To get the chance to main event a UFC show is an opportunity that every mixed martial arts competitor dreams about. To take top billing on a card hosted by the premier combat sports organization in the world would mean not only a significant payday for both parties involved, but it would also solidify both fighter’s positions as some of the best in the promotion in their weight class. However, only a select few pairings will ever manage to surpass pay-per-view milestones, pairings that usually involve some of the hottest stars in the company. It is these contests that both captivate audiences in large amounts around the globe and craft indelible legends of the sport.
In the current state of the UFC, there exists a small handful of super fights that could generate astronomical box office numbers. With theoretical championship bouts lingering on the minds of fans everywhere, the global leader in MMA has no shortage of potential high-profile matchups that stand to become historical in terms of star power and ticket sales.
These are five possible UFC headliners that could break promotional PPV records.
Ilia Topuria vs. Islam Makhachev
For a couple of years now, sparks have been flying between two of the top European fighters on the UFC roster, Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev. Ranked within the top five on the official company pound-for-pound rankings, rumblings of a clash involving these mixed martial arts juggernauts have been on the tongues of fans and pundits alike for some time now.
Capturing the featherweight title with a thunderous knockout over Alexander Volkanovski in 2024, Topuria became the first Georgian-born UFC champion in highlight reel fashion. He then went on to become the first man to stop the once thought-to-be unstoppable Max Holloway later that year, toppling “Blessed” with strikes to defend his belt over a second all-time great. Since then, Topuria has constantly hounded Makhachev for a championship showdown, calling out the Dagestani over social media and in interviews. Having vacated his 145-lb throne, Topuria will now vie for the lightweight title this month against Charles Oliveira at UFC 317, and maybe play top online slots at casinoofthekings.ca during his time in Vegas.
Reigning over the 155-lb division with an iron fist, Makhachev has crafted a place for himself as the undisputed best fighter in the world. Having defended his championship a total of four times, the Russian superstar had supremely separated himself from the rest of the competition at lightweight. This period of unchecked domination brought untold success for Makhachev, but it also made him begin craving tougher challenges, prompting him to move up in weight for an inevitable welterweight tilt with current champion Jack Della Maddalena.
As it stands now, Makhachev’s sights are firmly set on scoring the 170-lb belt, with Topuria being tasked with securing the American Kickboxing Academy product’s former strap. Although they may never resolve their issues inside the cage, this hasn’t stopped the two pugilistic phenoms from still trading barbs occasionally, sometimes for the whole world to see.
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Islam Makhachev
Leaving the 155-lb landscape behind seemingly for good, Makhachev is seeking to add even more to his storied legacy in a highly-anticipated move up to welterweight sometime in 2024. His transition between divisions has been long imagined for sometime now after cementing his position as the most winningest lightweight king of all time. For his first foray into 170-lb, the man from Dagestan will surely have his work cut out for him when he locks horns with recently crowned title holder Della Maddalena.
Embarking on a colossal run through the rankings since arriving in the organization in 2022, the Aussie has catapulted himself into mainstream success, currently sitting on a 18-fight win streak. This stretch of unabated victories propelled “JDM” into his first UFC main event at UFC 315 last month. Absolutely beating the breaks off of defending champion Belal Muhammad, Della Maddalena ripped the belt away from “Remember the Name” in amazing fashion, despite the fact that the Chicago native himself was in the midst of an 11-bout unbeaten streak himself.
It isn’t every day that fellow UFC champions square off with one another, with the last time such an occurrence took place coming at UFC 294, where Makhachev knocked out Alexander Volkanovski to solidify his reign as the 155-lb gold standard. Out of all the fighters on the roster, these two individuals boast quite the sizable followings, with Makhachev in particular standing as one of the most popular European competitors. While hundreds of thousands of fans will tune in to watch possibly the best boxer in the promotion defend his title for the first time, the story of their inevitable scrap will be if Makhachev can really break new ground in a new weight class.
Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall
By this point, the much-requested fight between heavyweight apex Jon Jones and interim kingpin Tom Aspinall has looked to have run its course, with Jones appearing to be doing everything in his power to avoid a contest with the English bruiser. That being said, it is still without a doubt one of the metaphorical and literal biggest super fights the UFC can make at the moment, considering the two men’s legacies in the sport.
