Things have only gone downhill for heavyweight Robelis Despaigne since his victorious UFC debut this past April, culminating in his release from the promotion this week.
Despaigne arrived on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage this year with plenty of hype around him. That was owing to both his Olympic medal-winning success in taekwondo and violent start to his MMA career.
Off the back of four straight first-round knockouts that totaled just 37 seconds of cage time, the Cuban powerhouse debuted in the Octagon at UFC 299 in Miami this past March. He made an immediate impact, continuing his brutal run by stopping Josh Parisian in just 18 seconds.
Unfortunately for Despaigne, he peaked early. Two convincing defeats to Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Austen Lane followed, with “The Big Boy’s” expected grappling deficiencies being exposed in both.
And the latest saw Despaigne join six others outside of the organization, the most high-profile of which being top-10 flyweight Matheus Nicolau. The longtime contender had competed in the UFC since 2015, defeating the likes of Louis Smolka, Tim Elliott, Matt Schnell, and Manel Kape.
Elsewhere, Jessica Penna, Tamires Vidal, Vinicius Salvador, Charalampos Grigoriou, and Jesse Butler have all entered free agency.
Daniel Cormier was impressed by Khamzat Chimaev’s performance on Saturday night at UFC 308, where Chimaev scored a decisive first-round victory over Robert Whittaker in their co-main event bout.
The former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion believes that Chimaev has now done enough to leapfrog Sean Strickland for the next title shot. Strickland had been expecting a title fight rematch against champion Dricus Du Plessis.
Sealed Deal
However, according to Cormier, Chimaev’s dominant win over Whittaker, which included breaking Whittaker’s jaw, has solidified his position as the top contender.
“He went and beat him in the first round. And if you’re Sean Strickland, that result worries you,” Cormier said. “Why? Because Mick Maynard, sitting next to me, jumps up and runs to Dana, and they start talking with Hunter [Campbell]. Dana immediately follows Chimaev to talk to him. That’s a concerning sign for a guy considered the No. 1 contender, because it tells you things are happening. Khamzat Chimaev, to me, solidified himself as the No. 1 contender at 185 pounds. His wrestling, his top control, his mentality, his approach—it’s unlike many things we have seen.”
Former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya isn’t the only prominent name Shara Magomedov has his eye on following this past weekend’s event.
Magomedov made a splash in his latest Octagon outing on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. In his third fight since June, the Dagestani was tasked with opening the UFC 308 pay-per-view main card opposite a fellow striking specialist in Armen Petrosyan.
Both men had their moments through a round and a half, but it was “Bullet” who closed the show in memorable fashion before the second horn. He connected with an innovative spinning backfist to send his Armenian counterpart to the canvas.
While the heights he can rise to on MMA’s biggest stage remain unclear given his perceived grappling deficiencies, Magomedov has broken into the rankings this week and appears to be an entertaining addition to the middleweight top 15.
During his post-fight press conference at UFC 308, Magomedov called his shot for an opportunity to climb further up the ladder, reiterating his desire to meet Adesanya next time out.
Whether or not that ambitious request comes to fruition in 2025 remains to be seen. But should the promotion have other plans for “The Last Stylebender,” Magomedov isn’t short on alternative callouts.
“I’m in no rush. I’m not running in front of the train. The only way for Israel Adesanya to avoid the fight with me is to retire,” Magomedov said. “Of course I would like to fight Israel to prove that I’m the best striker in the division. But also, I would like to fight Marvin Vettori to prove that my wrestling is good. Those two names really excite me.
“Besides them, guys like Kevin Holland, Michel Pereira,” Magomedov continued. “Our middleweight division is full of predators and sharks, but I’m the only pirate.”
Vettori, a former title challenger, hasn’t competed since a decision defeat to Jared Cannonier in a June 2023 main event. He’s gone 2-2 across his last four, leaving him at #7 in the rankings.
Be it against one of those names or a different middleweight entirely, all eyes will no doubt be on Magomedov’s next walk to the cage given the performance he put in at the Etihad Arena this past weekend.
Former UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is backing Ilia Topuria for 2024’s Fighter of the Year accolade despite Alex Pereira’s record-breaking run.
After shockingly putting Volkanovski down in Anaheim this past February, “El Matador” repeated the feat at Holloway’s expense, becoming the first to knock the Hawaiian out in the process.
Just weeks ago, many saw the Fighter of the Year debate as being wrapped up after Pereira defeated Khalil Rountree at UFC 307 to record his third successful light heavyweight defense of the year.
And during an appearance on Monday’s episode of The Ariel Helwani Show on Uncrowned, Volkanovski said there wouldn’t even be a debate about “Poatan” pipping Topuria to the post if it wasn’t for the way in which his assignments came together.
The Australian pointed out that Pereira is credited with ‘saving’ the promotion after a struggle to find a suitable UFC 300 main event and the late-notice withdrawal of Conor McGregor weeks before UFC 303.
