UFC 323 fight fallout: Petr Yan vs. Merab Dvalishvili 3 among top fights to make after wild PPV

Yan has the pick of the litter after his remarkable performance at UFC 323

The future looks bright for UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan after UFC 323. A change in leadership brings many possibilities for Yan: a trilogy with Merab Dvalishvili, a rematch with Sean O'Malley, or an elite showdown with Umar Nurmagomedov.

Saturday's pay-per-view, the final before the Paramount+ era, was a shocker. Yan and Joshua Van upset acclaimed champions Dvalishvili and Alexandre Pantoja, respectively, turning two divisions upside down. The burning question after UFC 323 is whether the former champions deserve immediate rematches, and how soon they'll be ready for their shot.

In the aftermath of UFC 323, take a look at the best fights the promotion can make in the new year.

Bantamweight

Petr Yan (c) vs. Merab Dvalishvili 3: If anyone deserves an immediate rematch, it's Dvalishvili. He was a dominant champion who broke multiple records in his weight class. Most importantly, he was competitive with Yan through the first two rounds. They're 1-1 in their series, and a trilogy is among the biggest fights you can make in the division. Yan was reborn at UFC 323, and I'm curious to see how Dvalishvili looks with a proper break. If Dvalishvili wants an extended rest after fighting 18 rounds in 12 months, O'Malley and Nurmagomedov have the chance to make statements in their respective fights at UFC 324 in January.

Payton Talbott vs. Marlon Vera: Talbott exceeded expectations against Henry Cejudo. Talbott, an unranked bantamweight, negated 84% of the Olympic gold medalist's takedowns and landed three of his own. On the feet, he bloodied and battered Cejudo like no one has. The wide margin by which he sent Cejudo into retirement has me thinking he's ready for the big leagues. He'll likely be ranked No. 10 in the UFC's official bantamweight rankings next week. "Chito" sits at No. 8. It's a stylistically fan-friendly fight between two personalities that couldn't be further apart.

Flyweight

Joshua Van vs. Tatsuro Taira or Alexandre Pantoja: Pantoja deserves a rematch as soon as he's healed. There's no doubt about it after he suffered a freak arm injury 26 seconds into his title defense. The question is how long that will take. Van and Taira took virtually no damage in their respective fights on Saturday. If UFC wants to keep filling its content schedule, both can likely make a quick turnaround. Pantoja can fight the winner when he's ready. If Pantoja recovers before Van books his next fight, the rematch is a no-brainer.

Brandon Moreno vs. Kyoji Horiguchi: This one is for the hardcores. Horiguchi looked tremendous in his return to the promotion last month, submitting Tagir Ulanbekov to make an immediate splash in the rankings. 10 years ago, Horiguchi unsuccessfully challenged Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson for the flyweight title. He's back a decade later to make another run. Moreno vs. Horiguchi is high-level MMA with two UFC, two RIZIN, and one Bellator titles between them.