Lerone Murphy's spinning-elbow knockout of Aaron Pico at UFC 319 may have just earned him a shot at featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski.

Israel Adesanya nearly missed the best moment of UFC 319 because he was too busy yapping. The former two-time middleweight champion watched on from home as Khamzat Chimaev claimed his old title on Saturday night. Dricus du Plessis was mauled en route to a lopsided unanimous decision defeat at the United Center in Chicago.

Calling Pico the toughest opening minutes he has ever faced, Murphy said he turned his opponent’s aggression against him. UFC President and CEO Dana White clearly approved, handing Murphy a $50,000 performance bonus, while commentator Daniel Cormier went a step further — suggesting Murphy might just be ready for a title shot.

On the UFC 319 main card, Prates (22-7 MMA, 5-1 UFC) audibly cracked Geoff Neal (16-7 MMA, 8-5 UFC) with a spinning back elbow for a knockout stoppage at 4:59 of Round 1. The welterweight bout took place at United Center.

Among the most prominent to send Pico a message was former lightweight and pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev, who had words of encouragement for the newcomer after a devastating first outing under the UFC banner. “Head up champ,” Makhachev commented.

UFC 319 had all the makings of a blockbuster stacked card, highlight-reel finishes, and a main event with the kind of hype that doesn’t come around too often. And while the night delivered in spades with wild knockouts and nonstop action, the headliner left some fans grumbling.

Find out if three record-breaking performances were enough to lift an otherwise mundane UFC 319 card to the top half of the grading curve.

Memorable card in a number of ways — along with a couple of absolutely shocking outcomes. Will be one we talk about at year’s end, certainly. Lee: Could have used one more spinning back elbow knockout,