“A few things come into play when you’re saving cards. Put it this way, if it wasn’t Pereira saving cards and putting his belt on the line while saving cards, it would be clearly Ilia,” Volkanovski said. “Yeah, you’ve had three defenses, but the two that Ilia took out and finished us both, it’s hard to pick against Ilia, to be honest.
“Before this past weekend, I was like, ‘How does Pereira not get it?’ It was pretty clear,” Volkanovski continued. “It’s pretty impressive, man. It’s tough to say.”
The level of competition Topuria has faced, however — alongside the manner with which he’s beaten two of the greatest of all time — has made him a popular choice for Fighter of the Year.
Beyond that discussion concluding in a couple of months’ time, Volkanovski appears likely to be the one next tasked with bringing Topuria’s violent run to an end.
After he entered the cage for a respectful interaction with the champ in Abu Dhabi, the Australian was confirmed as the next challenger by UFC CEO Dana White, setting the stage for a monumental rematch in 2025.
Many UFC fighters are quick to talk about their desire to move up the weight classes in order to achieve success in multiple divisions. This is not a current priority or goal for UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja.
The Brazilian has already defended his title twice since beating Brandon Moreno at UFC 290 to finally realize his dream of holding the gold. Alongside successful defenses over Brandon Royval and Steve Erceg, Pantoja has already beaten other top contenders in Alex Perez and Manel Kape.
In a recent interview with Sherdog, he said that in his opinion, the flyweight division has never been better when you look at the quality of fights and talent. He’s extremely happy where he is, especially whilst he’s on top.
“Flyweight have the best moment ever. We have a lot of main events, a lot of best fights of the night, a lot of bonuses. All the flyweight fights, you make sure that the fight is going to be crazy. I’m super happy with that moment and when I look to the back, I see a lot of good challengers, especially guys coming into the top 10, top 15. New guys in the UFC, that’s crazy. You see Taira make a close fight with Royval. You see Asu (Almabayev) fight beautiful fight with Matheus Nicolau too. You have a lot of good names coming for that division and now, one more, Kai Asakura, is going to be great. I think that’s the best moment for flyweight in UFC.”
Pantoja also said that his desire to move up to bantamweight depends on two things, a potential fight with Sean O’Malley or a rematch with Deiveson Figueiredo but neither are champions right now.
The UFC’s pound-for-pound list continues to be a major talking point amongst fight fans following this past weekend’s big event in Abu Dhabi. In the main event, featherweight champion Ilia Topuria retained the title and kept his undefeated record intact when he stopped Max Holloway.
Topuria’s current run has been one of the most impressive in recent years with dominant performances on his way up the ladder being capped off with knockout victories over two of the greatest champions in UFC history in Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski.
Many believe that this win puts him at the forefront to win fighter of the year but to some people’s surprise, it hasn’t seen him move on the pound-for-pound list even though he became the first man to knockout another member of the top 15 rankings.
“El Matador” remains in possession of the #4-ranking, sitting him behind Jon Jones, Alex Pereira and Islam Makhachev as the current Mount Rushmore of greatness in the UFC. Jones’ position on the list in particular has been heavily debated throughout the year.
Though Dana White has passionately made the case for why Jones deserves the top spot because he’s the greatest to ever do it, many make the case for why Makhachev and Pereira are deservedly higher due to their recent activity and strength of schedule.
MMA fans reacted on social media to the latest rankings update that saw Jones remain in his position.
“They’re scared of how Dana will react if he overtakes jones”
They’re scared of how Dana will react if he overtakes jones
“Ilia KOd the 2 best fighters in his division almost flatlined them while Jon just submitted a striker in his division years ago”
Ilia KOd the 2 best fighters in his division almost flatlined them while Jon just submitted a striker in his division years agopic.twitter.com/6I7mF2SazQ
“Ilia Topuria should be 3. Since Alex Pereira has become champ in two weight classes in two years that gives him the edge for me when it comes to a P4P list. There’s no reason Jon Jones is in front, though.”
Ilia Topuria should be 3. Since Alex Pereira has become champ in two weight classes in two years that gives him the edge for me when it comes to a P4P list. There’s no reason Jon Jones is in front, though.
Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has said in the past that he doesn’t intend on sticking around in the sport to achieve a long-lasting run and legacy. The Brit wants to make as much money possible in the fastest time before leaving with his health.
This means that he’s going to need something to occupy his time once his fighting days are over and though he’s in no rush to walk away right now, an opportunity did recently arise. At the WWE’s recent live tour of the UK, one half of TKO Group Holdings collided with the other.
Aspinall was brought into the ring in Manchester, in the same venue where he stopped Curtis Blaydes in July, to step through the ropes and stand side-by-side with WWE champions Cody Rhodes and Gunther.
In a recent interview with SafestCasinoSites, Aspinall reflected on the experience and whether stepping inside a WWE ring would be something that appeals to him once he’s finishing with his fighting career.
The champion started by talking about other areas that he would like to explore once he retires, including punditry and analyst work which he currently does for TNT Sports in the UK. However, pro wrestling helps to give him the same adrenaline rush that competing inside the Octagon satisfies.
