What to expect from the UFC in 2019

#2 Light-Heavyweight

Will Jon Jones or Alexander Gustafsson hold the Light-Heavyweight title in 2019?

The 205lbs division will have a much clearer picture as 2019 ends, as Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson are set to face off for the title vacated by Daniel Cormier at UFC 232 this weekend. Regardless of who wins, some fresh matches should be expected going forward as the top of the division has largely been in flux in 2018, with some new contenders rising up while a lot of veterans have slipped down the pecking order.

UFC 232 also sees Ilir Latifi take on Corey Anderson in a battle of top ten contenders, but given the styles of both men, it’d probably take something spectacular to elevate the winner of that fight into the next title match. The fact that Latifi is good friends with Gustafsson would make things more tricky if both men were to win, too.

2019’s first card – the EPSN+ debut on 01/19 – sees a major fight in the division as former title challenger Glover Teixeira takes on rising prospect Ion Cutelaba. If the Moldovan prospect can pick up his biggest win yet, then he’ll likely find himself in title contention sooner rather than later. For Teixeira, a win would resurrect his career while a loss would likely signal the end of his time at the elite level – after all, he’s 39 years old now and has been alternating wins and losses since 2016. It’s a fascinating fight.

A fight between Jan Blachowicz and Thiago Santos has also been announced as the main event for the UFC’s debut in Prague, Czech Republic on 02/23, and an impressive showing for either man could win them a title shot. Blachowicz is currently ranked #4 and has won his last 4 fights, while Santos is ranked at #7 and is unbeaten at 205lbs with two violent finishes. Neither man would sell that many pay-per-views, but it’d be hard to deny the winner a shot, especially if it’s a victory in violent fashion.

Elsewhere, prospects like Dominick Reyes, Magomed Ankalaev and Misha Cirkunov will have to wait for their first 2019 bookings – but a rising star in Johnny Walker is set to face Justin Ledet on ESPN+ on 02/02. If Walker can win as impressively as he did in his Octagon debut, expect his hype train to really pick up some steam.

The wild card in the division though could be former Middleweight champ Luke Rockhold. He announced an official move to 205lbs recently and given the success of former Middleweights Santos and Anthony Smith at Light-Heavyweight, a big win in his divisional debut could make Rockhold an instant title contender. His next fight remains unknown, however.