By Hunter Homistek

The UFC's bantamweight division is hot right now.

Cody Garbrandt and Thomas Almeida will square off in the main event of May 29's UFC Fight Night 88 in Las Vegas, which will mark the first non-title-fight main event between 135-pounders in UFC history. Break out the flame emojis, friends—that fight is straight fire.

Each 24 years old, Garbrandt and Almeida boast a combined 28-0 professional record with 23 knockouts between them. Their UFC runs are nearly identical.

Almeida debuted in November 2014 and has since gone 4-0 with three consecutive finishes—each more devastating than the last. Garbrandt's debut came two months later in January 2015, and he's gone 3-0 inside the Octagon with two knockouts sandwiching a unanimous decision.

It's in these similarities that we see the future of the 135-pound class. The upper echelon is filled with young, talented, entertaining fighters who are hungry to ascend to the next level. Even better, they're unafraid to put their unblemished records and momentum on the line.

Garbrandt and Almeida might be the most talked-about bantamweight prospects at the moment due to their looming main-event showdown, but they're far from the only exciting prospects at 135. Aljamain Sterling is just 26, and he's 12-0 with eight finishes. In UFC action, he's 4-0 with three finishes—just like Almeida.

His UFC Fight Night 88 matchup opposite Bryan Caraway is overshadowed in the night's pecking order, but it's no less significant. With a win, Sterling will throw himself right into title talks.

And about that title…

Champion Dominick Cruz will defend his strap June 4 at UFC 199 in a trilogy matchup against his rival, Urijah Faber. Long in the making, the matchup represents perhaps the most hotly anticipated bantamweight tilt in the division's history. 

With established stars such as Cruz, Faber, former champ T.J. Dillashaw and "The Ultimate Fighter" winner John Dodson all occupying the division's top 10, younger stars can rest easy knowing big matchups await. 

The division is more stacked than ever, and it's not even close. There's Michael McDonald, who—despite a two-year layoff—is still just 25 years old. He's 17-3, with his only losses in the UFC coming from Faber and former king Renan Barao. He'll face John Lineker July 13 at UFC Fight Night 91 in a fight that's damn near Garbrandt vs. Almeida revisited. Lineker, like McDonald, is just 25. Also like McDonald, Lineker is known for his devastating hands and furious finishing instincts.

Down the ladder, there's Jimmie Rivera, a 26-year-old from New Jersey sporting a ridiculous 19-1 professional record. Ranked 14th in the UFC's official rankings, he's riding an 18-fight winning streak, and is 3-0 since his promotional debut in July 2015.

With these faces, you can shuffle the deck however you please, and the result will be a good one. There's easily a year's worth of exciting matchups on tap, and with Garbrandt vs. Almeida, Sterling vs. Caraway, and McDonald vs. Lineker already booked, the tip of the iceberg is already showing.

What a beaut. The 135-pound division has never looked better. Loaded with young talent, the roster is not even in its final form. By 2017, it's impossible to guess how the top 10 will shape up.

What's certain, however, is that we're all going to enjoy the journey. Strap in and grab a fan. The bantamweight division is hot now, and the temperature's only climbing.