“Absolutely, mate. That’s what I want to do in my post-fighting career. I’ve got my show on TNT Sports now, so I like the punditry side as well. I’m very passionate about MMA, it’s been my life for as long as I can remember. I like to think that I know more about MMA than most and I can offer some kind of knowledge and breakdown to people who don’t understand MMA as well as I do. I think I’ve definitely got that to offer and I think I do that well, it’s something I enjoy and something that I want to continue to do.
“But WWE is something new and exciting for me as well. I really enjoyed it, it’s a buzz. It’s another way to get out there in front of an audience and do something not quite as dangerous, but still get the thrill. I don’t know, I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. I’ve still got a lot that I want to do in my MMA career. I’m not saying that I want to hang up the gloves just yet, but I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t enjoy it. I enjoyed the whole thing.”
Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has been one of the biggest success stories in recent years of the sport. The Brit arrived in the promotion with bags of potential but quickly rose up the rankings with many now seeing him as the best heavyweight in the division.
In a recent interview with SafestCasinoSites, Aspinall was asked whether there is someone else on the roster that he points to as a one to watch. A rising prospect who like Aspinall, could continue to prove himself as an elite competitor with each step up in competition.
The interim champion has made it clear on multiple occasions that the heavyweight division is his focus and though he sees it as nearly a different sport to the rest of MMA, Aspinall does like to try and learn things from other fighters in lower weight classes.
This led him to giving the answer of the undefeated bantamweight contender, Payton Talbott, who debuted in the Octagon just under a year ago. In that time, the Contender Series alum has recorded three finishes at 135-pounds.
His destructive display against Cameron Saaiman was incredibly impressive considering how highly people regard both men. Talbott then followed that up with a 19-second knockout against Yanis Ghemmouri at UFC 303.
Aspinall hasn’t done a deep dive on the 26-year old but he likes what he has seen so far.
“It’s difficult to say really. I only keep up with the heavyweights really, keep an eye on the heavyweights because obviously it’s my division. But there’s a guy, I believe he’s a featherweight, maybe a bantamweight called Payton Talbott. I’ve seen him, he looks incredible. I don’t know him personally at all, never met him or anything like that, so I’m not biassed on his side, but I’ve seen him a couple of times in the UFC and he looks like the real deal, relatively untested at this point, he’s only just got into the UFC. I don’t think he’s fought anyone ranked or anything like that, but he looks really good from what I’ve seen. One to watch.”
This weekend in Edmonton, top five flyweights meet in the main event as Amir Albazi looks for his biggest win to date when facing the former champion, Brandon Moreno. We already know who Alexander Pantoja’s next title challenger is but either man can put themselves in the mix with a win here.
For Moreno, it’s going to be hard for him to earn a shot at Pantoja after losing to the Brazilian champion three times in his career. It’s still important for the Mexican star to bounce back here following his loss to Brandon Royval in February.
Albazi is one of the few new contenders at the top of the rankings who would provide a new challenge for Pantoja, assuming that the champion is able to retain the title in his fight with Kai Asakura at UFC 310 in December. He’s riding a five-fight winning streak since signing with the UFC and adding Moreno to that list will put him within reach.
In a recent interview with Sherdog, Pantoja gave his thoughts on how he sees this weekend’s main event playing out. He also spoke about how he sees a fight against the winner playing out if it does happen down the line.
“I think Albazi has more chance to get the victory. He’s very close to fight for the belt, I think he not gonna miss the opportunity, you know. Moreno is an incredible fighter, former champ, but maybe Albazi want more in that moment. Albazi maybe want more and his grappling is very good. I don’t know if Moreno can defend the takedown shots. I don’t know if Moreno, his boxing, can work against Albazi because Albazi moves a lot, he has very good wrestling.
“I think that fight is going to be a decision for Albazi and I don’t want to say like if you have an easy fight or something like that but I like to grapple. I think in that moment right now, a grappler for me, it’s a perfect fight. It’s a good challenge of course, all is different but I have very good jiu-jitsu and I’m very comfortable in the ground game.”
UFC heavyweight contender Sergei Pavlovich will have the chance for redemption when he returns to Saudi Arabia early next year.
Pavlovich (18-3) fell to the first losing skid of his career last time out in Riyadh, where his former training partner Alexander Volkov stifled his power en route to a comfortable unanimous decision victory.
With that, the Russian’s streak of six straight first-round finishes and impressive performance against Curtis Blaydes have become a distant memory. But, he will look to change that and remind the division of his brutal power in 2025.
Per MMA Mania’s Alex Behunin, the #4-ranked contender will return to the Kingdom Arena on Feb. 1, 2025, this time to throw down with Jairzinho Rozenstruik (15-5).
🚨Fight News🚨
Sergei Pavlovich vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik booked for UFC Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1, 2025, per sources
While Pavlovich will ride a losing skid into the contest, Rozenstruik is currently on his first win streak since having his undefeated record blemished by Francis Ngannou back in May 2020.
