Now that Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson has been confirmed for UFC’s debut in New York City, that won’t stop the speculation and dream cards from being assembled for what is expected to be a blockbuster line-up, if UFC officials have their way. On this week’s “UFC Tonight” on FS1, Daniel Cormier and Dan Hardy engaged in some conversation about what they’d like to see at UFC 205.
Cormier said he’d like to see Chris Weidman make it to the line-up against Yoel Romero. “He fought to get it legalized in that state,” he said. “He should get the opportunity and he should fight Yoel Romero. It’d clear up the division.”
Hardy had a dream match in mind from two elder-statesmen of UFC’s history. “I think Matt Hughes should fight Matt Serra,” he said. “Hughes said he’d come out of retirement to fight Serra and Serra said he’d come back to fight in New York.”
The biggest name being speculated about is George St. Pierre, although that speculation has shifted to UFC 206 taking place in GSP’s home country of Canada in the city of Toronto.
Now that Woodley is facing Thompson at UFC 205, there’s no chance of Woodley as GSP’s first opponent in Toronto. So Hardy had his own suggestion. “It’s got to Demian Maia,” he said. “He’s the backpack of the division, but GSP has the best wrestling. Would he let Maia take him to the ground?”
Cormier had wanted to see GSP fight Woodley. “Give Tyron the money fight. GSP has been the best in the division. Let T-Wood get the fight he wants and GSP the title fight.” That fight will have to wait.
Keller’s Analysis: I suppose Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra could be a fun nostalgic special attraction, but just because UFC in debuting in NYC is no reason to create a weaker card with “special attraction” matches that lack relevance in today’s title picture. With UFC 206 in Toronto, the GSP-NYC talk died down, and with Thompson getting his deserved shot against Woodley, I do expect UFC to try to find something that is considered a “bigger draw” to boost that show’s marketability. It’ll be interesting to see if they just load the card with the biggest names available who are relevant in the rankings such as Weidman-Romero, or if UFC tries to the route of Serra-Hughes or other gimmicky matches to make it stand out.
Leave a Reply