Blitzing his way into prospect status in his company debut with a 45 second stoppage, Aspinall has gone on to become the man to beat at 265-lb. Skyrocketing his way up the heavyweight totem pole with relative ease, he has collected dominant wins over some of the most veteran names in the weight category, like Andrei Arlovski, Alexander Volkov, Marcin Tybura, and Curtis Blaydes. Netting the interim title in late 2023, Aspinall has defended his belt one time against the only man to have beaten him in the UFC, the aforementioned Blaydes.
After many years of ruling the light heavyweight class, attaining 11 total title defenses over the course of two championship runs, Jones opted to chase stronger opposition at 265-lb. Making his debut in the largest division at UFC 285, “Bones” bolstered his claim to being called the greatest of all time by submitting Ciryl Gane in the first round, leaving “Bon Gamin” looking at Thunderstruck II Mega Moolah version instead of the ring. He then toppled heavyweight icon Stipe Miocic to retain his place at the top of the mountain last year at UFC 309.
Over this past weekend, UFC president Dana White revealed that Jones has retired from fighting, and that Aspinall will now be the new undisputed champion going forward. Although this pairing may now never come to be, it is still a monumental duel should Jones ever decided to come back to the company while Aspinall is still the gold standard. With fans constantly wondering if the aging “Bones” can stem the rise of the European wrecking ball, this matchup could very easily set the entire world on fire when it comes to ticket sales.
Valentina Shevchenko vs. Zhang Weili
In the realm of women’s mixed martial arts, two names stand out amongst the slew of high-level competition, Valentina Shevchenko and Zhang Weili. Ruling their respective weight categories with the utmost domination, both women have carved a place for themselves in the annals of the sport’s history as some of the greatest fighters ever.
Collecting seven total title defenses during her initial stint as flyweight champion, Shevchenko was unexpectedly upset by Alexa Grasso at UFC 285, being choked out by the Mexican in the fourth. Engaging in an exciting trilogy with her North American foe, the Kyrgyz recaptured her strap after crushing Grasso after a one-sided beatdown more than a year later at UFC 306. She has since retained her belt once against surging French contender Manon Fiorot last month.
With her immaculate punching power and growing grappling skillset, Weili has become must-see television as she appears to be entering her athletic prime. Across her two reigns as the 115-lb gold standard, “Magnum” has beaten the very best her weight class has to offer, defending her throne four overall times with wins over Jéssica Andrade, Joanna Jędrzejczyk, Carla Esparza and Tatiana Suarez.
For a long time, UFC audiences around the globe have been without a proper women’s champion versus champion contest; the last time such a battle occurred was when Amanda Nunes famously defeated Cris Cyborg at UFC 232 to gain her second organizational title. In what can only be described as the most anticipated female fight of the new century, the booking of these powerhouse champions would not just produce a wholly electrifying contest, it also has the real possibility of drawing massive numbers to see who is the true queen of the UFC.
Amanda Nunes vs. Kayla Harrison
It’s the end of the UFC 316 co-main event, and Kayla Harrison has just tapped out Julianna Peña to become the new women’s bantamweight champion. While a budding row of challengers stood in anticipation to be called out by the newly-minted belt-holder, Harrison made the surprising choice to name Amanda Nunes as the one she wanted to face next. Wasting little time, the Brazilian was brought into the cage, with the two former American Top Team teammates exchanging a cordial greeting to each other.
Retiring from competition in 2023 with a victory over Irene Aldana, Nunes chose to walk off into the sunset after a career of uncontested supremacy over female mixed martial arts. This exit from the sport proved to be only temporary, though, as “The Lioness” has begun to voice her intentions of making a comeback as of late.
Joining the UFC roster just over a year ago at UFC 300, Harrison has embarked on one of the swiftest runs toward winning a promotional championship, doing so after just three bouts. Choking out Holly Holm in her debut, the two-time Olympic gold medalist then bested Ketlen Vieira by decision before submitting the aforementioned Peña to secure the title.
It isn’t every PPV event that a women’s matchup is slotted into the main event, but for a collision between bantamweight titans like Nunes and Harrison, the spotlight just won’t be big enough anywhere else on the card. Having lost just one time in the past 11 years, and after averaging that loss in dominant fashion, Nunes is easily a super star of the sport. But with a seemingly untouchable new champion like Harrison bulldozing the rest of the contenders at 135-lb, the greatest female fighter of all time will be returning to a worthy challenge, and possibly one of the hottest PPV shows of the year.
