Nothing is guaranteed, of course, and it will take some time to see if any or all of them can get there, but that doesn’t feel like an unrealistic projection for any of them, with the same holding true for Kavanagh, as well.
But those four aren’t the only fascinating new additions to the roster that make this most recent graduating class so special to track going forward.
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Kevin Vallejos returned for a second time and punched his ticket to the roster after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Fighting Nerds rookie standout Jean Silva in Season 7. Austin Bashi is 23 years old, but already sports a 13-0 record, and is penciled in to face Christian Rodriguez early next year in a matchup that tells you how highly the UFC thinks of the undefeated featherweight.
Heavyweights Danylo Voievodkin, Talisson Teixeira, and Mario Pinto all earned contracts this season; all three are undefeated and each is in their mid-20s. Finding a single promising, young heavyweight can be difficult, and nabbing two is tremendous, but inking three new heavyweights that each carry some clear upside and intrigue from one season is a bit of a coup.