Is MW now a Dead Division?

[greenhawk]

1 Robert Whittaker- Already lost to Izzy. Getting the rematch because there are no other contenders.
2 Paulo Costa- Got destroyed by Izzy and is nowhere to be seen since then.
3 Marvin Vettori- Lost
4 Jared Cannonier- Lost his last fight
5 Derek Brunson- Gatekeeper material. Will lose to any top 3
6 Jack Hermansson- Same
7 Darren Till- 1-3 in his last 4
8 Uriah Hall- Has had 3 fights in 3 years. Loses to any top 5 .
9 Kelvin Gastelum- Surprised he hasn't been cut yet
10 Edmen Shahbazyan- On a 2 fight skid.

Now imagine if Izzy beats Whittaker again. Then what is left for him in the division ?

 

[axe wound]

well moose would....oh don't worry

 

[Cfpcommitteemember]

Whittakers really the only on the list with a chance. It's extremely impressive this dude really is clearing this shit out.

 

[TheHotorious]

1 Robert Whittaker- Already lost to Izzy. Getting the rematch because there are no other contenders.
2 Paulo Costa- Got destroyed by Izzy and is nowhere to be seen since then.
3 Marvin Vettori- Lost
4 Jared Cannonier- Lost his last fight
5 Derek Brunson- Gatekeeper material. Will lose to any top 3
6 Jack Hermansson- Same
7 Darren Till- 1-3 in his last 4
8 Uriah Hall- Has had 3 fights in 3 years. Loses to any top 5 .
9 Kelvin Gastelum- Surprised he hasn't been cut yet
10 Edmen Shahbazyan- On a 2 fight skid.

Now imagine if Izzy beats Whittaker again. Then what is left for him in the division ?

What would need to happen? And what does it mean for Israel if the division is dead? Dude is there to make money, not to prove something to the world. He owes the fans nothing

 

[Herwald]

Landscape always changes. Vettori/Izzy 1 was jerking the curtain of a FOX main card just two years ago. Something will come up.

Meanwhile there's the Hobert rematch.

 

[greenhawk]

What would need to happen? And what does it mean for Israel if the division is dead? Dude is there to make money, not to prove something to the world. He owes the fans nothing

It means a lot to him too. No strong contenders means less fan interest which will result in poor PPV buys and less money for him .

 

[Jackonfire]

I don't know. Is WW a dead division? Usman just rematched Masvidal and is about to rematch Colby.

 

[Juan Bombadil]

Depends if Rob beats him

 

[Mila is My World]

I don't know. Is WW a dead division? Usman just rematched Masvidal and is about to rematch Colby.

Usman and Izzy have both done a great job cleaning out their divisions.

 

[Jin Akutsu]

I would be stoked to see Uriah Hall get his shot against Izzy but I don't know if he'll make it there.

 

[Unheralded Truth]

No, it's not. I think the top 10 will change quite a lot next year.
We have guys like Sean Strickland, who has looked really stable since the comeback. Now scheduled to fight Uriah Hall, and could take his spot in the rankings.

You just never know how things will unfold.

 

[greenhawk]

I don't know. Is WW a dead division? Usman just rematched Masvidal and is about to rematch Colby.

That's because UFC wants money fights. But if we look at the division there's Wonderboy, Luque, Edwards all on a win streak and waiting for a shot. WW is nowhere close to being dead.

 

[GUY]

If Izzy wins against Bob on the rematch I think it will take a while for another contender to appear. He seems to want to be active. For me the best solution would be to let him fight some gatekeeper at LHW first (like Smith), see where he stands and start giving him better competition there while waiting for a MW contender. Another LHW title shot doesn't make sense, but I would like to see where he stands on the division. Also, potential for a future exciting fight with Jiri.

 

[The Demon Sword]

No, that’s what happens when actually have an active champion who fights all comers. Certain other all time greats and “champs” should take note…

 

[Jackonfire]

That's because UFC wants money fights. But if we look at the division there's Wonderboy, Luque, Edwards all on a win streak and waiting for a shot. WW is nowhere close to being dead.

And neither is MW. Since losing, Whittaker has beat two #5 ranked opponents back to back, and another top10 opponent. Thats three fights in a row, enough to legitimately earn a rematch. Champs fight rematches all the time. Both title fights last night were rematches. Doesn't mean the divisions are dead.

 

[DoctorDeelon]

1 Robert Whittaker- Already lost to Izzy. Getting the rematch because there are no other contenders.
2 Paulo Costa- Got destroyed by Izzy and is nowhere to be seen since then.
3 Marvin Vettori- Lost
4 Jared Cannonier- Lost his last fight
5 Derek Brunson- Gatekeeper material. Will lose to any top 3
6 Jack Hermansson- Same
7 Darren Till- 1-3 in his last 4
8 Uriah Hall- Has had 3 fights in 3 years. Loses to any top 5 .
9 Kelvin Gastelum- Surprised he hasn't been cut yet
10 Edmen Shahbazyan- On a 2 fight skid.

Now imagine if Izzy beats Whittaker again. Then what is left for him in the division ?

Yeah it really is a shit division.

It's funny to think that if Weidman had just gotten past Hall, he might have actually got a title shot. They have no one else to throw at Izzy.

 

[ShowYouRoll]

Pretty much, Izzy has cleared the division out. People seem to banking on the Rob rematch bring different, but unfortunately I can’t it being.

Nothing left for Izzy at MW, he needs to bulk up and pack on some clean muscle mass and move up to LHW. He is tall enough, just needs to thicken up that frame. He is still young, and if he focuses on moving up properly, I think he might have the same success.

 

[KOPPE]

wait for the goat to clean it up

 

[ShowYouRoll]

Yeah it really is a shit division.

It's funny to think that if Weidman had just gotten past Hall, he might have actually got a title shot. They have no one else to throw at Izzy.

Weidman even if he got past Hall wouldn’t have a chance, pre USADA weidman would, or maybe Luke

 

[Cameron]

I think in a lot of ways many divisions are dead. The UFC has been trying to make fighters inter changeable this year. Putting ranked fighters on undercard and having debuters fight on mains. They are doing it to themselves.

That said, MW isn't so much weak as it lacks interesting styles. It's a hodge podge of mediocre strikers and grapplers with weak wrestling. No one that looks like a legit threat to the champ. Much like the WW division for that matter.