There was a ton of hype surrounding Abus Magomedov coming into the biggest fight of his career and his first main event spot in the UFC when he took on Sean Strickland at UFC Vegas 76. Unfortunately, his hype was quickly gone after Strickland pulverized him into oblivion with a second-round TKO loss.

Abus Magomedov looked like a world-beater in the early going of his first main event spot. That quickly went downhill as he had a massive cardio dump in round two. He was able to land triple the amount of strikes in round one than Strickland but once the second round started it was like a completely different fight.

Strickland played conservatively and almost like he played possum in that first round giving Magomedov all the confidence in the world. Once that second round started, Strickland came like a bat out of hell and really put in on Magomedov right from the get-go which was too much for him to handle and ultimately ended him shortly thereafter.

Magomedov even in the loss still has the skill set to be a ranked fighter in the middleweight division. It comes down to what is next for him, let's take a look at what's in the cards for potential matchups for Magomedov.

Makhmud Muradov

Let's reschedule the bout that was supposed to happen in March with Makhmud Muradov. This would have been the right step forward in the progression of Magomedov's career but he made a way too big of a jump too soon when he took on Strickland. A fight with Muradov would pit two up-and-coming prospects against one another to see where they stack in this loaded middleweight division. Both have exceptional striking and power but both lack the cardio to be pushed in the later going that we could expect fireworks if this fight were to unfold.

Gerald Meerschaert

This is another matchup that was supposed to happen in February with Gerald Meerschaert. Meerschaert is a longtime veteran of the UFC's Middleweight division and really could push Magomedov if he is able to make it out of round one. This fight would be a good stepping stone to fighting bigger names in the future for Magomedov if he able to be victorious in this middleweight scrap.

Abdul Razak Alhassan

This fight would be an absolute banger for however long it would last. Abdul Razak Alhassan has some of the heaviest hands in the division and would be willing to throw down with Magomedov from the very beginning. He also has some good wrestling to test the takedown defense of Magomedov which hasn't been tested yet in his short time with the UFC. It's hard to expect this matchup to leave the first round as both have been finished due to strikes in their time with the UFC and they sometimes throw down with some reckless abandonment. Regardless, this would be a fantastic matchup for Magomedov to showcase his abilities and potentially get back on track and keep it moving in the Middleweight division