What’s next for Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar after UFC Moscow?

Zabit Magomedsharipov was looking to remain undefeated inside the Octagon in the main event of UFC Moscow. There, he was taking on Calvin Kattar, who was coming off of a very impressive knockout win over Ricardo Lamas in June. The winner could very well get the next title shot, so the stakes were high.

In the end, it was Magomedsharipov who got the decision win. It was a close fight, with Kattar coming on strong in the third and final round. Yet, it wasn’t enough to beat the Russian.

Following the fight, here is what we think should be next for the two of them.

Zabit Magomedsharipov

Zabit Magomedsharipov was looking to become a top contender at featherweight. Yet, even though he got the win over Kattar, many fans were critical of his cardio. He appeared to fade in the third round, which he said was due to him having staph infection a few weeks ago.

Nonetheless, it appears Magomedsharipov is still one fight away from a title shot, and probably needs it to be five rounds as well. That next fight should be against Yair Rodriguez. The two have been scheduled to fight before, but contract disputes resulted in the Mexican get released then re-signed.

The timing for this fight makes sense given Rodriguez fought a few weeks ago. It should headline a Fight Night card in early 2020, if the scrap is booked.

Calvin Kattar

Calvin Kattar was looking to become a top-five featherweight but came up just short. Although he lost the fight, his stock rose as he gave Magomedsharipov the toughest fight of his UFC tenure and did so in his opponent’s backyard.

A logical next opponent for Kattar is against Josh Emmett, who is coming off of a knockout win over Mirsad Bektic. The two are fan favorites and would no doubt put on a show. The bout could be a co-main on a Fight Night card in 2020 or add to a pay-per-view. Regardless, it is a very interesting fight and one that should be booked to determine who makes the leap into the top-10 of the division.

Who do you think should be next for Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar after UFC Moscow?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 11/12/2019.