The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of UFC Fight Night 138

Editor’s note: The views and opinions expressed below are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sherdog.com, its affiliates and sponsors or its parent company, Evolve Media.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship stepped out of the shadows of the Khabib Nurmagomedov-Conor McGregor soap opera with UFC Fight Night 138 on Saturday at the Avenir Centre in Moncton, New Brunswick. The event brought with it some good, some bad and some ugly.

THE GOOD: THE FUTURE OF 205

Immediately after UFC 229, one of the bright spots was Dominick Reyes. His win over Ovince St. Preux proved his status as a contender at light heavyweight was legitimate. Similarly, Anthony Smith can add his name to that list. It has been just short of eight months since Smith found himself on the receiving end of a ground-and-pound technical knockout after eating a Thiago Santos leg kick. Since that fateful night spelled the end of his days at middleweight, Smith has racked up three straight finishes to kick in the door of the 205-pound division.

His previous victories in the heavier weight class were certainly impressive. First-round knockouts over former champions and future hall of famers Rashad Evans and Mauricio Rua are welcomed additions to any mixed martial artist trophy case. However, the legacy of their names pales in comparison to their present-day versions. While “Shogun” has miraculously held on to a spot in Top 15 of the official rankings, he is long removed from his days as UFC champion and Pride Fighting Championships standout. His ranking at light heavyweight has been more of a function of the division’s lack of depth than any serious hop of reacquiring gold. Evans was no longer able to hang with world-class opposition, as evidenced by his subsequent retirement.

Submitting Volkan Oezdemir was a much-needed validation for Smith, who wanted to be taken seriously as a threat at light heavyweight. Oezdemir quickly shot up the ranks with three consecutive wins that culminated in a title shot against Daniel Cormier earlier this year. Despite “No Time” being unsuccessful in his attempt to take the crown, he still held a No. 2 ranking going into their matchup. Smith passed his first legitimate test at 205 pounds with flying colors.

Smith’s victory holds extra importance when considering the fact that fellow contender Misha Cirkunov earned a much-needed win to maintain relevance in the title picture; and at UFC 230, Cormier takes another step toward leaving the division entirely when he defends his heavyweight belt against Derrick Lewis. After former champion Jon Jones and two-time challenger Alexander Gustafsson rematch for what should be the vacant top spot in December, there are very few men who have a solid claim for the next shot. While Oezdemir exposed some holes -- primarily the leg kicks -- in Smith’s game, a “Performance of the Night” award against a proven commodity like Oezdemir should be enough for “Lionheart” to cut the line.

THE BAD: MAN IN THE MIDDLE

It has been a tough year for Artem Lobov. While his current losing streak dates back to before 2018 began, he has seen extracurricular issues do great harm to his career. After finding himself in the middle of the simmering feud between McGregor, his SBG Ireland teammate, and Nurmagomedov, his participation in the infamous bus attack led to losing a payday, as his fight with Alex Caceres was called off.

His original UFC Fight Night 138 opponent, Zubaira Tukhugov -- a Nurmagomedov teammate -- is currently under investigation by the Nevada Athletic Commission for his role in the multiple unsanctioned bouts at UFC 229, prompting the promotion to pull him from the co-main event. What would have been a higher-profile continuation of the storyline that resulted in the biggest pay-per-view draw in the history of MMA became a short-notice fight against a much more accomplished and dangerous opponent in Michael Johnson. While Lobov more than held his own and gave “The Menace” all he could handle, he ultimately dropped his third straight decision in a fight that lacked the intrigue of a battle with Tukhugov.

Lobov’s friendship with the biggest star in the sport has undoubtedly aided in his UFC tenure. However, with a record of 14-14-1 and saddled by a three-fight losing streak, it has become increasingly difficult to justify his place on the roster.

THE UGLY: HOW MANY INNINGS?

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox made history with an unbelievably long 18-inning affair to decide Game 3 of the World Series on Friday. The seven hours and 20 minutes had fans in Dodger Stadium, television audiences, social media and even the commentary team exhausted. How could a single sporting event take so long?

For fans of MMA, this is just a sample of the average weekend night of fights. Those with the endurance to get through UFC Fight Night 138, from the start of the Fight Pass prelims to the end of the main event, invested roughly seven hours of their Saturday night into the experience. It’s one thing for the World Series to stretch the limits of viewer patience and fortitude. After all, it’s what the entire 162-game regular season leads to in MLB. When the World Series ends, so does the entire season, and fans have to wait months until baseball is back in full swing. To expect fans to treat a fight card like UFC Fight Night 138 -- the event was devoid of any title fights and featured a weak undercard with few recognizable names -- with the same reverence is a big ask.

While a constant stream of endless fights would be a tiring affair after seven hours, the fact that broadcast is loaded with repetitive commercials and plenty of filler content makes it unbearable. Even when the rotating cast of desk analysts are at their best and provide genuinely intelligent insights on the action, the terrible pacing of the show makes it hard to appreciate their efforts. The Fox and UFC partnership is its final weeks. When ESPN takes control, one of its first orders of business should be rectifying a problem that has plagued the experience for viewers for far too long.