Matches to make after UFC Vegas 68, Bellator 290

UFC Vegas 68 went down last night (Sat., Feb. 4, 2023) inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, featuring a Heavyweight scrap between Serghei Spivac and Derrick Lewis. Spivac scored an impressive first-round technical knockout win over “Black Beast,” which you can see here. In the co-main event, Devin Clark defeated Jung Da-Un after 15 minutes of action.

At Bellator 290, Ryan Bader knocked out Fedor Emelianenko in the very first round again (highlights), while Johnny Eblen retained his Middleweight title with a dominant defense over Anatoly Tokov. So let’s take a look at what could be next for the main and co-main event winners from each event.

Winner: Serghei Spivac

Who He should Face Next: Jairzinho Rozenstruik

Following his explosive and dominant performance against Lewis, Spivac can expect to make the climb into the Top 10, which means stiffer competition moving forward. I am feeling a matchup against Rozenstruik next for Spivac. “Bigi Boy” recently got back into the win column with a first-round technical knockout win over Chris Daukaus. Rozenstruik is currently ranked No. 9, and depending on where SPivac lands this coming week, they could be closer to one another in the rankings.

Winner: Ryan Bader

Who He Should Fight Next: Linton Vassell vs Valentin Moldavsky winner

After Bader retained his title following his win over Emelianenko, he expressed his desire to face some new blood in the post-fight presser. He may not have that opportunity, because there is a good chance he will ace the winner of Moldavsky and Vassell, who are set to throw down at Bellator 292 in March. Bader defeated Moldavsky at Bellator 272 a year ago in what was his first title defense. As for Vassell, “Darth” took him out when they were competing a Light Heavyweight via second-round knockout at Bellator 186.

Winner: Devin Clark

Who He Should Face Next: Ihor Potieria

Clark got back into the win column with a big win over Jung Da-un, putting him at 2-3 in his last five UFC fights. I like a fight against Poitieria, who is coming off a knockout win over Mauricio Rua last month. Both men are several good wins away before sniffing the Top 15, so every win helps them get there. Granted, Potieria only has two fights inside the Octagon while Clark has been for the promotion for six years, but it’s still a nice matchup.

Winner: Johnny Eblen

Who He Should Face Next: There are three possible options

Eblen improved to 13-0 after dominating Anatoly Tokov for 25 minutes in the co-main event of Bellator 290. Former champion, Gegard Mousasi, is set to face Fabian Edwards at Bellator Paris on May 12, and the winner could very well get a shot at the title. Eblen took the strap away from Mousasi at Bellator 282 last summer but has stated he is more than ready to give him the work again. As for Edwards, a win over “Dreamcatcher” should solidify his shot at the title. If the promotion decides to go another route, perhaps Dalton Rosta would be a good option. He is currently ranked No. 5 in the division and is 8-0, with all of his fights going down inside the Bellator cage.

To see complete results for Bellator 290 click here, and for UFC Vegas 68 click here.