On what was a chaotic weekend in the world of combat sports, Diego Lopes and Jean Silva delivered the most electrifying moment of all in their main event clash at Noche UFC on Saturday night.
Fans at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio were treated to one of the fights of the year when former title challenger Lopes (27-7 MMA, 6-2 UFC) went toe-to-toe with rising Brazilian star Silva (16-3 MMA, 5-1 UFC) in front of a raucous Texas crowd.
After a frenetic back-and-forth battle, Lopes became the first fighter to defeat Silva inside the Octagon when he landed a vicious spinning elbow in the second round, then followed up with a barrage of strikes that forced referee Mike Beltran to step in and stop the fight.
Now that the dust has settled, it’s time to figure out what’s next for Diego Lopes in the wake of UFC Fight Night 259.
Murphy the Real Winner of Noche UFC
Given that Diego Lopes lost a title fight to Alexander Volkanovski as recently as April, the likelihood of a win over Jean Silva on Saturday earning him another shot at the champion was always slim. Silva, on the other hand, had a golden opportunity to position himself at the front of the line—and he may come to regret letting that chance slip away.
Lerone Murphy’s spectacular spinning-elbow finish over Aaron Pico had provisionally put him in pole position for the next title shot, but the feeling going into Noche UFC was that “Lord” could leapfrog the UK star if he managed to notch a sixth consecutive stoppage victory over Lopes.
Instead, when the Brazilian overthrew that leaping left hook against the cage late in the second round—allowing Lopes to capitalize on the mistake—the title picture was turned on its head. Lopes had his hand raised inside the Octagon, but you can be damn sure that Murphy walked away from Saturday’s card as the night’s biggest winner.
What’s Next for Lopes?
With the next title fight at 145 pounds likely set in stone, the question now turns to what to do with the remaining contenders.
Two fighters Diego Lopes has history with sit on either side of him in the featherweight rankings. Movsar Evloev (19-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) — who Lopes lost to in his UFC debut two years ago — remains an afterthought for the UFC matchmakers, with the Russian’s inability to secure any finishes during his UFC career seemingly keeping him out of title contention up to this point.
Former title challenger Yair Rodriguez (20-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) is also perched inside the top five of the featherweight rankings, and he and Lopes nearly came to blows during the pre-fight press conference for UFC 314 back in April. They had been rumored to be facing each other at last Saturday’s event before Jean Silva was confirmed in that spot instead.
And former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling (25-5 MMA, 17-5 UFC) has also thrown his name into the mix following his dominant win over former featherweight title challenger Brian Ortega at UFC Shanghai recently. “Funkmaster” even went as far as to call for a fight against Lopes immediately after Saturday’s main event.
The task now for the UFC matchmakers is to create two semifinals from those four contenders, mirroring what’s happening in the middleweight title picture.
Unfinished Business
Letting Diego Lopes and Yair Rodriguez settle their differences certainly sounds like a fun option, but it would leave Movsar Evloev and Aljamain Sterling on the sidelines. Given that those two fought as recently as December, it’s unlikely the UFC will go with this option right away.
That leaves Lopes with two realistic potential opponents — Sterling or Evloev. Lopes has been calling for another crack at the unbeaten Russian for quite some time. In the lead-up to his failed title bid in April, Lopes had named Evloev as the first fighter he wanted to face if he won the belt.
“My focus is on Alexander Volkanovski,” he told MMA Junkie at the time. “I win the belt and I will ask the UFC for a fight with Movsar.”
With the title picture temporarily locked up, now is the perfect time to revisit unfinished business. Lopes has evolved into one of the division’s most dangerous finishers, while Evloev remains its most technically sound undefeated contender—a clash of styles that practically sells itself. Matching Lopes against Evloev not only gives Lopes the chance to avenge the lone blemish on his UFC résumé (outside of his title fight defeat to Volkanovski), but also provides the division with a clear next-in-line contender. It’s the fight that makes the most sense, and it’s the fight the UFC should make next.
