The UFC is back and 2024 is already shaping up to be an incredible year. With one event already in the books, we take a look at what else we have to look forward to. This is the UFC 2024 first quarter preview.
UFC 297
The first numbered event of 2024 will be UFC 297 which will take place in Toronto, Canada on January 20. Sean Strickland‘s middleweight strap will be on the line as he takes on South Africa’s Dricus du Plessis. The co-main will also be a title fight. Former women’s bantamweight title challenger Raquel Pennington will face Brazil’s Mayra Bueno Silva for the vacant bantamweight title. England’s Arnold Allen will return for the first time since his loss to Max Holloway last year, this time against the undefeated Movsar Evloev.
Sean Strickland vs Dricus du Plessis
This will be Sean Strickland’s first title defence since he seized the belt away from Israel Adesanya in a stunning upset last September. It seemed as if we were heading for an Adesanya vs du Plessis grudge match, but Strickland had other ideas. Make no mistake though; this too is a grudge match.
The bad blood is well-known. Tensions boiled over at a volatile seasonal press conference at the end of last year, before literal blows were traded between the two in the crowd at UFC 296. The time to settle this in the cage is now upon the fighters, and what a matchup it is. Strickland is on a three fight winning streak which includes that sensational performance against Adesanya. Du Plessis has won his last six UFC fights and five of those came by way of stoppage. The South African has been underestimated before just as Strickland has, but after his TKO victory last time out against Robert Whittaker, no one is overlooking these fighters any longer. The first UFC title fight of 2024 is one not to be missed.
Ones to Watch
It has been over a year since Raquel Pennington fought. She is however on a five fight winning streak. This is a great opportunity for her to finally rise to the top of the division. After her title fight loss to Amanda Nunes in 2018 she hit an inconsistent patch, but it looks as if she has found her feet. Silva is on a hot streak of her own, but her submission victory against Holly Holm was overturned after she tested positive for a banned substance. Before that, she won three fights in a row. The Brazilian is a consistent threat with her ground game and submissions, so expect to see her try and get this one to the canvas.
Other fights of note: Neil Magny vs Mike Malott, Chris Curtis vs Marc-André Barriault, Charles Jourdain vs Sean Woodson, Gillian Robertson vs Polyana Viana
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Roman Dolidze vs Nassourdine Imavov
The UFC is back at the Apex on February 3 where Roman Dolidze will take on Nassourdine Imavov. Dolidze will be looking for another signature knockout win in his first main event. He has risen through the middleweight ranks with finishes over the likes of Kyle Daukaus, Phil Hawes, and Jack Hermansson, and another win here may be enough to lift him into the top 5. Imavov has finished nine of his 12 wins and if he is able to make a statement here, he will break into the top 10. ‘The Sniper’ holds notable wins over the likes of Joaquin Buckley and Edmen Shahbazyan. The chances of this one going the distance are low.
Ones to Watch
Renato Moicano takes on Drew Dober in an exciting co-main event in the lightweight division. Both fighters are coming off impressive wins and will be hoping they can reach the top 10 with another one here. All of Moicano’s finishes have been by submission, whereas Dober is most certainly a knockout artist. A win for Dober will arguably be the biggest of his career.
Other fights of note: Randy Brown vs Muslim Salikhov, Molly McCann vs Diana Belbiţǎ, Themba Gorimbo vs Pete Rodriguez, Viviane Araujo vs Natalia Silva
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Jack Hermansson vs Joe Pyfer
Middleweight contender Jack Hermansson will face rising star Joe Pyfer in the main event at the Apex on February 10. UFC veteran Hermansson will want to disprove the gatekeeper label and rise up the ranks from his current number 10 spot. Pyfer has finished all three of his UFC fights so far and will seek to continue that momentum. If Pyfer can secure the win, it will be the biggest name on his record so far. This prospect looks to be able to do it all, so keep a close eye on his ascent.
Ones to Watch
In the co-main event, Dan Ige and Lerone Murphy will clash in an intriguing featherweight bout. After solid wins against Damon Jackson and Nate Landwehr, Ige began to show signs of a resurgence back to the top of the division. Unfortunately for him, his defeat against Bryce Mitchell in September meant that he failed to reach the top 10. Lerone Murphy boasts an undefeated record of 13-0-1 and is climbing the ranks at an impressive pace. Murphy has stoppage wins over Makwan Amirkhani and Ricardo Ramos and a win over Ige may convince the UFC to give him a top 10 opponent next.
