What Is Next for Junior Dos Santos?

Junior Dos Santos fell to Cyril Gane on the UFC 256 main card, thus solidifying his downward spiral. JDS is a former heavyweight champion, and a name many had in the conversation for best heavyweights. However, the latter half of his career hasn’t gone as well as most would have expected.

Gane brutally knocked JDS out, leading many to question whether ‘Cigano’ can still hang with the elite heavyweights. Considering the UFC has also announced mass cuts, where does this leave JDS in that respect?

JDS has stayed active despite the pandemic this year. Every time he is on a card, he is adding star power. Considering the fact he has made a lot of sacrifices to compete for the UFC, the company may look to take care of JDS and not release him. But in terms of matchmaking, where does JDS go from this loss?

Junior Dos Santos: Is this the end?

Dos Santos is now on a four-fight losing streak. But all credit to him for consistently taking hard fights. After a three-fight win streak, which was capped off with a win over Derrick Lewis in March 2019, JDS stepped into the octagon with Francis Ngannou. Since the fight and loss to ‘The Predator’, JDS has fallen to Curtis Blaydes, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, and now Cyril Gane.

If the UFC does keep JDS around, he may have options down the rankings. Could anyone possibly be interested in a rematch between JDS and Tai Tuivasa? Unlikely. What about a veteran encounter with Aleksei Olenik? While the appetite from fans may be tepid, that seems like a good fight to make.

There are a lot of heavyweights down the rankings that JDS could actually beat. Fighting them is one of the reasons ‘Cigano’ has stayed relevant in the UFC even after his championship heyday was over. Despite that, he has fought every single person in the top-five of the heavyweight rankings.

Hopefully, fans can see Junior dos Santos continue his career in the UFC, but many will be concerned after four consecutive TKO losses. If this is the end, it was a fantastic run for the former champion.

What do you think is next for ‘Cigano’?