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#4. Former UFC two-division champion Conor McGregor
From a business and marketing standpoint, Jorge Masvidal vs. Conor McGregor would be massive for the UFC. Despite being against the idea of the two fighting, Dana White shouldn’t completely rule it out. Masvidal has lost three straight fights, while McGregor has lost back-to-back fights to Dustin Poirier.
‘The Notorious’ is expected to return to the octagon sometime this summer, but there’s still no confirmation on who he’s fighting. An immediate lightweight title-shot against the winner of Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje hasn’t been ruled out. Another potential fight that’s been talked about has been the long-awaited trilogy with Nate Diaz.
If those don’t come to fruition, the promotion could see a lot more value in McGregor vs. Masvidal. 'Mystic Mac' would have an opportunity to prove White wrong when he said he's too small for welterweight. ‘Gamebred’ could also raise the stakes and put his BMF title on the line against the former two-division champion. Their fighting style would make for an entertaining striking battle and could produce a memorable knockout for the winner.
#3. No.3-ranked UFC welterweight Leon Edwards
Leon Edwards has been one of the most underrated fighters in the UFC. He is currently the No.3-ranked welterweight and is expected to get the next title shot against Kamaru Usman.
'Rocky' has had a much different path to a title shot than most fighters. He has gone one fight at a time without creating a persona to get a title shot. He is unbeaten in his last 10-fights, with his last loss coming against ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ in 2015. If Edwards comes up short in his title fight, the promotion might make another attempt at booking the Masvidal bout.
‘Gamebred’ and 'Rocky' were originally scheduled to fight this past December, but the fight was canceled. Masvidal was forced to withdraw from the bout due to a rib injury, so the promotion went in another direction. It would be an easy fight to sell as there is history between the two. They were famously involved in a backstage confrontation in 2019 that ended with punches being thrown.