“Bigi Boy” went on an inconsistent run in the years that followed before finally stringing together wins this year with a knockout triumph over Shamil Gaziev and split decision against Tai Tuivasa.
Having cemented his spot inside the heavyweight top 10 in 2024, the Surinamese knockout artist will have the chance to return to title contention with a big performance opposite Pavlovich in Saudi Arabia.
Despite the incredible run that Alexander Volkanovski went on as the featherweight champion, he’s going to be the underdog in his upcoming rematch with Ilia Topuria. When the two men exchanged pleasantries inside the Octagon this past weekend at UFC 308, it was clear that this fight would be next but there’s some big question marks hanging over it.
After the way that Topuria stopped Volkanovski in February and then went on to finish Max Holloway in Abu Dhabi, “El Matador” is on his own iconic run right now and that’s going to be difficult for the former champion to stop.
One of the major talking points of their first encounter does come back around for the rematch though and that’s how much Volkanovski was affected by his knockout loss to Islam Makhachev several months before. A lot of people who picked Topuria to win that fight did so with the belief that “The Great” had jumped back in too quickly, especially when facing someone with the kind of power that his opponent is known for.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio, this is something that Topuria’s coach drew attention to as why they cannot afford to take this rematch lightly just because they’ve beaten their next opponent before.
Jorge Climent, of Climent Club in Alicante, said that he expects a better version of the former champion meaning that this isn’t just a re-treading of steps for the featherweight king.
“I think Volk in a rematch is going to be more dangerous than the first time because I think when he take the fight, is not the moment for fight with Ilia. If I’m his coach, I’m going to tell Volk in that moment, is not the right moment. You have a knockout, you have a fight, I don’t remember exactly, two months and you have a knockout. I think he have the time for recovery and to think and do a better strategy with Ilia.”
Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is confident he could hand featherweight kingpin Ilia Topuria his first defeat in mixed martial arts.
Eight months on from his crowning at the expense of Alexander Volkanovski, “El Matador” added a successful defense to his résumé by becoming the first to knock the previously indestructible Holloway out.
Having gotten past two of the division’s best this year, many are wondering who at 145 pounds could unseat the Spaniard. During a recent podcast episode uploaded to his YouTube channel, Sterling put his name in the hat.
‘Funk Master,” who won his featherweight debut against Calvin Kattar at UFC 300 this past April, explained how his style could pose problems for Topuria that both Volkanovski and Holloway’s did not.
“I ain’t standing with that guy. I would never stand and trade with that guy! I saw comments from the reaction, ‘You should change weight classes.’ I thought that was so funny… I made a joke, ‘I want to go back to 135,’” Sterling joked. “I’ll point to the ground but I’ll do my running man dance instead.
“If I were to fight him, god willing, I beat Movsar and I do get the crack, I do think I have a great style to neutralize his offense,” Sterling continued. “Most of these guys are striking with him. I ain’t doing that, bro! I ain’t doing that. We’re sitting there looking for a takedown. I have to make it a grappling match. I’m trying to the the W, I’m not trying to get my brain and my head sent to the next dimension again. I’m cool on that.”
When fans reacted to those remarks on social media by taking aim at his striking, Sterling hit back and defended his boxing.
Not to intervene too much in you guys’ debate, but to say my boxing “is ass” is…comical. Other than a botched rehydration performance against Yan 1, how did you come to this conclusion? https://t.co/mTIV2HbWgy
UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker will have the chance to snap his difficult winless run at the very first pay-per-view event of 2025.
Walker (21-9, 1 NC) hasn’t had his hand raised since a decision victory over Anthony Smith put him on a three-fight win streak. After a no contest against Magomed Ankalaev halted his title ambitions last year, two devastating results in 2025 have well and truly dashed them.
Following a brutal knockout loss to Ankalaev in their immediate rematch this past January, the Brazilian fell to a similar fate at the hands of Volkan Oezdemir in Saudi Arabia five months later.
If he’s to rebound from those results, Walker will have to avoid the big shots of another of the division’s hardest hitters early next year.
Per Red Corner MMA, the #9-ranked contender is set to defend his place inside the top 10 opposite Bogdan Guskov (16-3) at UFC 311 on Jan. 18.
Since falling to a submission against Oezdemir in a short-notice debut in Paris 13 months ago, “Czarevitch” has put his ferocious power on full display, stopping both Zac Pauga and Ryan Spann inside the distance.
And having broken into the rankings with his triumph over “Superman,” the Uzbekistani brawler will now have his sights on Walker’s top-10 spot at 205 pounds.
The UFC 311 event currently doesn’t have a confirmed location and venue, but Los Angeles is rumored to be hosting the year-opening PPV.
Magomed Ankalaev is confident that Alex Pereira is actively avoiding a showdown, and he’s eager to step into the Octagon with him.
Fresh off a decisive victory over Aleksandar Rakic on the main card of UFC 308, Ankalaev believes he’s earned a title shot. His decision win at UFC 308 showcased his skill, positioning him as a top contender. Speaking to the media after the fight, Ankalaev voiced his suspicions, suggesting that the promotion may be shielding Pereira from the matchup.
