2024 has certainly proven to be a fantastic year for the UFC when it comes to title fights. From Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier’s five round war at UFC 302 earlier this month to Alex Pereira’s dominant dismantling of Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, MMA fans have been treated to a handful of exciting UFC championship bouts over the past six months. However, while all these fights stand out in their own right (after all, a belt is on the line), some shone a little more than others when it comes to how entertaining they were and the results they generated.
With that being said, here are the rankings for all undisputed UFC title fights in 2024, so far.
8. Alex Pereira vs Jamahal Hill
Following a shocking knockout loss to his combat sports archnemesis, Israel Adesanya at UFC 287, former Middleweight champion Alex Pereira took a chance and moved up in weight to the Light Heavyweight division. The chance ended up paying off in spades, as the former kickboxing sensation wound up capturing his second championship with a thunderous finish of fan-favorite Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295. A mere five months later, “Poatan” would make the first defence of his title against another former 205 lbs champion in Michigan’s Jamahal Hill at the blockbuster UFC 300 event.
The bout marked the first time “Sweet Dreams” had stepped into the Octagon since his seizing of the Light Heavyweight strap back in January of last year when he defeated Glover Teixeira via a lopsided unanimous decision at UFC 283. Alas, Hill was then forced to vacate the title not long after, suffering an unfortunate achilles rupture which sidelined him for more than a year.
Appearing eager to reclaim his throne once more, Hill pushed the action early against Pereira. However, the champion’s superior counterstriking mitigated much of the challenger’s onslaught, and in the third minute of round one, Pereira landed his trademark left hook to send the power-punching Hill (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) crumbling to the floor.
Although the fight was an impeccable performance from Pereira (10-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC), the short duration of it, as well as how the champion remained in the driver’s seat the entire time, made it seem like a complete mismatch in hindsight. It also didn’t help that all the electricity in the air at the event had been completely stolen by Max Holloway and Justin Gaethje’s five-round dust up a mere two fights previous.
Jamahal Hill (UFC 300) pic.twitter.com/7NxfFXs0Bn
— Veluta (@VelutaMMA) June 28, 2024
7. Raquel Pennington vs Mayra Bueno Silva
In 2018, Raquel Pennington challenged then Bantamweight queen Amanda Nunes at UFC 224, where she ultimately lost in the fifth round by knockout in a bloody beatdown by “The Lioness”. In her next three fights, Pennington went just 1-2, losing to divisional top contenders Germaine de Randamie and Holly Holm. Though the chances of another title shot seemed bleak, “Rocky” would defy expectations by embarking on the best run of her UFC tenure by winning five fights in a row.
Along the way, she collected victories over the likes of Macy Chiasson, Aspen Ladd, and Ketlen Vieira, propelling her into a 135 lbs championship bout against Mayra Bueno Silva at UFC 297, where a new Bantamweight champion would finally be crowned after Nunes retired back at UFC 289 last summer.
Though the Brazilian did manage to take the first round, it was Pennington who emerged as the victor after dominating “Sheetara” throughout the next four rounds, utilizing her superior clinch game and striking ability to control Silva and sweep all three judges score cards 49-46.
While Pennington (16-8 MMA, 13-5 UFC) deserves all the credit in the world after clawing her way back after her loss to Nunes six years ago to become champion, it would be a stretch to call her championship bout against Silva (10-3-1-1NC MMA, 5-3-1-1NC UFC) a barn burner. She did put on a superb masterclass in control against her opponent, but this mostly led to a lot of inactive moments in the clinch between the two fighters where there wasn’t much action. Massive respect to “Rocky” for accomplishment that night, but hopefully her next UFC outing generates a lot more fireworks than this one.
6. Alexander Volkanovski vs Ilia Topuria
2023 was a hard year for the former pound-for-pound king, Alexander Volkanovski. Starting off by losing a closely-contested decision to Lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev in February, “The Great” rebounded in the summer to notch his fifth Featherweight title defense against the interim champion Yair Rodriguez with a third round knockout.
Sadly, he would end the year on a bittersweet note when he lost yet again to Makhachev at UFC 294, this time by first round knockout courtesy of a head kick after filling in for the main event on 11 days notice. Not one to sit idle for too long, Volkanovski took to the Octagon once more at UFC 298 nearly four months later to put his strap on the line against the undefeated Featherweight phenom, Ilia Topuria. Topuria, on the other hand, was coming off the back of a masterful 25 minute dissection over reputable hard-puncher Josh Emmet in their main event bout at UFC on ABC 5 back in June.
Many questioned the condition of Volkanovski’s chin heading into his fight opposite the Spaniard, but it appeared as though the 145 lbs champion was still in fine form as he managed to avoid most of the hard shots offered by the challenger, seemingly taking the first round with careful leg kicks and counter punches. This plan of evasion and countering served “The Great” well in the next round as he bloodied Topuria’s nose while making him miss most of his big punches. That was until “El Matador” found his way into the clinch with the champion and emphatically put his lights out with a flattening right hook that knocked Volkanovski (26-4 MMA, 13-3 UFC) out cold, thus ending the reign of one of the Featherweight divisions all-time greats.
