MMAVu

The answer, is “YES!!” … … “YES!!”… …”YES!!” Diego Sanchez!! If you don’t know what the “yeses” are in reference to, have a look at Diego’s walk-in below, prior to his Joe Stevenson fight.

...and he's frothing at the mouth too. Tremendous.

Goofy chants aside, here’s what Dana White had to say about his Lightweight Champion BJ Penn’s next opponent during the post fight presser:

The great thing about the 155-pound division is how stacked it is. And I think Diego Sanchez is probably next in line for a title shot against B.J. It’s a great fight.

I can’t argue. Given Deigo’s impressive run at 170lbs, and the fact he dropped down and immediately took out top 10 lightweights Joe Stevenson and Clay Guida…as well as put on one of the most exciting fights this side of 2009 (against Guida) and it’s not hard to see why Diego is next in line. He’s also young and marketable, maybe he can main event opposite BJ Penn when the UFC finally lands in Mexico?

…is apparently the word from the UFC.

In the latest edition of, “Inside MMA” Diego stated that the brass has told him a dominant win over Clay Guida would give him a shot at the 155lb title. Of course that title is being contested at UFC 101 with BJ Penn defending against a very hungry Kenny Florian this August. Either way, it would be a good fight.

Sanchez was on an amazing tear in the welterweight division, getting to 19-0 before dropping back-to-back decisions to Josh Koscheck and Jon Fitch. Sanchez bounced back with two wins and was slated to take on Thiago Alves in UFC 90 but an injury forced him to the sidelines. Interestingly enough, his replacement, Josh Koscheck, got thoroughly worked over by Alves in the bout. Perhaps that weighed on Diego’s decision to drop down.

Sanchez looked good in his 155lb debut, taking out top contender Joe Stevenson at UFC 95. Diego is young, charismatic and marketable. Exactly what the UFC needs in an already stacked 155lb division.

By the way, there was no word wether Clay Guida would get a title shot should he win, so what gives? Where’s Guida’s love?!