No More Running
“Let’s do it: Alex, stop running away from me. … I’ve heard he wants to fight during Ramadan. We’re not fighting in Ramadan. But after Ramadan or before, if he agrees, we’ll fight.”
Ankalaev added, “I think he’s being protected. I’m not sure why the UFC is doing it, but it seems they’re shielding him. He’s an exciting fighter and a strong striker, so maybe they’re just trying to save him.”
Undefeated since 2018, Ankalaev’s fighting style has drawn some criticism, with some detractors labeling it “boring.” However, he remains a formidable contender in the light heavyweight division, eager for his chance to face Pereira.
Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley watched on this past weekend as Ilia Topuria, a man whom he’s discussed fighting down the line, continued his violent undefeated run.
Topuria returned to headline Saturday’s UFC 308 pay-per-view eight months on from his featherweight title crowning in Anaheim. After getting the better of one divisional legend in Alexander Volkanovski, “El Matador” repeated the feat in Abu Dhabi.
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, O’Malley reacted to the main event at Etihad Arena, which saw Topuria further enhance his legacy on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage.
“God, Ilia’s a f*cking finisher, huh? He’ll jump on you,” O’Malley said. “Ilia’s so dangerous until the last bell. … Ilia landed a beautiful left hook. … This is exciting times. Great time to be alive. great time to be a UFC fan.
“Ilia just hurt Max bad…Ilia lands a bomb. Max is still stunned. Oh! Left hook! Ilia finishes Max Holloway with a left hook in round three. Holy sh*t, Ilia is that guy,” O’Malley continued. “Who at 145 wants to fight Ilia right now? Ilia’s just so dangerous the whole fight. He’s a like a little f*cking Alex Pereira. You can’t tell me Islam (Makhachev) vs. f*cking Ilia isn’t a fight you’d want to see.”
Talk of a super fight involving Topuria previously centered around O’Malley looking to move up to 145 pounds to challenge “El Matador.” But while that might have been on the menu should he have turned away Merab Dvalishvili’s challenge, O’Malley was unseated from the bantamweight throne inside the Sphere last month.
For now, though, the Spaniard will seemingly need to further cement his grip on the crown at 145 pounds by adding a second win over Volkanovski to his UFC résumé.
He did EXACTLY what he said he'd do 🤯@TopuriaIlia just knocked out Max Holloway at #UFC308!
Khamzat Chimaev’s grappling has always been one of the most feared wrestling skillsets that we have seen inside the Octagon but he took it to whole new levels at UFC 308. In his biggest test to date, the undefeated contender submitted Robert Whittaker in the first round.
Fight fans have known for a long time now that any opponent of Chimaev’s was going to have to weather a rough storm early on because of his aggressive grappling threat. After Kamaru Usman was able to do that and make the fight competitive at UFC 294 last year, there were some doubts hanging over Chimaev’s potential.
He was back to his best in Abu Dhabi and his grappling looked so dominant that it inspired a current UFC champion to keep working harder and learning more. Interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall gave his thoughts on the fights in a video on his YouTube channel.
Having given his live reactions via a watch-along, Aspinall was massively impressed by Chimaev’s performance and as someone that tries to take lessons from other fighters, the Brit was certainly able to gain something from this display.
“What he does for me as a fighter myself, me as an already established champion, I look at him and I feel like I need to learn more with the grappling. I need to learn more with the attacks. I need to learn more with how to control someone and not let him move and play the game like he does.”
“That was an unbelievable performance and I think, to top it all off, he did it to Robert Whittaker. He went out there and schooled Robert Whittaker which is unbelievable.”
It’s not uncommon for Conor McGregor to be extremely active on social media during a big UFC card and though he was seemingly present during UFC 308, he wasn’t quite as prominent throughout the night.
The post reflected on how McGregor has already achieved so much and gotten out of the sport without taking too much damage so he doesn’t need to risk returning when he’s already achieved success both inside and outside of the Octagon.
This part-tribute and part-caution to “The Notorious” did catch his eye which isn’t surprising given the graphic nature of Whittaker’s injury. McGregor responded to the post and though it’s unclear whether he’s serious or not, he once again flirted with the idea of riding off into the sunset and hanging the gloves up for good.
It’s certainly not the first or last time that the Irishman has told fans that he’s ready to call it a day but with his long awaited UFC return still up in the air, who knows whether we will ever see him back in action.
“Bro acting like we didn’t say bye after the Khabib fight. Nothing wrong with being done. You did more for the UFC than any fighter and became one of the best there ever was, while sorting generations of Mcgregors for years. You won life. move on and enjoy what you worked for.”
Bro acting like we didn't say bye after the Khabib fight. Nothing wrong with being done. You did more for the UFC than any fighter and became one of the best there ever was, while sorting generations of Mcgregors for years. You won life. move on and enjoy what you worked for.
While the aftermath of the October 26 card is currently the talk of the town, it won’t be long until focus sways to the next PPV, and from the featherweight title picture to the heavyweight championship conversation.
