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UFC 248: Next fight options for Israel Adesanya, Weili Zhang and others after Las Vegas event

After two drastically different title matches to close out the UFC 248 card in Las Vegas, fans are left to wonder what is next for four of the world’s top fighters. While a loss to women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang may actually have been good for Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s career, Yoel Romero likely is done as a title contender after an uninspired loss to middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

There are always complications in booking fights coming out of title bouts. Losers need a legitimate fight to rebound and champions — most of the time — need a fresh challenge to continue building their legacy.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at what could — and what should — be next for all four fighters.

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UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya: “The Last Stylebender” should have his next fight locked in. Paulo Costa was the man who was supposed to be next up for Adesanya after he won a hard-fought decision over Romero at UFC 241. Unfortunately, a bicep injury sidelined Costa and Romero was called in to face Adesanya, leading to one of the worst UFC title fights in recent memory with both men refusing to engage for much of the bout’s 25 minutes. Costa is an aggressive fighter, and that should bring out the usual killer version of Adesanya. UFC president Dana White suggested Adesanya “fights to the level of his opponent” while blaming Romero for the way the fight played out. He then hyped the idea that Adesanya vs. Costa will be a very different type of fight. “You better believe Paulo Costa is going to go after him,” White said at the UFC 248 press conference. “That fight should be ridiculous.”

The bad blood between Adesanya and Costa is already simmering, with the challenger promising to make the champ cry and saying “I was ashamed to watch that fight. Adesanya is nothing. Adesanya is the most shameful champion I have seen ever.” Those comments came after Adesanya used his post-fight interview to say he would roast Costa “like a Sunday pig.”

Fight to make: Adesanya vs. Costa

Yoel Romero: The Cuban fighter is in a difficult spot. He has received four title fights in his five most recent fights, with each going worse than the last. Robert Whittaker beat him by decision for the interim title at UFC 213, he beat Luke Rockhold in an interim title fight at UFC 221 but didn’t win the title after missing weight, then again missed weight while losing to Whittaker again for the undisputed title and put on a dull performance in losing to Adesanya. The other fight in that stretch was a loss to Costa.

Romero has been competitive with everyone in that stretch, not losing a blowout to anyone. That came after an eight-fight winning streak. He’s a legitimate top talent at 185 pounds, but can’t possibly be put in another title fight. So, what then? As mentioned by Brian Campbell on CBS Sports’ State of Combat podcast, Romero’s best use may be to be placed into exciting fights with the hope of being a featured attraction. He’s simply too good to be a gatekeeper to the top 10 and has had too many shots at the title go awry to be placed anywhere near the title picture. Of course, Romero did battle Costa to a somewhat controversial loss in a fight where many thought he’d earned the decision win. Were Costa to knock off Adesanya, it’s not hard to imagine a future where Costa and Romero go to war again.

But first, Romero needs to get back in the win column. Fighting another middleweight coming off a loss would make sense. Kelvin Gastelum is on a two-fight losing skid and a fight between the two would make a fair amount of sense. Another option would be the loser of the UFC Fight Night 174 bout between Jack Hermansson and Chris Weidman. Romero knocked out Weidman in 2017 while Hermansson would be a fresh matchup. The loser of that fight will also be on a losing skid.

Fights to make: Romero vs. Gastelum, Romero vs. Hermansson/Weidman winner

UFC women’s strawweight champ Weili Zhang: Zhang was already a superstar in China after winning the strawweight title, and becoming the first Chinese fighter to win a UFC title was notable. But in battling through a 25-minute war with Jedrzejczyk on a major pay-per-view raised her profile as a must-watch fighter. It would be unfair to expect any fight to match the kind of drama and technique on display this past Saturday, but Zhang has never been a hard fighter to watch and she now has a career-defining fight in her back pocket.

As for what’s next? Would it be too much to ask for a Zhang vs. Jedrzejczyk rematch? Jedrzejczyk earned the fight in the eyes of some, including one ringside judge. Seeing what adjustments are made by both women heading into a rematch would be compelling and women’s MMA could use a new top rivalry years after Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate carried that torch.

If not a rematch with Jedrzejczyk, a bout between Zhang and the winner of the UFC 249 rematch between Jessica Andrade and Rose Namajunas, both former champions, would make more sense than any other option in the division.

Fights to make: Zhang vs. Jedrzejczyk 2, Zhang vs. Namajunas/Andrade winner

Joanna Jedrzejczyk: One option, as floated by Brian Campbell on the CBS Sports State of Combat podcast, is for Jedrzejczyk to retire after taking a tremendous amount of punishment against Zhang, leaving her head swollen to a grotesque degree. That said, Jedrzejczyk dished out plenty of damage in return and this doesn’t feel like a fight where a former champion like her will hang up her gloves. It’s also worth noting that Jedrzejczyk is 2-4 in her six most recent fights, beginning with her title loss to Rose Namajunas in 2017. She has challenged for a belt unsuccessfully three times since that loss, putting her close to Romero territory for a bad run with a string of title losses.

If a rematch with Zhang doesn’t materialize, a fight with the loser of Andrade vs. Namajunas may make sense. Both fights would be rematches, but there are a shortage of fresh options for a fighter like Jedrzejczyk who has been in the division so long. Nina Ansaroff would have been a good option, but she will be out of action due to a pregnancy. A fight with undefeated Tatiana Suarez also may not make sense in possibly knocking off a fresh title challenger who is dealing with her own injury at the moment.

Fights to make: Jedrzejczyk vs. Zhang 2, Jedrzejczyk vs. Andrade/Namajunas loser

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