Six Fights to Make After UFC Shanghai

UFC Shanghai delivered one of the biggest upsets of the year.

Song Yadong knocked out Umar Nurmagomedov in the second round, Denise Gomes announced herself as a serious contender, Kai Asakura continued his comeback and a handful of new prospects left China with plenty of momentum.

Now comes the fun part. Who should they fight next?

Here are six fights the UFC should make after Shanghai.

1. Song Yadong vs. Winner of Petr Yan vs. Merab Dvalishvili III

UFC Bantamweight Championship

Song Yadong has done enough.

The Chinese star knocked out Umar Nurmagomedov with a second-round uppercut, earning the biggest victory of his career and immediately putting himself back into the bantamweight title picture.

The timing couldn't be better.

Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili are set to meet for the third time, and the winner should have Song waiting for them. If Yan wins, Song gets another opportunity to avenge his previous loss to the former champion. If Merab wins, Song gets a completely fresh matchup against one of the best wrestlers in the division.

Then there's Sean O'Malley.

O'Malley already defeated Song earlier this year, and he's also going to have a say in the title picture.

But Song just knocked out Umar Nurmagomedov. At some point, you have to reward a fighter for beating the guy standing in his way.

Give Song the winner.

2. Denise Gomes vs. Tatiana Suarez

Women's Strawweight

Denise Gomes may have been the biggest winner in Shanghai outside of the main event.

Gomes stopped former title challenger Yan Xiaonan in the first round, extending her winning streak to five and putting herself firmly in the strawweight title conversation.

Now she needs another big name.

Tatiana Suarez makes sense.

Suarez brings elite wrestling and years of championship-level experience, giving Gomes a completely different challenge.

If Gomes can beat Suarez, there shouldn't be much left to prove.

Give the winner a title shot.

3. Kai Asakura vs. Cory Sandhagen

Bantamweight

Kai Asakura is finally starting to look comfortable in the UFC.

The former RIZIN champion stopped Aoriqileng in the second round, making it two straight victories and showing why the UFC was so interested in bringing him over from Japan.

Now it's time to give him a ranked opponent.

Cory Sandhagen is the perfect test.

Sandhagen has been around the top of the bantamweight division for years, and a fight with Asakura would immediately tell us whether the Japanese star is ready to make the jump from exciting name to legitimate contender.

Asakura gets a chance to prove he belongs. Sandhagen gets another dangerous opponent.

Everybody wins.

4. Bilal Hasan vs. Andre Lima

Flyweight

Remember the name.

Bilal Hasan is 10-0 after his UFC Shanghai debut, and he didn't exactly ease into the promotion.

Hasan knocked out fellow undefeated flyweight Nilson Rojas with a right hand in the second round, days after earning his UFC contract on Dana White's Contender Series.

The former CFFC champion now has eight career knockout victories.

So what do you do with him?

Don't rush him.

Andre Lima makes sense.

Lima also picked up a win in Shanghai, submitting Namsrai Batbayar with a guillotine choke in the third round.

Both fighters are trying to establish themselves at 125 pounds, and neither needs to be thrown directly into a ranked matchup.

Hasan is the more explosive striker. Lima is a dangerous submission artist.

Give them another fight and see who emerges as the next big flyweight prospect.

5. Sumudaerji vs. Alessandro Costa

Flyweight

Sumudaerji is quietly building one of the better winning streaks in the UFC.

The Chinese flyweight defeated Alex Perez by unanimous decision in Shanghai, making it five straight victories.

Five wins in a row should mean something.

Now it's time for a bigger test, and Alessandro Costa is a natural next step.

The matchup gives Sumudaerji another opportunity to prove he belongs near the top of the division, while Costa gets a chance to stop a fighter who is rapidly climbing the rankings.

If Sumudaerji wins again, it's time to start talking about him as a legitimate title contender.

6. Liu Ce vs. Ibo Aslan

Light Heavyweight

Liu Ce couldn't have asked for a better UFC debut.

The Chinese kickboxing standout knocked out Levi Rodrigues Jr. in the first round, introducing himself to the UFC with a highlight-reel finish.

But this is where the UFC needs to be careful.

Ibo Aslan is the perfect next step.

Aslan has the experience and power to test Liu without immediately throwing the prospect into the deep end of the light heavyweight division. And stylistically, this fight should be chaos.

Liu gets another opportunity to showcase his striking. Aslan gets a dangerous prospect who could move quickly with another win.

If Liu wins again, then it's time to start talking about him as a real 205-pound prospect.

Shanghai Created Plenty of New Matchups

That's the beauty of a card like UFC Shanghai.

Song Yadong didn't just beat Umar Nurmagomedov. He completely changed the bantamweight title picture.

Denise Gomes is suddenly knocking on the door at 115 pounds.

Kai Asakura is beginning to find his footing.

Sumudaerji has won five straight.

And Bilal Hasan may have just introduced himself as one of the UFC's most exciting new flyweights.

Then there's Liu Ce, who delivered one of the most impressive debuts on the card.

The UFC doesn't need to reinvent the wheel. It just needs to keep these fighters moving. But one fight is more obvious than the rest.

Song Yadong just earned himself a title shot.

He said before Shanghai that a big win over Umar Nurmagomedov would put him in position for another crack at the belt. Then he went out and delivered exactly that.

Now it's time to see if the UFC keeps its word.