At UFC 309, set for the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 16, reigning kingpin Jon Jones will compete for the first time this year in defense of his gold. Following a submission of Ciryl Gane to capture the crown, “Bones” will finally face the challenge of returning legend Stipe Miocic 20 months later.
Nickal, Weidman, Silva Set The Stage For High-Profile Headliners At UFC 309
Before Jones defends his belt and Oliveira runs it back with Chandler, a number of other notable names will take to the Octagon looking to make the most of their position on the major UFC 309 card.
That includes fast-rising flyweight Karine Silva, who gets her toughest assignment to date opposite longtime contender Viviane Araújo. Having won all four of her UFC fights and risen to #11 on the ladder following a submission of Maryna Moroz and decision victory over Ariane Lipski, “Killer” will look to break into title contention at the expense of Araújo, who lost to Natália Silva last time out.
Those pairings have gotten the nod to feature on the main card over the light heavyweight clash between #6-ranked contender Nikita Krylov and the undefeated Azamat Murzakanov, which is currently slated to top the preliminary portion of the event.
See below for the full UFC 309 card, as it stands.
Main Card:
Light Heavyweight Championship Main Event: Jon Jones (C) vs. Stipe Miocic
Lightweight Co-Main Event: Charles Oliveira vs. Michael Chandler
Women’s Flyweight: Viviane Araújo vs. Karine Silva
Middleweight: Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig
Middleweight: Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman
Preliminary Card:
Light Heavyweight: Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov
Bantamweight: Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee
Lightweight: Jim Miller vs. Damon Jackson
Early Preliminary Card:
Welterweight: Mickey Gall vs. Ramiz Brahimaj
Welterweight: Bassil Hafez vs. Oban Elliott
Women’s Flyweight: Veronica Hardy vs. Eduarda Moura
UFC 308 featured one of the most controversial decision outcomes in some time as Rinat Fakhretdinov beat Carlos Leal via unanimous decision. Had this fight not opened up the card in Abu Dhabi, there would likely be more discussion around it right now.
The decisions throughout the remainder of the night appeared to follow the consensus opinion but the opener certainly raised alarm bells that we might be in for a bumpy ride.
All three judges had different scorecards with one of them, Hade Mohamed Ali, scoring all three rounds for Fakhretdinov which seemed incredibly unlikely when the final bell sounded. Leal, who stepped in on late notice, put up a very good fight and looked like he may have secured a big upset on his UFC debut.
When the scorecards were announced, there was a surprised reaction from fans online and from the UFC staff inside the Etihad Arena on Saturday night. The decision was heavily criticised by the commentary booth of Jon Anik, Paul Felder and Daniel Cormier who discussed the scoring when the cards were shown on the broadcast.
Fakhretdinov responded to this in his post-fight press conference, labelling them as “really bad commentators” who would give across the impression of biased judging.
Rinat Fakhretdinov fires back at "really bad commentators" Daniel Cormier, Paul Felder and Jon Anik for questioning his #UFC308 win.
In his immediate reactions video posted on his YouTube channel once the main event came to a close, Cormier responded to Fakhretdinov’s comments. “DC” doubled down on Leal winning the fight when he gave shout-outs to the winners of each fight on the prelims.
“Congratulations to… and Rinat Fakhretdinov, who did not win that fight. Rinat Fakhretdinov, I don’t care if he goes on any press conference and complains about our commentary, that dude lost! But still, congratulations, even though I think it was one of the worst decisions I’ve seen in a really long time.”
The welterweight return and 40th birthday of UFC veteran Rafael Dos Anjos did no go to plan at UFC 308 this past Saturday night. His bout with the #10-ranked Geoff Neal came to an end in just 90 seconds after “RDA” suffered a knee injury that he couldn’t continue from.
Neal started the fight incredibly well and was able to drop Dos Anjos early on in the fight. Unfortunately, the second time that the former lightweight champion went down, it was the end of the fight due to an injury which isn’t how anyone would’ve wanted the fight to go.
Despite this, Dos Anjos appears to be in good spirits as evident from his first social media post after the injury. Following consecutive losses to Vicente Luque and Mateusz Gamrot, the Brazilian was hoping to kick off another run at 170-pounds in this fight.
He’ll now be resting up before returning to the drawing board but given everything that he has been through in his career, the 49-fight warrior promises to be back once again.
He posted on Instagram to thank people for their support and tell them that he’s doing okay and is focused on making a return once he’s healthy again.
“Thank you all fight fans for the support, sorry I let you guys down. Definitely it was not how I want to celebrate my 40th birthday, it was a tough loss. During my whole UFC career it’s my second time been hospitalized after a fight, it make me feel blessed, it could been worse, it’s a tough game. Time to heal up, enjoy the family. I’m not done yet, I’ll be back soon. God bless you all. I’ll keep you guys updated on my stories.”
Former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya reacted like most as Khamzat Chimaev forced a quick tap from Robert Whittaker this past weekend.
