How UFC landscape would look like with a 165 lb division
I was listening to the "Weighing In" podcast the other day and at some point Josh and Big John were discussing how UFC would be impacted with a 165 lb division. Josh argued divisions would get shallowed whereas Big John said it would be good for the UFC.
It made me think how a good reshuffle would actually look like and I was a bit surprised with how interesting things would get.
For this exercise, I used the divisions that would be impacted the most (featherweight up to middleweight) and selected the top guys for each one (in bold you can see new guys at a division with the obvious exception of 165 where everybody is new).
**Featherweight**
Alex Volkanovski (C)
Brian Ortega
Yair Rodriguez
Korean Zombie
Giga Chikadze
Edson Barboza
Dan Hooker
**Henry Cejudo**
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The 145 division would not be impacted too much by these. Yair is back and looked great against back, Giga is promising and 1 extra division could allow the return of Henry Cejudo at Featherweight. The question marks would be Dan Hooker and Edson Barbosa who could realistically move between 145 and 155 and choose the one with potential higher returns. Still, even without Max, this division looks solid
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**Lightweight**
Charles Oliveira (C)
Islam Makhachev
Justin Gaethje
Beneil Dariush
Tony Ferguson
Rafael dos Anjos
Arman Tsarukyan
**Max Holloway**
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The big addition to the division would be Max. I think that regardless of the outcome of a likely Max v Volk 3, he should move up. He showed against Dustin he can be competitive against top 155s and he probably just needs time to "fill his frame" and get ready to contend. Justin, Charles, Islam and Beneil can keep the top interesting and who knows....maybe UFC can look at Pitbull and AJ McKee as additions to this division.
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**The new 165 lb division**
Colby Covington
Dustin Poirier
Conor McGregor
Michael Chandler
Gilbert Burns
Nate Diaz
Jorge Masvidal
Michael Chiesa
Sean Brady
Kevin Lee
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All I can see is wow, this division would be the prime division in the UFC. Not only it would feature some of the best, but it would also have the flashiest and brashest fighters in UFC. Allow me to explain the criteria:
* Dustin and Conor have said they don't want to cut weight; with a new division, they wouldn't have to and all of a sudden Conor would be up for a more valid title challenge. * A bit like the Max/Volk situation, Colby might be the obvious #2 of the division but not good enough to be the champion; with this new division he could become champion but above all he would have great potential matchups in Conor, Dustin and Jorge * If Nate resigns he can cut less weight for 165 and sort of have a clean slate. He won't be a top contender but he can still have fun fights * I feel like Michael Chandler style would fit this division - he also possesses a stocky frame - but he could move between 155 and 165. * Sean Brady would be the new challenger that could surprise some. * Kevin Lee is bound to disappoint but some of his problems are due to weight. 170s can take him down with ease and he has problems going down to 155; a new division would also allow me to start fresh and who knows...maybe get a fun fight with a top contender
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**Welterweight (175)**
Kamaru Usman (C)
Leon Edwards
Khamzat Chimaev
Darren Till
Vincent Luque
Stephen Thompson
Kevin Holland