UFC on Fox: Lawler vs. dos Anjos took place on Saturday, Dec. 16.

Here are the five biggest takeaways from the event:

RDA deserves a title shot

Rafael dos Anjos has a thing for delivering outstanding performances on Fox events in the month of December.
Three years ago, he rag-dolled Nathan Diaz in Phoenix. Two years ago, he successfully defended the lightweight title with a 66-second knockout win over Donald Cerrone and Saturday, the Brazilian picked up his third straight win at welterweight by putting a hellacious beating on former titleholder Robbie Lawler to establish himself as the top contender in the 170-pound ranks heading into 2018.

After a close first round, dos Anjos opened up on the second, putting a 23-second wave of punishment on Lawler that would have felled most mortals. As the fight wore on, the punishment piled up as the investments dos Anjos made in battering Lawler's legs and working the body started to pay dividends. While he couldn't put away Lawler, this ended up being a completely one-sided effort that shows the Brazilian is a very real threat in the 170-pound weight division and should be enough to earn him a shot at welterweight champion Tyron Woodley in the new year.

His aggressive approach and ability to maintain a torrid pace for 25 mintues are what you need to draw a compelling fight out of Woodley, who has been involved in a couple stinkers this year. As a former champion, he's an established name and this was a standout performance on a massive stage - a third straight win since moving to the division and a third Top 10 victory for the former lightweight kingpin.

If this performance wasn't enough to get you hyped to see RDA challenge "The Chosen One" for the belt at some point next year, I don't know what to tell you.

New blood taking over at featherweight

Max Holloway unseated Jose Aldo and stopped him again in the rematch. Last week, Brian Ortega choked out Cub Swanson. Saturday night, Josh Emmett starched Ricardo Lamas with a perfect left hook on the button.

If it wasn’t clear before, it’s obvious now: the next generation of talent in the featherweight division has arrived and they’re clearing out veterans every chance they get.

Emmett needed less than a round and one clean shot to separate Lamas from consciousness and displace him from the Top 5 position he’s held down for the last four years. It was easily the most impressive victory of his five-fight UFC career and should earn him a matchup with another elite contender next time out.

But the bigger picture is the bigger story here as the new wave continues to crash down on the old guard, resulting in a ton of change at the top of the featherweight division.

'The Ponz' is a player at welterweight

Santiago Ponzinibbio pushed his winning streak to six with a performance that was equal parts gutsy and smart against Mike Perry. For two rounds and change, the Argentine welterweight stood with the heavy-handed cult favorite, trading bombs and looking worse for wear as a result, but after getting an edge midway through the third, “Gente Boa” wisely hit a couple takedowns to salt away the unanimous decision victory.

Now tied with Kamaru Usman for the longest active winning streak in the division, Ponzinibbio closed out what has been the best campaign of his career with the kind of tough, hard-earned win he needed to truly establish himself as a contender heading into 2018.

Ponzinibbio was smart to use his post-fight interview time to lobby for even bigger opportunities next year as well, asking to face the winner of Saturday’s main event in an interim title bout while champion Tyron Woodley rehabs his jacked up shoulder. That might not be in the cards, per se, but a top-5 opponent is a real possibility and regardless of whom he faces next, Ponzinibbio has proven he’s in the mix in one of the deepest, most competitive divisions in the sport.

Great events don’t need massive names

Saturday’s event in Winnipeg was one of the most entertaining fight cards of the year, beginning with a solid bout between Jordan Mein and Erick Silva and culminating with an outstanding clash between welterweight contenders Rafael dos Anjos and Robbie Lawler.

It profiled that way as it started to take shape and before the first punches were thrown in Winnipeg and the athletes delivered on Fox, delivering another reminder that you don’t need big names to have an electric night of action inside the Octagon.

Having big stars on the bill and familiar names on the marquee is always going to draw more eyeballs, but sometimes you just have to trust that when the experts tell you it’s a card full of quality matchups that should produce fireworks, they know what they’re talking about and you would be wise to tune in.

Substance over style

Galore Bofando collected an impressive win in his UFC debut earlier this year, hurling Charlie Ward face-first into the canvas with such force that he knocked out the SBG Ireland representative. Right out of the chute on Saturday, Bofando dropped Chad Laprise with a sharp right hand.

But Laprise weathered the storm and quickly turned things around, hitting a sneaky little foot sweep to put Bofando on the canvas and from there, the Chatham-Kent, Ontario native showed that no amount of style can make up for a lack of substance in all areas of the game. With roughly a minute left, Laprise moved to mount and started landing heavy shots, eventually forcing the stoppage.

This was one of those bouts that highlights some of the challenges facing the UFC and plaguing the sport at the moment as flashy fighters and trash talkers have been garnering a ton of attention, but well rounded, established dudes like Laprise constantly fly under the radar. Maybe seeing another stylish, but untested neophyte getting exposed will help change that a little going forward