Gabriel Bonfim has officially arrived as a serious welterweight contender after he pitched a shutout against former champion Belal Muhammad at UFC Fight Night 278.
Bonfim (20-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) brought Muhammad’s (24-6 MMA, 15-6 UFC) run as a staple at the top of the division to an end on Saturday at Meta APEX in Las Vegas with a one-sided unanimous decision in which he won every round on the scorecards.
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The Brazilian was able to stuff both of Muhammad’s takedown attempts and bloody him with 128 significant strikes landed over 25 minutes. He never truly got close to a finish, but the thorough nature of his performance showed where he stands. Neither Ian Machado Garry nor Jack Della Maddalena beat Muhammad that definitively.
Although it lacked the highlight-reel element, the victory elevates Bonfim’s stock and places him in the upper tier of a weight class that’s getting scarier by the day.
Bonfim, 28, called out another former champ in Della Maddalena (18-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) afterward, and the Aussie is in a very similar spot to Muhammad after losing the belt to Islam Makhachev in his first defense, then being shut down by a surging contender in Carlos Prates.
Della Maddalena seemingly would look at Muhammad’s mistakes and seek a different path, but he’s not in position to be declining fights, and Bonfim isn’t a terrible matchup.
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If UFC wants to make Bonfim vs. Della Maddalena, it will probably happen. And given who is available, it’s quite logical. Another suggestion could be that Bonfim welcomes undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov back to the octagon.
Rakhmonov (19-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) has been dealing with injuries for the better part of two years, but is seemingly trending toward a comeback. We know the UFC isn’t in the business of giving warmup fights, but if you’re Rakhmonov and his team and examining all the top guys, Bonfim might be the one you’d most want after such serious injuries.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Vegas 118 matchmaker: Who’s next for Gabriel Bonfim after win?
