We are just about at the halfway mark of 2019. This year has been a pretty phenomenal year for fighting. It seems like a new era for the UFC has ushered in and 2019 is only just the beginning. Here are the top 5 fights we should be most excited for in the rest of 2019.
5. Max Holloway vs. Alexander Volkanovski (presumably)
This fight may not happen. But the chances are that it will. I do believe Holloway will run through Frankie Edgar in his upcoming title bout. I like Frankie a lot, but Max is just on another level right now. Volkanovski, on the other hand, is a different story. This guy has power and is extremely aggressive. He always pushes the pace, just like Max. I see him trying to take Max down and implement some ground and pound. I don’t think he wants to stand up with Holloway’s boxing pedigree, although I wouldn’t be surprised if he has faith in his power. Holloway doesn’t throw absolute heat, as we just saw in his fight with Dustin Poirer. This fight might be Holloway’s toughest title defense to date, just because its a bad matchup for him.
4. Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic 2
Man, everyone should be out of their seats excited for this fight. Sure, the first fight ended pretty early, but Stipe Miocic is the most dangerous person Daniel Cormier can possibly face in that division. He has the record for most heavyweight title defenses ever and he wants his title back. Daniel Cormier has cemented himself as a top 5 fighter to ever live in my opinion. He has only two defeats on his resume and both of them were the cause of Jon Jones. I see this fight playing out almost the exact same as the first fight. I do think it will go a little longer this time. Stipe is going to want to work the jab and keep Cormier at his range. I just don’t see him neutralizing DC. Daniel Cormier is just too talented man. This dude was made for the history books whether you love him or hate him. This could also be his retirement fight according to his camp, so it has to be a must watch.
3. Jon Jones vs. Thiago Santos
This fight is one of the more interesting fights in Jones’ career. I don’t think he has ever fought someone with that size and explosiveness up until this point in his career. He’s definitely fought better fighters, but I doubt he’s fought someone with this explosiveness. Santos is a straight killer. This man hunts for the knockout. Jones seems to be undisturbed by Santos’ knockout power, but I wonder if he’s being a little too confident in himself. Nonetheless, he is the greatest of all time. That title has been cemented in the history books under his name. That makes every one of his fights a must watch going forward.
2. Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Dustin Poirer
This might be my most anticipated fight for the rest of 2019. Not because I think it’ll be a good fight, but because I’m just excited to see Khabib return to the octagon. Poirer is a brawler so I expect he’ll try to make this a dog fight. The problem is I see him being susceptible to the takedown in a lot of situations in this fight. If he puts it on Khabib he might have a chance, but once that man grabs a hold of you, it’s over. Khabib is probably the second or third best fighter in the world at the moment. The guy has lost 1 round in his entire career… like what? I don’t see a fighter in that division giving Khabib any problems at the moment, but I could be wrong.
1. Jon Jones vs. Johnny Walker (presumably)
This fight has not been booked yet and might not even happen. Yet, I’m going to throw it on here. Because it might happen. And it most likely will happen. Johnny Walker would be the toughest test of Jones’ career in my opinion. He is two inches taller than Jones. He almost matches Jones’ reach. And he is extremely massive. This guy is built like a body builder. What’s scarier about him is his freakish explosiveness. He is so loose inside the octagon, yet he moves so viciously and aggressively. If you blink for a second, you might miss a Johnny Walker knockout. I think if there was one fight Jones could lose, it would be this one. I’d recommend Jones takes this fight to the ground as soon as possible. Walker lost some fights early on in his career, because his ground game was not polished. If Jones were to win, that would be how.
