Michael Chiesa reacts after his victory over Neil Magny in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 20, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

See which fighters made the most out of their opportunity on UFC Fight Night: Chiesa vs Magny

By Thomas Gerbasi, on Twitter: @TGerbasi • Jan. 21, 2021

Saturday’s UFC Fight Island 8 event is in the books, and now it’s time to go to the scorecard to see who the big winners were at Etihad Arena.

1 – Michael Chiesa

UFC Fight Island 8: Michael Chiesa Post-Fight Interview

With his impressive win over Neil Magny in Wednesday’s main event on Fight Island, Michael Chiesa has reached a point in his career where I can’t wait to see what he does next. Unless a fighter is a devastating knockout artist, it usually takes a while to get to that point, and after four consecutive wins in the welterweight shark tank, Chiesa’s style and grit are must-sees from here on out. Look at the rankings, and fights between “Maverick” and everyone above him are great matchups. It’s going to be fun seeing how the rest of 2021 plays out for him.

Pre-Order The UFC 257 Main Card Now | How To Watch UFC 257 In Your Country

2 – Warlley Alves

UFC Fight Island 8: Warlley Alves TKOs Lazzez In Round 1

Warlley Alves will be the first to admit that he hasn’t lived up to his potential in the UFC after a 4-0 start to his Octagon career, but his blistering first-round finish of Mounir Lazzez showed just how good the Brazilian can be when he’s on. And if that was a taste of the “new” Alves, the rest of the division needs to watch out.

3 – Isaac Villanueva

UFC Fight Island 8: Ike Villanueva KOs Moreira In Round 1

I’ll be honest. I’m a big fan of fighters like Ike Villanueva. He’s a hard-nosed, blue collar fighter who may never win a world championship, but he’s always going to show up to win and put on a show for the fans. So when he got his first UFC victory over Vinicius Moreira, it was a reminder that hard work and dedication does pay off. And I know his late dad, Big Tom Villanueva, is smiling right now.

4 – Mike Davis

Mike Davis reacts after his victory over Mason Jones in a lightweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 20, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

We all know 2020 was a bad year for the world, but if you read my story on Mike Davis before his win over Mason Jones, you’ll know that his year was worse than most. It was so bad that just getting an opportunity to fight this week was a big deal for him, but then he went and beat an unbeaten, highly touted opponent, and got Fight of the Night honors in the process. Now that’s the way to get 2021 off to a much better start.

5 – Umar Nurmagomedov

Umar Nurmagomedov of Russia celebrates after his victory over Sergey Morozov of Kazakhstan in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 20, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

If you’re carrying the last name Nurmagomedov into the UFC Octagon, you better be able to deliver on fight night, and the cousin of lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov did just that on Wednesday as he scored an impressive second-round finish of Sergey Morozov. It was the kind of pre-fight scenario that could break a fighter, but once the door closed, Nurmagomedov performed like he had been here for years. He’s definitely one to watch at 135 pounds.

Visit Abu Dhabi: http://www.abudhabievents.ae/

Up Next

Amanda Nunes: The G.O.A.T.

As Amanda Nunes readies to defend her bantamweight title, she does so as the unquestioned greatest female fighter of
The Best Women’s Fights in UFC History

On International Women's Day, We Look Back On Some Of The Greatest Performances
Desert Island Fights | Part I

If you're trapped on an island and had to choose a handful of fights you couldn't live without, what would you choose