After injuries and illness stalled his title plans at 185 pounds following a victory over Kamaru Usman in October 2023, Chimaev made his return 12 months on for the biggest Octagon outing of his career to date.
Many were picking against “Borz” leading up to the UFC 308 pay-per-view in Abu Dhabi given the level of competition he was facing. But despite plenty backing former champ Whittaker to make it three wins from three in 2024, Chimaev streamrolled through “The Reaper.”
Having secured his usual fast takedown, Chimaev went to work on the ground and ultimately applied a brutal face crank. To the surprise of most, Whittaker tapped out almost immediately.
During a video recently uploaded to his FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel, Adesanya reacted live to the events that unfolded at Saturday’s PPV in Abu Dhabi, paying close attention as the undefeated Chimaev met his former two-time opponent.
Adesanya willed Whittaker on as he worked to escape Chimaev’s imposing wrestling, expressing shock at the sudden ending that came just over three and a half minutes into the very first round.
“There we go, told you. Straight away. You should know by now he’s going to shoot, but he’s so quick with it,” Adesanya said. “Good job Whitty. … What?! Already? Wow. That’s what I said, first or second round. Something (happened) with the jaw, that was just too quick. … F*ck, dislocated jaw from the pressure, that’s crazy.”
With Adesanya failing in his bid to regain the middleweight title in Perth, Australia this past August, he likely won’t be sharing the cage with Chimaev anytime soon.
Instead, “Borz” has his sights on Dricus Du Plessis, who won the belt from Sean Strickland at the start of 2024 before adding a defense to his reign at “The Last Stylebender’s” expense.
He wants the belt 🗣@KChimaev calls for a title shot after his incredible win at #UFC308 🐺
For a lot of people, Khamzat Chimaev reminded them why he was once the talk of the MMA world with his performance this past weekend at UFC 308. The undefeated contender was able to submit Robert Whittaker in the first round in Abu Dhabi.
Not only has the former middleweight champion only lost to the absolute best at 185-pounds, no one has been able to tear right through him like that. After Chimaev secured an early takedown, he maintained control of the fight until applying a submission that instantly forced his opponent to tap after the damage that was done to his jaw.
The question then became whether this was enough for him to leapfrog over Sean Strickland and be the next man to challenge Dricus Du Plessis for the title. Strickland has been very clear that he’s the next in line after his split decision loss to Du Plessis in January and bounce back win over Paulo Costa.
Though most appear to be leaning towards Chimaev after that incredibly impressive performance, Josh Thomson doesn’t think that “Borz” deserves the next shot.
The former UFC fighter said during a recent episode of the Weighing In podcast that in his opinion, Chimaev hasn’t beaten enough legitimate middleweights to justify this. His last win over Kamaru Usman did take place at middleweight despite Usman moving up to the weight class on short notice.
Chimaev’s only other middleweight wins are over John Phillips on his UFC debut and Gerald Meerschaert who he stopped in under 20 seconds.
“He’s literally beat a bunch of 70 pounders but was supposed to be fighting at 85 and now, he’s not getting a title shot at 170, he’s getting a title shot at 185, it doesn’t make sense to me. Like I’m not saying that he’s not skilled and I’m also saying that in that fight with Gilbert Burns, he was exhausted and he was also exhausted in the Kamaru Usman fight, who is a 170 pounder. So look, I’m not taking away what he did today because what he did today spoke for itself, absolutely fantastic performance but we’ve seen this before where he’s dominated round one like this.”
Following Ilia Topuria’s successful title defense this past weekend, the coach of UFC lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev has assessed the possibility of a champ vs. champ collision down the line.
Topuria cemented his grip on the featherweight gold in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 308 pay-per-view, which he headlined opposite fan favorite Max Holloway eight months on from his crowning at the expense of Alexander Volkanovski in Anaheim.
At just 27 years old, Topuria has already established himself as one of the featherweight division’s all-time greats. And at such a young age, the Georgian-Spaniard has plenty of time to achieve his other ambitions on MMA’s biggest stage.
That unsurprisingly includes two-division glory, and having already recorded a vicious KO up at 155 pounds back in 2022, Topuria is confident in his chances of adding the UFC lightweight belt to his trophy collection.
During a recent appearance on Submission Radio, Javier Mendez — coach of current lightweight titleholder Makhachev — reacted to Topuria’s triumph in Abu Dhabi.
The AKA trainer threw praise on the featherweight champ, notably branding his boxing the best in mixed martial arts. With that in mind, he wouldn’t be looking to have Makhachev throw down with the Spaniard in a potential super fight down the line.
“I mean, when he took Max down with ease in the first round, I said, ‘That’s the way you fight MMA.’ And he has a very strong stand-up game,” Mendez said. “I would think that he’s probably the best boxer in the whole entire division. He’s really crisp and very on point with his boxing, and therefore you see how he uses it really, really well. His boxing, I think, is his best attribute out of everything he does. He’s impressive, very impressive. … I’ve been saying he’s a good boxer. But last night proved to me that he’s the best boxer presently in the UFC. Actually, in the entire world. He’s the best boxer in MMA.