Having violently usurped the 145 lbs throne, Topuria (15-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) now finds himself with a variety of viable options for his next fight, such as a rematch with Volkanovski, the fellow undefeated Movsar Evloev, and even former champion Max Holloway.
5. Sean O’Malley vs Marlon Vera
After suffering his first career defeat at the hands and feet of Marlon Vera back at UFC 252 in 2020, Sean O’Malley had gone on a tear through the 135 lbs division. Bouncing back from the loss, he recorded a five fight win streak which included wins over former champions like Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling, becoming the champion in the process. It was then announced that “Suga”’s first title defense would take place at UFC 299 where he fought the very same man who took away his 0 almost four years earlier in Vera. The matchup was not well received at first, considering how “Chito” was coming off a lackluster decision win over Pedro Munhoz in his last fight, while other, more promising, contenders like Cory Sandhagen and Merab Dvalishvili were waiting in the wings. However, others were quick to point out how the storyline between these two made for an interesting grudge match that had a great narrative: that being could the deadly counter striker in O’Malley knockout the durable Vera, or would “Chito” silence the Sugar Show once again.
After twenty-five minutes, the world had gotten its answer when O’Malley positively destroyed Vera over the course of five rounds, with the champion dominantly outstriking the Ecuadorian from start to finish, even dropping him to a knee to log the first knockdown of Vera’s career. By the end of the match, Vera’s (23-9-1 MMA, 15-8 UFC) face was absolutely battered, and Sean, for the most part, looked almost unscathed. There were also concerns that O’Malley’s (18-1-1NC MMA, UFC 10-1-1NC) gas tank wouldn’t be able to hold up once the bout hit the championship rounds, which again he proved those concerns were unwarranted by going the full five round distance for the first time.
4. Alexandre Pantoja vs Steve Erceg
Over the years, we’ve seen a few unexpected title shots be given out to fighters that seemingly came out of nowhere. Notable examples include Brock Lesnar getting a chance at gold while going 1-1 in his first two UFC fights, and Jorge Masvidal receiving an immediate rematch with then Welterweight king Kamaru Usman despite losing to “The Nigerian Nightmare” decisively in their last encounter. And after just his third fight in the promotion, Australia’s Steve Erceg was bafflingly granted a bout with UFC Flyweight champion, Alexandre Pantoja, at UFC 301 back in May this year. The pairing came as quite a surprise to the MMA community, after all Erceg was only ranked 10th in the 125 lbs division after his knockout win over Matt Schnell barely a month prior. And although the Aussie had begun to show some potential, not many were giving him much hope against Pantoja, a man who hasn’t lost in almost four years and who holds victories over other Flyweight contenders like Alex Perez, Brandon Royval, and Brandon Moreno twice.
In a true show of determination, however, Erceg put up an amazing effort against the champion, fighting almost equally with Pantoja throughout the whole 25 minute contest, even bloodying “The Cannibal”’s forehead with a grizzly elbow in the early phases of the fight. Unfortunately, an ill-timed takedown attempt from “AstroBoy” in the fifth and final round was all that Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) needed to rack up enough control time to sway the judge’s scorecards in his favor, winning the fight by unanimous decision. He may not have walked out of the cage that night with a shiny gold belt around his waist, but Erceg (12-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) more than proved to the world that he certainly belongs in the upper echelon at 125 lbs.
3. Weili Zhang vs Xiaonan Yan
For the first time in history, two fighters from China faced off against each other for a UFC championship in the co-main event at UFC 300, where the Strawweight champion Weili Zhang battled her fellow countrywoman, Xiaonan Yan, who was coming off the back of a monumental first-round knockout over Jessica Andrade. Weili, on the other hand, looked to be hitting her stride after dethroning Carla Esparza to begin her second reign as the 115 lbs division queen, with her having defeated top Brazilian contender Amanda Lemos in her first title defense at UFC 292 in a record-setting performance.
In one of the more back and forth fights of the evening, both women had their moments on the feet and on the ground, with the first round in particular playing out as incredibly competitive, with Yan dropping the champion and “Magnum” nearly choking out her challenger in the last few seconds. From here, the fight would only become even closer as Yan continued to land even more knockdowns throughout the contest. However, Weili’s superior grappling ability proved to be the crucial edge she needed over “Nine”, racking up a grand total of twelve minutes and forty-four seconds of control time during the course of the 25 minute bout. That control time, along with landing 256 strikes, aided Weili (25-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) in securing the unanimous decision over Yan (17-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC), earning a trio of 49-45 scorecards from all three judges.
