5 potential winners at UFC 264 who can move on to bigger and better things

UFC 264 promises to be one of the biggest pay-per-view events of the year, with some huge fights littering the card from top to bottom. Many of these fights come at a pivotal time in these athletes' careers, and a win under such a spotlight could see their stock rise exponentially.

In the following list we will go over five fights where the winner could use such a victory to springboard into bigger and better things, be that breaking into the top ten or five, a number one contender shot or even a title fight. Honorable mentions go to Ryan Hall vs. Illia Topuria, Michel Perreira vs. Niko Price and Trevin Giles vs. Dricius Du Plessis.

#5 Omari Akhmedov vs. Brad Tavares - UFC middleweight

Two ranked middleweights clash in this early prelim brawl between Omari Akhmedov and Brad Tavares. This fight has been somewhat hidden at the bottom of the card, but it could well see the winner break into the top of the middleweight division.

Omari Akhmedov currently sits at 13th whilst Tavares is ranked at 15th. Both men are coming off impressive wins, with Akhmedov submitting Tom Breese in January whilst Tavares picked up a unanimous decision victory over Antonio Carlos Junior at UFC 257. Tavares has lost two of his last three fights, although they were both against elite opposition in Israel Adesanya and Edmen Shahbazayen.

A win here for either man would solidify their place as a top-ranked middleweight. Akhmedov has looked especially impressive as of late, with only one loss coming in his last eight appearances. His wrestling credentials could easily see him pick up wins over some of the top 10 UFC 180lbers considering the division's deficit in defensive wrestling.

#4 Jennifer Maia vs. Jessica Eye - UFC women's flyweight

The featured fight of the early prelims sees two former title challengers face off in a bid to re-establish themselves in the UFC women's flyweight division. Maia is coming off a failed title shot where the division champion, Valentina Shevchenko, dominated for five rounds.

Jessica Eye has also come up short against Shevchenko previously, getting knocked out via a head kick in only two rounds. Since then, Eye has been able to pick up a win over Viviane Araujo. However, back-to-back losses against Joanne Calderwood and Cynthia Calvillo in her last two UFC appearances have seen Eye drop outside the top five.

Maia is still ranked fourth and a win over Eye will likely see her compete for a number one contender shot next. The fact that Jessica Eye has recently been submitted twice via armbar on Submission Underground bodes well for the Brazilian, whose most recent win came via the same submission.

#3 Irene Aldana vs. Yana Kunitskaya - UFC women's bantamweight

From the early prelims we move all the way up to the main card. Fourth-ranked women's bantamweight Irene Aldana takes on the the fifth-ranked Yana Kunitskaya in a fight which could easily see the winner be next to fight for the title.

Despite being the higher ranked of the two, Irene Aldana is currently coming off a loss to Holly Holm. However, prior to that loss, Aldana had picked up back-to-back wins against top contenders Vanessa Melo and Ketlen Vieira. She has proved time and time again that she is deserving of being ranked among the best of her division.

Comparatively, Yana Kunitskaya is currently on a two-win streak after defeating both Ketlen Vieira and Julija Stoliarenko. After initially having a rough start to her UFC career, Kunitskaya is now building some momentum behind her and should she be able to defeat Aldana, a number one contender fight beckons, if not a shot at the title.

#2 Stephen Thompson vs. Gilbert Burns - UFC welterweight

The UFC's welterweight division is currently in a strange place. Colby Covington looks set to face the 170lb champion Kamaru Usman, despite the fact that he already lost to 'The Nigerian Nightmare' and has only picked up a win against Tyron Woodley since, who is no longer even a part of the UFC.

Leon Edwards arguably deserves a shot at the title, as will the winner of UFC 264's co-main event between Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson and Gilbert 'Durinho' Burns.

Burns is coming off a loss to champion Kamaru Usman and is looking to bounce back in a big way. He has previously shown off his impressive skillset against the likes of Demian Maia, Tyron Woodley and Gunnar Nelson.

However, whilst this is an important fight for Burns, he is still only 34 and certainly has several years left in his MMA career. Thompson is 38 and this will unquestionably be his last shot at a title. He has previously fought for the title, picking up a split decision draw to Tyron Woodley and subsequently losing the rematch.

After initially going 1-2 following the title loss, Thompson has managed to put together back-to-back wins against Geoff Neal and Vincente Luque. A win against Burns may just be enough to give Thompson one last shot at claiming welterweight gold before age catches up with him.

#1 Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor - UFC lightweight

What other fight could come in at number one than the trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier? This is a huge fight for both men, with the winner going on to fight for the title and the loser sinking into the shark infested waters of the lightweight division.

Both men currently hold a victory over the other, although McGregor's was in 2014 whilst Poirier's was only six months ago. Poirier was offered the chance to fight for the vacant title but declined in favor of pursuing a money fight with McGregor. The vacant belt was instead claimed by Charles Olivera, who knocked out Michael Chandler at UFC 262.

Dana White has essentially guaranteed the winner of this fight will be Olivera's first title defense. Thus it is integral to both men's legacies that they win this fight. The beauty of it is that there can only be one winner. Considering the depth of the 155lb division, should either man lose this fight, it will be an incredibly tough route back to the title.