This past Saturday in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 102, we saw a matchup in the featherweight division featuring a fighter looking to break into the rankings and one who was looking to hold onto his spot. Calvin Kattar (23-9) was looking to turn around his recent stretch as he took on surging contender Youssef Zalal (17-5-1).
Kattar entered the octagon ranked 10th in the featherweight division. A few years ago, Kattar was knocking on the door of title contention. However, he had lost three fights in a row entering Saturday night and desperately needed a win. Youssef Zalal was hungry to break into the rankings. Both men desperately needed this win.
In the first two rounds, Kattar moved forward but he couldn’t catch Zalal. He just didn’t fight win a ton of urgency and Zalal was beating him to the punch. After two rounds, Kattar’s corner begged him to fight with urgency. He did that in the third round and he easily won the round. However, the damage was already done as Kattar easily lost the first two rounds resulting in a unanimous decision loss at UFC Vegas 102.
What’s next after UFC Vegas 102?
It was frustrating to watch if you’re a fan of Calvin Kattar. Had he fought with the urgency he fought with in the third round, I think we would’ve seen a very exciting fight and a fight that Kattar was capable of winning. However, the lack of urgency in the first two round put him behind the eight-ball and without that fight stopping power, Kattar was left in a really tough spot.
He didn’t fall out of the UFC rankings this week but he did drop down to 14. Honestly, his next fight might be his last chance given his four-fight losing streak. That being said, what should be next for him? If you’re looking at the featherweight division, there are a couple of options that make sense.
One option would be a matchup with Edson Barboza. Both men are coming off losses and they’re both ranked right next to each other. Barboza was set to fight in Seattle this weekend but pulled out due to an injury. Sodiq Yusuff is another guy that would be a great matchup for Kattar.