja was a longstanding champ, the injury will likely keep him sidelined, so Van won’t have to rematch him. Instead, Van’s first title defense should come against Tatsuro Taira, who picked up a big win over Brandon Moreno on the card.

Alexandre Pantoja

Alexandre Pantoja lost his flyweight title on Saturday due to an injury. It was a disappointing result, as this was going to be a good test for the Brazilian, and we didn’t get to see much of the fight.

Pantoja will need some time off to recover, and could get a title fight once he’s healthy, even if Van has a fight in between. But, Pantoja should face the winner of Manel Kape vs. Brandon Royval sometime in the spring, with the winner getting a title shot.