Now that UFC 302 is behind us, there are many lingering questions about the future of many fighters’ careers. Can Islam Makhachev move up to 170? Will Dustin Poirier actually retire? Does Sean Strickland get another title shot at middleweight?

With all these unanswered inquiries, here are potential future matchups that the UFC could make after UFC 302:

Islam Makhachev vs Arman Tsarukyan

Though Islam Makhachev has expressed his desire to move up to welterweight and potentially challenge the winner of Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad, I think this is unlikely.

Makhachev may move up in the future, but he will have to defeat the very clear #1 contender at lightweight, Arman Tsarukyan. Since entering the UFC, Tsarukyan holds a record of 9-2 and is currently on a 4-fight winning streak, with his most recent victory coming against former champion, Charles Olivera.

Tsarukyan and Makhachev have faced off before, but that was Arman’s debut in the UFC. Both fighters have developed tremendously since their first matchup, which should make for an interesting rematch.

Dustin Poirier’s Retirement

After his loss to Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 302, Dustin Poirier may be content with walking away from combat sports even though he never won UFC gold.

Poirier has had three title fights, where he was defeated by Islam Makhachev, Charles Olivera, and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

 During the post-fight press conference, Dustin Poirier conveyed that he if he couldn’t be champion, then there wasn’t anything left for him to compete for.

“I was fighting to be the world champion. What else am I fighting for,” said Dustin Poirier. “For the money? Me and my family are good. I don’t need the money. The money is great, but my health is first”.

“I don’t want the sport to retire me,” said Dustin Poirier.

Poirier is 35 years old and has 39 professional fights under his belt. He has been involved in some of the most grueling fights in UFC history and it may be time for him to hang the gloves up.

Sean Strickland vs the loser of Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev

In the co-main event of UFC 302, Sean Strickland had an impressive performance against Paulo Costa, but he is going to need another win to warrant another shot at the title.

Robert Whittaker vs Khamzat Chimaev is being billed as a #1 contender’s bout, therefore it is very likely that the winner will face the current middleweight champion, Dricus Du Plessis.

That leaves the loser of Whittaker and Chimaev open to fight Strickland in a bout that could decide who is next in line.

Paulo Costa vs Marvin Vettori

With both fighters coming off losses against opponents in the top of the middleweight division, Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa are both in need of a win to regain momentum.

Marvin Vettori last fought in June of last year where he sustained 241 significant strikes in a loss to Jared Cannonier. Meanwhile, Paulo Costa was defeated by Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa by unanimous decision in his last two fights.

Vettori and Costa last fought in 2021 with Marvin being named the victor. A rematch between the two could be made for later this year or early next year to put one of them back on track to title contention.

Jailton Almeida vs the loser of Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov

Jailton Almeida earned a much-needed victory against Alexander Romanov at UFC 302 after being upset by Curtis Blaydes three months ago.

The UFC heavyweight division is a mess right now, with champion Jon Jones fighting Stipe Miocic later this year and interim champion Tom Aspinall competing against Custis Blaydes next month. With four of the division’s top fighters being locked into title fights, Almeida may have to wait until the result of Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov to re-enter the top five of the rankings.

Almeida would be more likely to square off against the loser of Pavlovich and Volkov since the winner would be eyeing a shot at the title. Volkov is currently on a three-fight winning streak, while Pavlovich last fight resulted in a loss for the interim championship.

That would leave the loser of Pavlovich and Volkov free to fight and Jailton Almeida would be the highest ranked available opponent.