Diego Lopes

Things have been getting increasingly tight atop the featherweight title picture, but Saturday night in Frost Bank Center, Diego Lopes fought like a man possessed and asserted that a rematch with champion Alexander Volkanovski is the only fight to make.

NOCHE UFC REWIND: Final Results | Lopes’ Post-Fight Interview | Who Won Bonuses?

It’s worth remembering that feared finishing-machine Jean Silva hadn’t suffered a loss since 2018, and outside of his appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series, hadn’t needed the judges’ scorecards in any of his victories. But on this night, Lopes was unfazed by any such résumé. Did he get a little extra fuel from a purported extracurricular beef? Maybe. But the fact remains, he looked as good as he has ever looked for the nine minutes and 48 seconds the fight lasted, and finishing his opponent with the same spinning back elbow Silva had been trying to land the whole fight was a true chef’s kiss.