Matches to Make After UFC Paris

Renato “Moicano” Carneiro brought a bittersweet ending to the festivities for French fans at UFC Fight Night 243 on Saturday.

“Moicano” put a hellacious beating on Frenchman Benoit St. Denis in the opening stanza of their lightweight headliner at Accor Arena, which ultimately led to a second-round doctor stoppage victory for the outspoken Brazilian. It wasn’t all bad news for the Paris throng, however, as favorites like Nassourdine Imavov, William Gomis, Morgan Charriere and Fares Ziam all shined in front of their fellow countrymen.

Here are some matches that should be made in the wake of UFC Fight Night 243.

Renato Carneiro vs. Paddy Pimblett

Never one to be shy with a microphone in front of him, “Moicano” quickly targeted Pimblett with his post-fight callout. The outspoken Englishman appears to be up to the challenge, as he responded to the Brazilian in the affirmative on social media. Carneiro’s current four-fight UFC winning streak likely exceeds Pimblett’s six-fight tear in terms of strength of schedule, but they’re in a similar position in the current lightweight pecking order. Not to mention, the pre-fight promotion would be pretty enjoyable if these two were booked at a future event.

Nassourdine Imavov vs. Caio Borralho

After outdueling fellow contender Brendan Allen to capture a unanimous decision triumph in the UFC Paris co-main event, Imavov made it clear that he believes he has done enough to be deserving of a middleweight title shot. After back-to-back wins over Allen and Jared Cannonier, “The Sniper” certainly has a strong enough case, but it’s also likely that he remains behind Sean Strickland and the winner of the upcoming Robert Whittaker-Khamzat Chimaev fight in the contender’s queue. Borralho, who has won seven straight Octagon appearances, is in a similar position. Rather than have two top middleweights sidelined, let them battle it out to add some more clarity to the weight class.

William Gomis vs. Dan Ige-Lerone Murphy Winner

Gomis extended his professional winning streak to 12, taking a hard-fought split decision over Joanderson Brito in a featherweight encounter. It was a significant step up in competition for the Frenchman, who vanquished an opponent that had finished his previous five outings under the UFC banner. After his latest triumph, Gomis called for a showdown with surging contender Diego Lopes. His logic is sound enough: Lopes fell to Brito on Dana White’s Contender Series in August 2021. However, the 27-year-old MMA Factory representative still might be a rung below Lopes on the divisional ladder at the moment. Murphy and Ige are slated to meet at UFC 308 on Oct. 26. Give Gomis the winner for another stern test.

Bryan Battle vs. Gabriel Bonfim

Battle gleefully played the role of villain in Paris, overwhelming Kevin Jousset with striking volume en route to a second-round technical knockout triumph in a welterweight clash. After an impressive performance, “The Butcher” taunted the French crowd on the microphone, setting himself up as a potentially interesting foil in a number of scenarios. There’s a little bit of symmetry involved with the Bonfim matchup, as the Brazilian is coming off a unanimous decision triumph over Ange Loosa at UFC on ESPN 59 on July 13. Battle accused Loosa of quitting when he was unable to continue due to an eye poke in their March 16 encounter. Fighting Loosa doesn’t make much sense right now for Battle, who has lost just once in eight Octagon appearances. Bonfim, who is 3-1 in the UFC, is a more suitable foe.

Morgan Charriere vs. Julian Erosa

“The Last Pirate” showed why he’s a French favorite on Saturday, as he recovered from a subpar opening stanza to score a one-punch knockout of Gabriel Miranda 27 seconds into Round 2 in a featured featherweight encounter. Charriere certainly has his flaws, but if the UFC is willing to let him fight in the United States before its next event in France, a pairing against Erosa would liven up any Apex card. Erosa is coming off back-to-back first-round submission triumphs and is a known finisher, as 25 of his 30 career victories have come inside the distance.

Fares Ziam vs. Esteban Ribovics

For two rounds, Ziam looked precise and dangerous on the feet while blending in effective grappling against Matt Frevola. But it was the brutal knee that put “The Steamrolla” away at the 2:59 mark of Round 3 that will be remembered most. By delighting the home fans with a “Knockout of the Year” candidate, Ziam extended his promotional winning streak to four. A fun next step would be to pair “Smile Killer” with another potential 2024 award winner in Ribovics, who outdueled Daniel Zellhuber in a “Fight of the Year”-worthy pairing at Noche UFC on Sept. 14.