With his dominant win over hometown hero Jim Miller at UFC on Fox 15, Beneil Dariush established himself as a force at 155 pounds. While besting Miller might not mean quite as much as it did three or four years ago, it still matters an awful lot.
Particularly noteworthy was the manner in which the feat was accomplished. Dariush comprehensively out-grappled and outthought one of the lightweight division’s most accomplished competitors.
Where this places the 25-year-old in the sport’s most talent-rich division remains to be seen, but he should certainly be within spitting distance of the Top 10.