Other fights of note: Brad Tavares vs Gregory Rodrigues, Michael Johnson vs Darrius Flowers, Rodolfo Vieira vs Armen Petrosyan, Damir Hadžović vs Bolaji Oki
Edit: Lerone Murphy is out of his fight with Dan Ige due to injury.
UFC 298
In the main event, Alexander Volkanovski will defend his featherweight title against Ilia Topuria in one of the best matchups you can make in MMA right now. In between defeats at lightweight against the pound-for-pound number one Islam Makhachev, Volkanovski dispatched Yair Rodríguez in style. A TKO win over the Mexican means he is still undefeated at 145lbs and will go down as one of the best mixed martial artists to ever grace the octagon. If anyone can take the crown from him at this weight class though, it’s Topuria. The undefeated hammer has four finishes in his six UFC fights and only appears to be gaining momentum. He is a threat on the feet as well as on the ground and will surely threaten Volkanovski’s dominance at featherweight.
Ones to Watch
In the co-main, Robert Whittaker will take on Paulo Costa in a thrilling middleweight matchup. Ian Garry is back and will face his toughest test to date in Geoff Neal as he attempts to keep his undefeated record intact. Elsewhere on the card, future bantamweight title contender Merab Dvalishvili will fight former double champion Henry Cejudo. This is a stacked event that promises to deliver plenty of drama.
Other fights of note: Anthony Hernandez vs Ikram Aliskerov, Tatiana Suarez vs Amanda Lemos
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Brandon Moreno vs Brandon Royval
Following Amir Albazi’s withdrawal, Brandon Moreno will now go toe-to-toe with Brandon Royval instead. The pair fought just over three years ago when Moreno stopped Royval via TKO in the first round with only one second remaining. Since then Royval has made great strides in his career, even fighting for the title against Alexandre Pantoja. He was defeated, but he has the tools to cause Moreno problems. Pantoja took the title from Moreno back in July and will be hoping he can get another shot at the belt soon. He may have to go through both Royval and Albazi to do it.
Ones to Watch
Former featherweight title challengers Brian Ortega and Yair Rodríguez will fight in the co-main event in a rematch from 2022. The first meeting ended in a shoulder injury for Ortega, but the Mexican took away the TKO win. Rodríguez’s unpredictable striking and Ortega’s slick ground game could make this a fight of the night contender. The winner will put their name right back in the mix for another shot at the 145lb crown.
Other fights of note: Raul Rosas Jr. vs Ricky Turcios, Victor Altamirano vs Felipe dos Santos, Manuel Torres vs Chris Duncan
UFC 299
To say this event is stacked would not do it justice. UFC 299 on March 9 is the best card on paper so far this year and headlining the event will be Sean O’Malley and Marlon Vera. ‘Suga’ took the title from Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in August, dropping the former champion with a big right hand before finishing with ground and pound. His next challenger is the only fighter to defeat him. Just over three years ago, Vera beat O’Malley by TKO after landing a leg kick that appeared to injure ‘Suga’. After some brutal ground and pound the fight was stopped. The rematch is finally here. Can newly crowned champion O’Malley pick Vera apart with his powerful, accurate striking, or will ‘Chito’ find the openings that will win him the belt?
Ones to Watch
Number three ranked Dustin Poirier will fight number 11 Benoit Saint-Denis in the co-main event. No matter what you might think of Poirier’s decision to take this fight, you cannot deny this man is willing to fight anyone at any time. Saint-Denis looks to be a serious up-and-coming contender in the lightweight division so Poirier will have his hands full here. ‘The Diamond’ is coming off a devastating KO loss to Justin Gaethje, so this might be his final run at the title before the end of a spectacular career. Saint-Denis is on a five-fight winning streak; all of which are finishes. He’s the real deal and this fight could be a changing of the guard situation. Rule out Poirier at your peril though.
Jack Della Maddalena is back in action and will arguably be taking on the toughest fight of his career to date in Gilbert Burns. Petr Yan takes on Song Yadong in a bantamweight banger, and the always entertaining Kevin Holland will welcome Michael ‘Venom’ Page to the UFC.
Other fights of note: Curtis Blaydes vs Jailton Almeida, Mateusz Gamrot vs Rafael dos Anjos, Katlyn Chookagian vs Maycee Barber, Michel Pereira vs Michal Oleksiejczuk
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Tai Tuivasa vs Marcin Tybura
On March 16, these two heavyweights will clash in a bid to solidify top 10 status. After a five-fight winning streak, Tai Tuivasa found himself in a number one contender fight with Ciryl Gane. He started well and even dropped the Frenchman, but Gane recovered to knock Tuivasa out. He went on to lose his next two fights, so he will be desperate to prove that he still belongs among the best heavyweights in the world.
