UFC London is in the books. Tom Aspinall delivered a statement win to continue his climb up the heavyweight ranks. And, bantamweight contender Song Yadong made his presence known in the division with an emphatic knockout.The card also featured monumental wins for contenders Arnold Allen and Paul Craig in their respective divisions.

Through the twelve fights on the UFC London card, the Cage Calculus forecast favorites went 8-4, bringing the forecast’s overall record since its inception to 169-99-2. All forecast projections are based on a fighter’s CC rating. You can find out how those ratings are generated HERE. You can view the projections for last week’s fights HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE. The CC Editor’s Picks were 8-4 and the odds-on favorites according to Vegas were 8-4.

2022 Overall Standings

• Cage Calculus Forecast: 66-44
• Cage Calculus Editor Picks: 71-39
• Las Vegas Oddsmakers: 76-34

Without further ado, here’s what we learned from UFC London:

Tom Aspinall is a Legit Title Contender

Aspinall (#7 CC, #6 UFC) put together his most impressive win to date Saturday night. He is now a perfect 5-0 in the UFC with five finishes and four performance of the night bonuses. His speed and grappling ability have been too much for all heavyweights in his path and now he stands on the cusp of the top 5 in the division. He called for a fight with fellow contender Tai Tuivasa (#5 CC, #3 UFC) in London later this year. That matchup would be a lot of fun to watch and, according to the forecast, would be a very close one as well. We endorse the callout. Expect to see Aspinall knocking on the door of a title very soon.

Alexander Volkov Will Never Fight for UFC Gold

Volkov (#6 CC, #7 UFC) is a veteran legend, but has never been able to take that next step to earn a title shot. Each of Volkov’s last three losses came in headliner bouts that promised to move him into the title picture. Granted, he has lost to the best of the best, but in doing so has proven he is just outside of that conversation. Both the Cage Calculus forecast and the UFC rankings suggest a bout with Jairzinho Rozenstruik (#11 CC, #8 UFC) would be a decent next fight to establish where Volkov belongs in the top 15.

Everyone’s Sleeping on Arnold Allen (and Jack Shore)

Allen (#3 CC, #6 UFC) is now 9-0 in the UFC. However, he has still yet to crack the UFC featherweight top 5. There seems to be interest in a bout between Allen and fellow top contender Calvin Kattar (#5 CC, #5 UFC). A win over Kattar would certainly solve that issue. But, a win over a mauler like Dan Hooker should have already solved it. Allen should be getting some looks at the higher echelons now and should not be more than one or two victories away from a title shot.

Shore (#12 CC, NR UFC), for his part, remains undefeated as well. He put together his most impressive win to date over the dangerous Dagestani Timur Valiev. Yet, he remains outside of the UFC’s bantamweight top 15 altogether. It’s time to get him an officially ranked opponent to settle the score once and for all. We certainly believe he deserves that number next to his name.

Paddy Pimblett Needs Higher Octane Competition

“Paddy the Baddy” (#14 CC, NR UFC) just cracked the Cage Calculus top 15 with his win at UFC London. However, neither of his UFC opponents have even been within 100 CC ratings points of him. He is not fighting top tier talent. While he’s been impressive so far and entertaining to watch, it is tough to tell if this ranking is warranted. It’s time for a significant step up. Off the top, it doesn’t seem like a bout with Renato Moicano would be a bad idea. Both are entertaining fighters who sit outside of the UFC’s official top 15. Moicano’s proved he can hang with the top tier fighters. No matter who it is against, Pimblett needs to do the same soon.

Paul Craig is the Real Deal

Craig (#6 CC, #8 UFC) showed his submission game is at another level. There were times where it looked like Nikita Krylov (NR CC, #11 UFC) might have had the finish in his sights. However, Krylov stayed on the ground with Craig for too long before a lightning quick triangle choke halted Krylov’s momentum. Craig is undefeated in his last six bouts and holds a number of wins over current top ten opponents. It is time to start putting this man in the wide open light heavyweight title discussion. Craig called out top contender Anthony Smith (#2 CC, #5 UFC) post-fight. That is the caliber of opponent he deserves.

Muhammad Mokaev is a Problem for Flyweights

The flyweight division was very nearly scrapped a number of times in UFC history, especially after the departure of legendary champion Demetrious Johnson. Now, it’s an exciting division stacked with talent. Mokaev came in undefeated and made a statement win in under a minute. He is a dangerous, exciting prospect. In a division with still relatively few fighters, his ascent could be quick. Tough to see who easily beats him at this point.

Photo Credit: MMAFighting