After a three month break the Ultimate Fighting Championship finally kicked off again on Jan. 24 with UFC 324 in Las Vegas, Nevada. This card featured an excellent fight between the young scouser Paddyy “The Baddy” Pimblett and the experienced Justin “the highlight” Gaethje, both battling for the UFC lightweight interim championship.
With many fans behind Pimblett, he was the majority favorite coming into this close fight. But the highly-skilled kickboxer Gaethje ended up with the belt around his waist, winning by unanimous decision and will most likely fight the lightweight champion Ilia Topuria at the White House this summer.
One week later, on Jan. 26, the UFC delivered again with UFC 325, another exciting event, that was hosted in Sydney, Australia. Featuring many of Australia’s own fighters, including the one and only Alexander “the great” Volkanovski. Volkanovski was to defend his featherweight title against the lengthy well rounded fighter out of Brazil, Diego Lopez. This was their second time meeting, and in the first fight, Volkanovski easily won by a unanimous decision.
Volkanovski made waves on the night of the fight as he walked out to the famous Australian song “Down Under” with over 15,000 Australians in attendance. During the fight, Lopez had no chance of winning against Volkanovski, as Lopez struggled against Volkanovski’s reach and skillful combinations, and the Australian retained his belt again winning by unanimous decision.
The most recent event in the UFC, UFC 326 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on March 7, featured the “BMF” title fight between the beloved Charles Oliveira and Max “blessed” Holloway. Many fans were skeptical about this fight particularly because it featured two of the fighters with the most loyal and loving fanbases in the UFC. However fans still expected a more entertaining fight between the two lightweight fighters this time around, as last time Olivera was injured and had to step out.
This time Oliveira dominated, using his advantage on the ground exposing Holloway for his mediocre ground game. Holloway could never find an opportunity to land combinations due to Oliveira’s extremely defensive fighting style. Oliveira easily won the fight in a unanimous decision claiming the “BMF” belt.
UFC 327 on April 10, in Miami features two championship fights. The first one is Joshua Van and Tatsuro Taira fighting for the undisputed flyweight title. Van is a skilled Burmese fighter known for his high-paced cardio and clean boxing, while Taira is a Japanese ground specialist known for his quick submissions. Van is looking to defend his title
for the first time, while Taira is looking for his first UFC championship.
The next championship fight at UFC 327 features Jiri Prochazka and Carlos Ulberg, two light heavyweights battling for the vacant title after the champ Alex Pereira vacated his title in February. Prochazka is a nifty fighter who uses baits and fakes to lure his opponent into an easy position so he can strike. Ulberg also comes from a kickboxing background, he uses his explosiveness to quickly throw counter strikes against opponents. While this is Ulberg’s first title fight, UFC 327 gives Prochazka a chance to retain at the top of the light heavyweight division
This summer, UFC president Dana White plans to hold a UFC event at the White House, with Donald Trump in attendance and many other important American politicians.
White is planning for the most championship fights ever in a UFC event. The possibilities of this event are endless, as fans predict a super fight between Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev, or even a return for “the Notorious” Conor McGregor. If these events deliver, 2026 could be one of the most exciting years for the UFC in recent years.
