My Dream UFC 200 Card

Fans have been clamoring for Cat Zingano's return to the Octagon, and a showdown with Holly Holm at UFC 200 seems like the best time for it.

Fans have been clamoring for Cat Zingano’s return to the Octagon, and a showdown with Holly Holm at UFC 200 seems like the best time for it.

Published on Tuesday, 3/8/16, at 11:05 a.m. Eastern.

UFC 200
Date: July 9, 2016
Venue: T-Mobile Arena
Location: Las Vegas Nevada

UFC 200 Start Times:
Main Card on Pay-Per-View: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT
Prelims on FOX Sports 1: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT
Prelims on UFC Fight Pass: 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT

By no means am I implying that I’ll get what I wish here and, admittedly, some of these matchups are far-fetched for a variety of reasons. Let me also stipulate that Jon Jones (against Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson) didn’t make the cut because I’m of the belief you can’t put him and Conor McGregor on the same card because neither will walk into the Octagon unless it’s a main event for a long time to come. And the timing is better for McGregor since Jones fights at UFC 197 against current light-heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier.

I also list Carlos Condit in a non-title fight even though he’s stated that he has no plans of fighting anytime soon unless it’s for the welterweight strap. Anyhow, here’s what I came up with…

MAIN CARD:
1-MAIN EVENT: Conor McGregor vs. Frankie Edgar for the featherweight title.
2-CO-MAIN EVENT: Georges St. Pierre vs. Robbie Lawler for the welterweight title.
3-Tony Ferguson-Khabib Nurmagomedove winner vs. Rafael dos Anjos for lightweight title.
4-Carlos Condit vs. Tyron Woodley (welterweight title eliminator)
5-Holly Holm vs. Cat Zingano (women’s bantamweight title eliminator)

PRELIMS:
6-HEADLINER: Alexander Gustafsson vs. Ovince St. Preux (light heavyweight)
7-Stefan Struve vs. Roy Nelson (heavyweight)
8-Diego Sanchez vs. Dustin Poirier (lightweight)
9-Brian Ortega vs. Jeremy Stephens (featherweight)
10-Michael McDonald vs. Aljamain Sterling (bantamweight)
11-Paul Felder vs. Al Iaquinta (lightweight)

FIGHT PASS:

12-Joe Lauzon vs. Jim Miller (lightweight)
13-Paige Van Zant vs. Valerie Letourneau (women’s straweight)

THOUGHTS:

1-Edgar deserves the shot over Aldo, who pulled out the first time and then was dusted by McGregor in only 13 seconds. With that said, my gut is that the UFC is going to give it to Aldo in part because the promotion likes McGregor’s chances against Aldo better than his chances vs. Edgar.

2-If GSP decides not to return, Condit, Woodley or Nate Diaz could face Lawler.

3-If the UFC doesn’t want to have a third title fight on the same card, I have two ideas for this fight: Anderson Silva vs. Uriah Hall or Donald Cerrone vs. Anthony Pettis. Silva might not be willing to take a fight that’s not a main event, much less a co-main, but that’s why I provide other options. After losing two straight, Pettis just needs a win so he’d probably be game even though he already beat Cerrone via first-round TKO.

4-If Woodley or Condit get the shot at Lawler, then one of the three possible matchups just listed can fill the void here.

5-Tate-Rousey is likely to be in October or November, so the Holm-Zingano winner will have plenty of time to prep for their title shot.

6-I think Anthony Johnson waits out the Cormier-Jones winner, so let’s get ‘The Mauler’ back in there against an opponent he should beat but who also poses potential problems with his punching power.

7-I know Nelson-Struve is a rematch of a one-sided bout won by ‘Big Country’ by KO in the first minute, but that was a long time ago. Both fighters need a win and haven’t been able to get one against Top-10 opponents recently.

8-Sanchez-Poirier would be a leading candidate for Fight of the Night honors.

9-Ortega is ready to step up for a fight against a ranked veteran, while Stephens would get the opportunity to slow Ortega’s hype train.

10-McDonald-Sterling makes tons of sense in the 135-pound loop.

11-Felder and Iaquinta always bring it.

12-Why not a rematch of one of the biggest bloodbaths in UFC history? This fight could be replaced with Sage Northcutt against a lower-tier 155er.

13-Van Zant-Letourneau is worthy of a better slot on a fight card but hey, we’re talking about UFC 200 here.

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