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Kevin Vallejos had a breakout moment as a featherweight prospect at UFC Fight Night 269 when he dismantled Josh Emmett inside one round.
Coming in on the younger side of the biggest age gap disparity in main event history, the 24-year-old Vallejos (18-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) rose to the occasion in a big way. He rocked and dropped Emmett (19-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) several times en route to the first-round TKO, further boosting his value in the weight class.
An argument can be made that excitement around Vallejos should be tempered. Emmett is 41 and has lost five of six after this result, so it's clear he's at or near the end of his career. Power is the last thing to go, though, and Emmett was swinging for the fences against Vallejos, who had an answer for everything.
It was an impressive performance no matter how you slice it, and the eye test alone says Vallejos is as legit as it gets. He's only been a pro for roughly five years, and his lone defeat is a competitive decision to fellow 145-pound contender Jean Silva, who has proven he's among the top tier.
There's no reason to rush Vallejos into the title picture just yet, though. He needs at least one more fight to prove himself before any serious title shot conversations, and he seems to have the right idea by mentioning the names of Yair Rodriguez and Brian Ortega.
All signs point to Ortega moving to lightweight, which would leave former interim champ Rodriguez in a very compelling stylistic matchup. It's hard to fathom Rodriguez (20-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) agreeing to that one given his history, but perhaps the UFC can sway him with big upside.
If Vallejos can do to Rodriguez what he's done in the past two showings against Emmett and Giga Chikadze, then the excitement around his potential upside is going to be tough to diminish.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Vegas 114 matchmaker: Who's next for Kevin Vallejos after win?
Continue reading...
Coming in on the younger side of the biggest age gap disparity in main event history, the 24-year-old Vallejos (18-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) rose to the occasion in a big way. He rocked and dropped Emmett (19-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) several times en route to the first-round TKO, further boosting his value in the weight class.
An argument can be made that excitement around Vallejos should be tempered. Emmett is 41 and has lost five of six after this result, so it's clear he's at or near the end of his career. Power is the last thing to go, though, and Emmett was swinging for the fences against Vallejos, who had an answer for everything.
It was an impressive performance no matter how you slice it, and the eye test alone says Vallejos is as legit as it gets. He's only been a pro for roughly five years, and his lone defeat is a competitive decision to fellow 145-pound contender Jean Silva, who has proven he's among the top tier.
There's no reason to rush Vallejos into the title picture just yet, though. He needs at least one more fight to prove himself before any serious title shot conversations, and he seems to have the right idea by mentioning the names of Yair Rodriguez and Brian Ortega.
All signs point to Ortega moving to lightweight, which would leave former interim champ Rodriguez in a very compelling stylistic matchup. It's hard to fathom Rodriguez (20-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) agreeing to that one given his history, but perhaps the UFC can sway him with big upside.
If Vallejos can do to Rodriguez what he's done in the past two showings against Emmett and Giga Chikadze, then the excitement around his potential upside is going to be tough to diminish.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Vegas 114 matchmaker: Who's next for Kevin Vallejos after win?
Continue reading...
