There aren’t many welterweights in the UFC that had a better year in 2020 than Neil Magny (24-8). After having a lengthy layoff, Magny made his return to the octagon in 2020 and went a perfect 3-0.
Magny’s winning streak found him ranked ninth in the welterweight division. Yesterday at UFC Fight Island 8, Magny got the opportunity to take on the eighth ranked welterweight in the division in Michael Chiesa (18-4).
Chiesa was also riding a three-fight winning streak at welterweight. However, he hadn’t competed in almost a year due to some injuries. With Magny’s point style fighting and his 2020 activity level, I favored Magny in the matchup.
However, the fight didn’t go as I thought it would. I figured Magny would try to fight from distance a little more. However, the UFC main event mainly took place mainly in close quarters. In the grappling exchanges, Chiesa got the better of Magny throughout the fight.
In the third round, Magny finally started to pick it up. Just as you thought Magny would turn the tables and use his cardio advantage, Chiesa flipped the script and won the final two rounds at UFC Fight Island 8. Magny lost 49-46 on all three scorecards snapping his winning streak.
What’s next after UFC Fight Island 8?
As mentioned, Magny had a three-fight winning streak heading into yesterday. Had he been able to defeat Chiesa, he could’ve been looking at a top five opponent in his next fight inside the octagon. However, that didn’t happen.
So what should the UFC do with The Haitian Sensation? A fight that could make a lot of sense is a battle with Geoff Neal (13-3). Neal and Magny were originally supposed to fight in 2020, however, Neal had to pull out of their original matchup.
Neal just lost to Stephen Thompson so both men are in a very similar position. Both are coming off of losses and their ranked in similar spots in the UFC’s welterweight division. That’s the fight that makes the most sense to me.