Marcin Tybura put a run together that saw him lose only one fight in eight. In July of last year though, interim champion Tom Aspinall made light work of the Polish heavyweight, knocking him out in just over a minute. A big win over Tuivasa will surely put him back into the top 10. Don’t expect this one to go the distance.
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Amanda Ribas vs Rose Namajunas
Rose Namajunas will continue her flyweight journey against Amanda Ribas on March 23. Unfortunately for Thug Rose, she lost her 125lb debut against Manon Fiorot. The former strawweight champion is one of the most successful women to ever compete, but she has lost her last two fights. Getting back into the win column against Ribas might be a tough ask if the Brazilian puts on another performance like her last one. Ribas showed grit and toughness to secure a comeback TKO win over Luana Pinheiro in Novmeber. The finishing combination was a thing of beauty that began with a spinning wheel kick before punches closed the show. Both women are skilled strikers with a good ground game, and it will be interesting to see how Namajunas deals with yet another bigger opponent.
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Erin Blanchfield vs Manon Fiorot
Erin Blanchfield has looked the part since joining the UFC. ‘Cold Blooded’ has been touted as the next flyweight champion and it’s easy to see why. She is on a six fight winning streak in the UFC and has proven to be a serious submission threat recording three of them in her last four fights. She seems to have a good all-round skillset and will be one to keep an eye on this year. Fiorot is also on a hot streak and is unbeaten in the UFC. She has wins over Rose Namajunas, Jennifer Maia and upcoming title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva. This fight might well be the biggest challenge yet for both fighters.
Also on the card, Sean Brady will take on Vicente Luque. Brady lost his undefeated record to Belal Muhammad, but bounced back in December with a dominant win over Kelvin Gastelum. A win over Luque may be enough to propel him into the welterweight top 5. After suffering a brain bleed in his KO loss to Geoff Neal, Luque spent a year away from fighting. He recovered and came back with a huge win over veteran Rafael dos Anjos in August.
UFC 2024 Fight Night: Marvin Vettori vs Brendan Allen
Middleweights Marvin Vettori and Brendan Allen will fight for a place in the top 5 in the first event of April. This will be Vettori’s first fight since his war with Jared Cannonier back in June of last year. The Italian has lost three of his last five fights and will be looking to steady the ship against the active and dangerous Brendan Allen. Allen is on a six fight winning streak and in closing in on a title shot fast. His win against Paul Craig in November won him a performance of the night bonus; his third in four fights, not to mention it was his fourth submission win in a row. The 28-year-old will be hard to stop.
UFC 300
At the time of writing, the milestone event that is UFC 300 is the last scheduled event of the quarter. On April 13, the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas will host the event that is now beginning to take shape. The women’s strawweight title will be on the line in an all Chinese affair as Weili Zhang defends her belt against Yan Xiaonan. The BMF champion Justin Gaethje will welcome former featherweight champion Max Holloway in a lightweight bout fans will be salivating over. Will there be a new BMF champion or can Gaethje defend the crown? Aljamain Sterling will move up to featherweight to take on Calvin Kattar after losing the bantamweight title, and Charles Oliveira will clash with Arman Tsarukyan in what will likely be a lightweight title eliminator.
Ones to Watch
We already have fantastic fights to look forward to, but the card is far from complete. Undefeated hot prospect Bo Nickal is scheduled to fight Cody Brundage. Jiří Procházka will be Aleksandar Rakić’s first fight since May 2022 after a knee injury. Procházka is wasting no time after being knocked out by Alex Pereira in the light heavyweight title fight in November. After making his successful bantamweight debut against Rob Font, Deiveson Figueiredo will take on a resurging Cody Garbrandt. In the battle of the veterans, Bobby Green will fight the ever-present Jim Miller. At 40-years-old, Miller is aging gracefully winning five of his last six fights. Green lost his last bout to Jalin Turner, but before that he took out legend Tony Ferguson and rising contender Grant Dawson.
In mixed martial arts, there is nothing like the UFC. It is an incredible time to be a fan of the sport and this promotion in particular as stars rise, legends fall and exciting matchups are made. The first quarter of 2024 is sure to deliver. Stay tuned to Combat Sports UK for all things MMA and UFC.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
