There are several fights that the UFC will want to protect on this night. Remember the company now has new owners that just paid $4 billion for the company; they are expecting to get some of that money back here.
The welterweight title fight between Tyron Woodley and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is a fight worth protecting, so what welterweight might be staying ready in case of injury? This one is easy: It’s Nick Diaz.
Nick Diaz at UFC 205
Nick Diaz is no longer suspended, so why isn’t he scheduled to fight? Woodley said he wanted either Nick Diaz or Georges St. Pierre for his next fight, and its probably a safe bet that the UFC has secured Diaz as their safety net for this fight. There still appears to be some contractual and financial barriers preventing GSP’s return unfortunately.
The 3rd championship fight on the card, Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz, probably doesn’t require a contingency plan, but they might have one anyway. This title fight doesn’t have a lot of buzz around it, even if Joanna is one of the most exciting fighters in the sport. The big strawweight feud was Joanna vs. Gadelha, and with that over the division feels a little stagnant. There is one HUGE name that could be ready in a last minute scenario however: Paige VanZant
Paige VanZant at UFC 205
PVZ is a star. Her appearance on Dancing With the Stars did monster ratings, and she is one of the most “trending” fighters they have. She doesn’t deserve a title shot, but if it was a last minute replacement the UFC could get away with putting her in that spot if they chose to. The problem is that Joanna could beat a lot of the pretty off of her if the fight happened.
Another likely replacement for an injured Strawweight would be “Thug” Rose Namajunas, who defeated VanZant back in December.
Middleweight Replacement at UFC 205?
The last potential injury replacement waiting in the wings is a middleweight. This fighter is staying prepared in case either Weidman or Romero go down, but he’s also staying ready just in case Dan Henderson, Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold or Jacare Souza go down in their upcoming fights. His name is Anderson Silva. As is the case with Nick Diaz, there is nothing stopping Anderson Silva from scheduling an upcoming bout… unless they want him ready for a potential short-notice fight that is.
Will we see Anderson Silva, Paige VanZant, or Nick Diaz fight at UFC 205? Too early to say, but smart money says at least 1 of those 3 end up on the card if someone goes down.
