As impressive as Michael Morales and Carlos Prates were in their UFC 322 wins, Daniel Cormier thinks they face a similar conundrum in their respective pursuits for a title shot.
The welterweight division got a hard reset Saturday when Islam Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) moved up from lightweight and claimed the strap from Jack Della Maddalena by unanimous decision at Madison Square Garden in New York.
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Earlier in the night, Morales (19-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) knocked out top-ranked contender Sean Brady in the first round to add to his undefeated record, while Prates (23-7 MMA, 6-1 UFC) delivered a statement of his own in a second-round knockout of former champion Leon Edwards.
For the 26-year-old Morales, his spotless record and stunning power presents a compelling option, but does he stand out enough?
“This kid’s 19-0 and he just knocked out the No. 2 guy in the world in the first round,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “In most case, Morales would be easily identified as the next guy for a championship opportunity. Unfortunately for him, he’s in what may be the deepest weight class in the UFC now. We have so many guys in this weight that have undefeated records (or) one loss. It’s insane some of the records that these young men have in this weight class. But it was a beautiful performance by Michael Morales.”
Prates faces a similar issue, according to the UFC Hall of Famer and now longtime commentator.
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“That was very impressive by Prates, and in most cases that would’ve guaranteed him a title fight,” Cormier said. “Unfortunately, he fights at 170 where it’s just so deep. Next week, Ian (Machado) Garry fights Belal Muhammad (at UFC Fight Night 265). Garry just beat this guy Prates in April. That’s how good this weight class is. But Prates made a statement and he should be lauded for that.”
In addition to Morales, Prates and potentially the winner of Muhammad vs. Machado Garry, there’s also Kamaru Usman pushing for a Makhachev fight, undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov looming from an injury layoff, and then UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria constantly calling for Makhachev.
Whoever it ends up being, Cormier said it will be hard for anyone to beat the version of Makhachev that he saw against Della Maddalena.
“Islam proved why he was such a massive favorite in this fight – totally controlling Jack Della Maddalena, winning the fight 50-45 on every single one of the judges’ scorecards.,” Cormier said. “… He really had no issues with JDM, and Jack was prepared. Jack was very well prepared.
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“Now that he’s won a belt in a second division, I expect Ilia and him to flip again in this week’s (UFC pound-for-pound) rankings. But it was dominant. It was exactly what we have seen him do on so many occasions inside the octagon. There is no, ‘DC, you’re being biased.’ You can’t judge Islam harshly for what he did. It really was a shutout.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Daniel Cormier casts doubt on title shot for key UFC 322 winners
