Why Bantamweight is the most exciting UFC weight class right now
The bantamweight division is the most exciting one in the UFC with Merab Dvalishvili reigning as the current king.
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Bantamweight division of the UFC (Image via Open Source)
There’s always one weight class in the UFC that seems to dictate the narrative. Right now, the 135-pound weight class is head and shoulders above everything else when it comes to excitement. Sure, there are some great fighters across the board, but when you’ve got a bantamweight division with at least five credible contenders for a title shot right now, you can’t overlook it.
Selling fights has always been a huge part of the combat sports game, you just need to look at the biggest names in MMA to see that. Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, Chael Sonnen…they are all fighters who didn’t just rely on their abilities within the cage to sell a fight. In fact, the current state of the bantamweight division may not need the trash-talkers to sell the fights.
The Sean O’Malley Factor
Sean O’Malley encompasses the traits of the brash talker who can back it up inside the cage. Many seemed to write him off initially as just another flash in the pan with colorful hair. However, he’s managed to put himself firmly in the top ranks of the bantamweight division and he’s become a proven draw for the UFC.
O’Malley has the ability to talk people into the building, and his very public feuds with the fighters around him in the rankings just add to the spectacle. It gives the fans a reason to want to see these fighters go at it inside the cage. O’Malley’s latest controversial comments centered around the 135-pound champion Merab Dvalishvili, slamming the current title holder.
O’Malley took issue with the fact that Dvalishvili only wanted to compete against fighters who lost to him. The Georgian challenged O’Malley and Petr Yan to a rematch after comfortably defeating them earlier. However, the UFC has said that Umar Nurmagomedov will compete next for the title.
Fights for the coming months
Getting into a bit of fantasy booking, there are a lot of fights that the company could put together in the next 6 months. These fights could easily be highlights on a main PPV card or even a main event for a UFC Fight Night show.
UFC legend Daniel Cormier came up with a really solid breakdown of how the division’s top 10 could line up over the next few fights. Speaking on his ESPN show Good Guy/Bad Guy with Chael Sonnen, he put together essentially the sort of lineup of that I personally want to see:
For the [Bantamweight] title…easy, Merab vs. Umar. Then I go Yan vs. Sandhagen (2) as my second fight, Chael. Because then it gives you a clear number-one contender.
Daniel Cormier via Good Guy/Bad Guy
Beyond that, Cormier also came up with a super fight for O’Malley, pitching him to face former double champ Henry Cejudo. Let’s just put that into context, as there is a very good chance that what DC put together is exactly what the matchmakers at the company will want to do in the coming months:
- Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov for the title
- Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen 2
- Sean O’Malley vs. Henry Cejudo
- Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Dominick Cruz
- Marlon Vera vs. Mario Bautista
Right now, in 2024, I cannot point to another division in the UFC with this level of stacked fights that fans would genuinely want to see in the near future. If the company wanted to they could load up an entire PPV main card with these fights, the bantamweight division is that exciting and that open in terms of who could be challenging Merab next.
The next title fight
Merab Dvalishvili has been steadfast in the fact that he does not want to fight Umar Nurmagomedov. The Georgian champion even released a (pretty funny) video in which he explains why Yan should be next in line to him, not the Dagestani star. Merab’s biggest claim is that Umar has not beaten anyone of note besides Cory Sandhagen, who he claims was gifted to Umar:
He has beaten four ranked and still active former champions…We have former champion Petr Yan who has beat top-ranked opponents. Deiveson Figueiredo, Song Yadong, I can even give him Sean O’Malley, Cory Sandhagen and ‘King of Rio’ Jose Aldo. Last and certainly least we have Umar. He has beat who? Who? Who? And who? No one but gifted Sandhagen.
Merab Dvalishvili via social media
Despite this, I do think that the way to go is to have Dvalishvili vs Nurmagomedov at some point in early to mid-2025. It is because the matchup will establish the top dog in the 135-pound class and give the likes of Yan and O’Malley someone new to face for the crown in ‘Young Eagle’ if he were to get the win over Merab.
New entry into the division?
The bantamweight division may well even get more exciting in the next year or so. You’ve just got to look at flyweight to see that while there are some really talented fighters there, a move up for some of them those extra pounds to 135 could give them some genuine top-of-the-card opportunities.
Seeing the likes of Kai Kara-France, Brandon Moreno, Alexandre Panjota or Brandon Royval moving up remains an exciting outcome. Even featherweight talent like Arnold Allen cutting back a few pounds to be a bigger fighter in a smaller weight class could add leaps and bounds to an already stacked division.
Bantamweight is where it is at, and it is going to take some big moves from the surrounding divisions (in my mind) to get up to this level of hype and potential fights down the line.
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Jake Skudder
(17 Articles Published)