“That would be an area I’d be foolish to want to try to go up against, boxing for boxing. That’s not a smart move, you know? And it just would be like, if Ilia decided to go submission for submission with Islam, that’s not a smart move on his part either,” Mendez continued. “So, it’s all strategy, and how you approach it, how your fighter approaches it, and, you know, what mistakes you can correct while the fight is going on. That’s what I think is more important than anything. When the fight does get matched, it’s just your gameplan, your strategy, executing it, you know?”
And if Topuria was to attempt to beat Makhachev at his own game, Mendez warned that he’d be taking on a challenge only achieved by the great Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“The only person that really did the most with him was Khabib. And at the end of the day, the longer you grapple with Islam, the worse it’s going to get,” Mendez concluded.
The lightweight champ didn’t have much to say in the aftermath of the UFC 308 main event and didn’t address a potential clash with his featherweight counterpart down the line. Instead, Makhachev offered his congratulations to Topuria and some comforting words for the defeated Holloway.
Congrats champ it was amazing Keep your head up Max you are a legend #UFC308
The Dagestani’s focus, then, is no doubt entirely on the challenge seemingly awaiting him in January 2025, as he prepares to run it back with Arman Tsarukyan.
Consider former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill among those unimpressed by Magomed Ankalaev’s latest victory.
After controversially being snubbed of the chance to challenge reigning champion Alex Pereira in Utah earlier this month, Ankalaev returned nine months on from his main event win over Johnny Walker to meet the highly regarded Aleksandar Rakić.
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Hill reacted to the events that unfolded inside the Etihad Arena on Saturday night, unsurprisingly paying close attention to the crucial contest that played out in his division.
“Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakić, holy sh*t, what a pretty boring fight,” Hill said. “Pretty boring, fellas. I’m going to be real. I’m always going to be real whenever it comes to talking about fights, and this fight was boring. It showed a lack of weapons — I’m not going to say on Rakić’s side, because Rakić kind of got into his bag a little bit and showed some of the weapons he has. It showed a lack of weapons on Magomed’s end.
“I’ll get into that. it seems like we’re probably going to be on a collision course,” Hill continued. “Rakić showed a lack of fight IQ. Magomed is wholeheartedly a counter fighter. That’s what I mean by lack of tools. Lack of tools is being able to come forward and enter, things that actually get you forward. That’s not something that he’s good at doing, which, against Alex (Pereira) and I, is going to be a problem.”
But despite his less than positive assessment of the latest win on Ankalaev’s unbeaten run, Hill did admit that the Dagestani is deserving of a long-awaited second title shot in the UFC. And Dana White appeared to reluctantly share the same sentiment during his post-fight press conference.
“Sweet Dreams,” meanwhile, will be looking ahead to his chance to return to winning ways in pursuit of a shot against the Pereira vs. Ankalaev victor.
The Georgian-Spaniard did so emphatically, becoming the first to knock “Blessed” out to continue his ruie atop the featherweight mountain and stake a strong claim for Fighter of the Year in 2024.
The champ’s rise has been a rapid one, coming just a couple of years on from his name becoming more familiar owing to a blossoming feud with Pimblett. After taking offense to the Liverpool native’s remarks online, the pair almost came to blows at a hotel during fight week for a UFC Fight Night in London.
While that appeared to lay the foundation for a future fight, Topuria has since returned to the lower weight and created a firm gap between himself and Pimblett in regard to their standing in the UFC.
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Pimblett reacted live to Saturday’s Topuria-headlined PPV at Etihad Arena.
Despite Topuria dispatching one of the featherweight division’s greatest in Holloway — who was coming off a dominant lightweight win over Justin Gaethje — “The Baddy” remains confident of his chances should he and Topuria meet at 155 pounds down the line.
“Heavy…Hand sanitiser boy with the win? Heavy,” Pimblett said. “Well done, Ilia, give you your due lad, 16-0 hand sanitiser boy. I can’t wait for him to come back up to lightweight, I still think I’d beat him. I really do, I still think I’d beat him, lad. Whether he’s just beat Max Holloway or not, I still think I’d beat him. Kicking him on the feet or taking him down and submitting him, I genuinely think I’d beat him, but congrats Ilia Topuria, well done son, congratulations, lad.
“Obviously, hand sanitiser boy knocked Holloway out. I didn’t see that coming but give him his due, good finish. Max was the better boxer, but Ilia is the better swinger, he ended up catching him with them shots on the button,” Pimblett continued. “So congrats, fella. Can’t wait for Volk (Volkanovski) to come back and beat you up, and I’m willing to, any time.”
Given their interaction inside the cage at UFC 308 and Dana White’s subsequent remarks, it would appear that Topuria’s next step will be a rematch with Volkanovski in 2025.
Eventually, though, “El Matador” has outlined his plans to challenge for two-division glory. Whether a lightweight move in pursuit of doing so would result in his and Pimblett’s paths crossing, however, remains to be seen.
