6 takeaways from UFC 249

Justin Gaethje captured the interim lightweight title with a fifth-round TKO of Tony Ferguson in the UFC 249 main event on Saturday night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville.

Also on the card, bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo stopped Dominick Cruz in the second round to defend his belt for the first time. "Triple C" shockingly announced his retirement after the victory.

Here are six takeaways from the event.

Gaethje could be the one to beat Khabib

It was evident before his win over Ferguson that Gaethje has made some major improvements in recent years, and he's not the same fighter who lost to Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier in 2017 and 2018, respectively. But this victory further proved that the new-and-improved Gaethje might just be the one to dethrone undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Experts have long believed Gaethje's style would pose problems for Nurmagomedov, an elite wrestler who mauls his opponents on the ground. While we rarely see it in the Octagon, Gaethje has a strong wrestling base himself, and it would likely be a bit more difficult for Nurmagomedov to take him down compared to other opponents. On the feet, Gaethje is sure to have the edge.

It wouldn't exactly be surprising to see Nurmagomedov do to Gaethje what he's done to all 28 men he's fought as a professional. After all, "The Eagle" is one of the few fighters who many see retiring undefeated. But a meeting with Gaethje, which is now expected to take place later in 2020, certainly won't be a walk in the park for the champ.

Khabib-Ferguson no more

Before Saturday night, Nurmagomedov versus Ferguson was a battle between the two most dominant lightweights in the UFC today - and possibly ever. Nurmagomedov has a 28-0 record and Ferguson had won 12 in a row, undefeated since 2012.

That's why the fight - scheduled five times and canceled just as many - was the most anticipated one in UFC history. But now, it just won't be the same with Ferguson's winning streak over, even if he bounces back and earns another title shot.

Had it not been for the pandemic, Nurmagomedov-Ferguson was almost a guarantee in April. It was so close. Hindsight is 20/20, but the UFC should've waited a few more months for Nurmagomedov and booked the Ferguson fight for the second half of the year, rather than go ahead with the interim title bout. While the promotion's decision ended up producing an extremely entertaining battle, it wasn't the one we've been waiting five years to see.

Love him or hate him, Cejudo is one of the best

When Cejudo stopped Cruz at the end of the second round in their bantamweight title bout, one thing was clear: regardless of how you feel about "Triple C," he's the real deal.

Cejudo gets a lot of crap for his cringe-worthy antics - and I get it - but people need to start respecting him for his skills in the cage. In his past four fights, the Arizona native has defeated Demetrious Johnson (one of the greatest fighters ever), T.J. Dillashaw (former bantamweight champion), Marlon Moraes (top bantamweight contender), and Cruz (arguably the best 135-pounder of all time). That's one of the best four-fight streaks in UFC history.

The former flyweight champ moved up in weight to capture a second UFC belt in 2019, and he's now the second fighter in company history to defend titles in two different weight classes. That puts him on the shortlist of top fighters in the world today.

Cejudo ... retires?

Just when it seems Cejudo is at the top of his game, he makes a surprise announcement and says he's stepping away from the sport. I don't really know what to make of this since his whole persona is a gimmick and it's difficult to take him seriously at times. But, to be fair, when Cejudo announced his retirement during his postfight interview, it didn't sound as though the "King of Cringe" was talking. It appeared Cejudo was being genuine.

I think it's still very much up in the air whether Cejudo will ever fight again. I wouldn't count out his return - probably sooner than later. It's possible he's just holding out for a big payday. Or maybe he really is done. Only time will tell.

Ngannou, the scariest man on the planet

I've stood next to Francis Ngannou and it's frightening, especially when you think about the power he has in his fists and what those fists can do to other professional athletes, never mind someone like me.

"The Predator" further proved with his 20-second knockout win over Jairzinho Rozenstruik that this version of him is without a doubt the scariest person on the UFC roster, and probably on the planet. Think about what Rozenstruik has done in his short time with the promotion: he finished Andrei Arlovski in 29 seconds and Allen Crowder in nine, and he ripped apart Alistair Overeem's lip with a vicious fifth-round TKO. And Ngannou crumpled him in under half a minute like it was nothing.

Ngannou is expected to fight the winner of a planned trilogy bout between heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier. He's frustrated because the division is being held up by that fight; he even thought he deserved a title shot after his win over Junior dos Santos last summer. I wouldn't want to be Miocic or Cormier right now, because an angry Ngannou is coming for them.

Hardy needs a big performance

Greg Hardy picked up a win over Yorgan De Castro to open the main card, but it wasn't exactly the kind of fight that'll get fans excited about the prospect of the former NFL star as a heavyweight contender.

He showed improvement in some areas - like his head movement and control of distance - but it wasn't enough. De Castro had some success in the first round but completely shut down in the latter two frames. That's when Hardy should've taken over. And though he won the rounds, he didn't do so convincingly.

Hardy showed that while he still has some potential because he's athletic and appears to be a quick learner, the American Top Team product needs to turn his fights up a notch to get to the next level.