2. Islam Makhachev vs Dustin Poirier
Throughout his 38-fight professional MMA career, Dustin Poirier has almost seen and done it all. First signing with the UFC back in 2011, Poirier has competed in both the promotion’s Featherweight and Lightweight divisions. However, it is in the latter where he established himself as one of the company’s most popular fighters. There, he captured the 155 lbs interim title, racked up numerous Performance and Fight of the Night awards, and defeated a laundry list of the best Lightweight competitors of his era. This includes elite calibre fighters such as Anthony Pettis, Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, Micheal Chandler, and Connor McGregor twice. But for all his accomplishments, there was one final accolade that remained off “The Diamonds”’s resume, and that was the undisputed Lightweight championship. On two different occasions, from 2019 to 2021, Poirier vied for the title twice, losing to both Khabib Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira respectively. Coincidentally, he also lost these bouts both by rear naked choke in the third round. Then, at UFC 299, Poirier earned his third shot at 155 lbs gold by turning away the up-in-coming Benoit Saint-Denis, knocking out the Frenchman in glorious fashion in the second round.
Standing in his way was Khabib’s long-time training partner and the incumbent champion, Islam Makhachev. Having not lost since 2015, Makhachev had risen to become a nearly unstoppable force in the Lightweight division, going on a 13 fight win streak while finishing a slew of elite competitors like Dan Hooker, Charles, Oliveira, and Alexander Volkanovski twice. His run in with Poirier marked his third title defence, after retaining his title with two victories over the aforementioned Volkanovski. Standing as the champion of arguably the UFC’s most stacked division and being widely regarded as the pound-for-pound best fighter on the planet, it seemed like the world was only going to be tuning in to watch “The Diamond” come up short in his third and final attempt to hear Bruce Buffer yell, “And New!”
Although the odds were by and large out of Poirier’s favor, the Louisiana native went on to log one of the most impressive performances of his entire career by pushing Makhachev further than any other Lightweight had ever done before. Using his impeccable boxing, the former interim champ constantly pressured the Dagestani, battering the champion’s face and body while also doing well to avoid his takedowns. However, despite facing possibly the top striker in his division, Makhachev stood evenly with his challenger, busting up Poirier’s nose and even managing to injure his knee during a grappling exchange on the cage wall. By the time round five rolled around, the prospects for “The Diamond” getting the upset seemed almost like a reality. That was until a scramble off a takedown attempt by the champion caused Poirier to lose his balance and fall backwards. This allowed Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) to quickly pounce and lock him in a tight D’arce choke that put Poirier (30-9 MMA, 22-8 UFC) out cold, ending the fight and very likely ending the veteran’s hopes of ever receiving another title shot.
1. Sean Strickland vs Dricus Du Plessis
On one fateful night at UFC 293 last September, Sean Strickland shocked the world by demolishing whom many consider to be among the greatest MMA strikers of all time, Israel Adesanya. After scoring a jaw-dropping knockdown in round one, Strickland proceeded to keep “The Last Stylebender” on the defensive for a majority of their fight, easily winning a unanimous decision and delivering one of the best underdog victories in UFC history.
It was then announced a mere two months later that “Tarzan” would defend his newly-acquired championship against surging Middleweight contender Dricus Du Plessis, who was unbeaten in the UFC with wins over Brad Tavares, Darren Till, Derek Brunson, and Robert Whittaker.
The pair met at UFC 297 back in January and managed to both metaphorically and quite literally kick off the new year with a spectacular bout, with both men pushing each other to their limits. Sean, for his part, busted up the face of Du Plessis with a large volume of well-placed jabs. As for “Stillknocks”, he blended his signature offensive striking and wrestling to give Strickland trouble in multiple areas of the contest, cutting the champion badly above his eye. The bout was incredibly difficult to score, and this was reflected on the judge’s scorecards, with two of them ending up awarding Du Plessis (21-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) the razor-thin split decision victory over Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC).
Honourable Mention: Max Holloway vs Justin Gaethje
Although not an official title, the UFC’s BMF belt had produced two previously entertaining fights in Nate Diaz vs Jorge Masvidal and Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje. And heading into the landmark UFC 300 this past April, the defending BMF Justin Gaethje put his strap up for grabs when he faced off with former Featherweight champion Max Holloway. Holloway, who had fought most of his UFC tenure at 145 lbs, moved up ten pounds to take on Gaethje in what was set to be his first Lightweight contest since his losing effort to Dustin Poirier in 2019 when they battled for the UFC Interim Lightweight championship.
While many anticipated that the power of Gaethje would pose a serious threat to “Blessed”, Holloway would surprisingly be the one to dole out most of the punishment by rocking Gaethje at more than a few moments. As the fight rolled on, Holloway continued to land big strikes, but not before Gaethje connected with a powerful punch that dropped the Featherweight luminary, making it the first time he had been knocked down in his nearly 20 year-long career. Or, at least, that’s what Holloway believes. The fight wound up going to the last round, where Holloway, after pointing down at the center of the Octagon, invited Gaethje for one final slugfest. For the last ten seconds of the bout, both competitors let everything go and swung wildly, and although “Blessed” was clearly heading toward an obvious decision win, the judges were rendered unnecessary when Holloway scored a highlight-real last second knockout over “The Highlight”. The finish sent shockwaves through the world of combat sports, as that was the first time Gaethje (25-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) had been completely knocked out cold, making Holloway (26-7 MMA, 22-7 UFC) the new Baddest Mother F***er in the UFC.
