Matches to Make After UFC on Fox 23

Valentina Shevchenko removed the only remaining obstacle between her and a crack at the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s bantamweight title.

The 28-year-old Kyrgyzstani kickboxer submitted Julianna Pena with a second-round armbar in the UFC on Fox 23 main event on Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Pena tapped 4:29 into Round 2, as she saw her four-fight winning streak grind to a halt and lost for the first time in nearly four years. If “The Ultimate Fighter 18” winner underestimated Shevchenko’s ground skills, it was a grave mistake.

Pena did all she could to stay in her comfort zone, as she pursued a relentless clinch and attacked with close-quarters knee strikes to the legs and body. Shevchenko did not flinch and instead surprised “The Venezuelan Vixen” with a pair of takedowns inside the first five minutes. Pena responded with a takedown of her own to start the second round but settled in full guard with no apparent intention to improve her position. Shevchenko inched her legs towards the Spokane, Washington, native’s shoulders, wheeled her hips into place and bit down on the armbar. The tapout followed soon after.

In the aftermath of UFC on Fox 23 “Shevchenko vs. Pena,” here are five matches that ought to be made:

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Valentina Shevchenko vs. Amanda Nunes: Shevchenko picked quite the stage on which to record her first submission since March 2006. Drawing upon a wealth of combat sports experience, she remained calm in the face of overwhelming pressure and waited for Pena to give her the opening she needed. Shevchenko has gone 3-1 since arriving in the UFC a little more than a year ago. Nunes was responsible for her lone defeat, having taken a three-round unanimous decision from her at UFC 196 on March 5. Four months later, “The Lioness” captured the women’s bantamweight crown by throttling Miesha Tate in three-plus minutes.

Jorge Masvidal vs. Neil Magny: American Top Team’s Masvidal seems to have hit his stride at age 32. The Miami native withstood a series of punishing leg kicks to stop Donald Cerrone with second-round punches in the co-main event, staking his claim as a serious contender at 170 pounds. Masvidal buried “Cowboy” with an overhand right on the chin and a volley of vicious right and left hooks to the body along the fence. “Gamebred” has rattled off three consecutive victories since he wound up on the wrong side of a split decision against Lorenz Larkin on May 29. Magny has won 11 of his past 13 bouts, losing only to Larkin and Demian Maia. He last fought at UFC 207 on Dec. 30, when he was awarded a unanimous decision over former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks.

Francis Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis-Travis Browne winner: Ngannou sent a chill up the spine of the UFC’s heavyweight division, as he cut down Andrei Arlovski with punches in a mere 92 seconds. The 30-year-old finds himself on the brink of stardom in a weight class that desperately needs an infusion of youth. Ngannou has finished all five of his opponents inside the Octagon, the last three inside one round. Those three men -- Arlovski, Anthony Hamilton and Bojan Mihalovic -- lasted a grand total of 5:03 combined. Lewis and Browne will lock horns in the UFC Fight Night 105 main event on Feb. 19 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Raphael Assuncao vs. Jimmie Rivera: While Assuncao may never draw anyone to the turnstiles, no one can argue with his results. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt rebounded from his defeat to former bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 200, as he picked up a split decision over Serra-Longo Fight Team prospect Aljamain Sterling on the undercard. Assuncao has gone 8-2 since touching down in the UFC as part of the World Extreme Cagefighting migration in 2011, losses to Dillashaw and Erik Koch his only missteps. A former Ring of Combat, Cage Fury Fighting Championships and King of the Cage titleholder, Rivera has pieced together an incredible 19-fight winning streak across various promotions. The 27-year-old has not fought since he earned a unanimous decision over Urijah Faber at UFC 203 in September.

Donald Cerrone vs. Tarec Saffiedine: Cerrone knows how to pick up the pieces, as evidenced by the fact that he has never suffered back-to-back losses in his 40-fight career. Nevertheless, he absorbed a sustained beating at the hands of Masvidal, who joined Rafael dos Anjos and Anthony Pettis as the only men ever to stop “Cowboy” with strikes. Cerrone figures to stay at 170 pounds, where victories over Matt Brown, Rick Story, Patrick Cote and Alex Oliveira preceded his ill-fated encounter with “Gamebred.” Saffiedine last competed at UFC 207, where the former Strikeforce champion dropped a split decision to Dong Hyun Kim on Dec. 30.