UFC Qatar fight week continues. Around this time of year, the MMA schedule gets thinner with each passing week. After Saturday’s show in Doha, there are only three live events remaining between now and the time the year ends on Dec. 31.
This week’s event serves as the last for the UFC in the year’s penultimate month ahead of a bye week next weekend in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday inside the United States. After Dana White and his staff have had their fill of turkey and stuffing, it’ll be back to work for two straight weeks in Las Vegas before recessing for the festive season.
Live coverage of UFC Qatar begins with the prelims at 10 am ET/ 7 am PT Saturday morning. Inside the United States, for one of the final times, the show will be seen gavel-to-gavel over ESPN+. Main card action caps the day at 1 pm ET/ 10 am PT.
Embed from Getty ImagesAll told, barring any late adjustments to this weekend’s itinerary, the final version of UFC Qatar will feature a 14-fight slate Saturday morning and afternoon (USA time.)
UFC Qatar Main Event: No. 1 Contender Arman Tsarukyan vs. No. 6 Contender Dan Hooker
At the top of the bill on Saturday, the lightweights do battle in the fabled Octagon for a crucial 25 minutes or less of action. No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC) squares off against No. 6 contender Dan Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC.) This contest will be an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close the show.
Tsarukyan comes into UFC Qatar on Saturday night with a record of 4-1 in his last five MMA fights, but it’s been a while since he’s set foot in the Octagon. Back in April of last year, he secured a split decision victory over Charles Oliveira (36-11, 1 NC MMA, 24-11, 1 NC UFC) after 15 minutes of action in the landmark UFC 300.
A planned Jan. 18 UFC Lightweight Championship contest versus Islam Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) was withdrawn on the morning of the weigh-ins after Tsarukyan was revealed to have been injured. He’s kept busy so far in 2025, having competed in and won three grappling matches.
With Makhachev having won the title at welterweight last weekend in New York City, a win for Arman Tsarukyan here could mean another shot at the lightweight title sometime in 2026.
Across the way, Dan Hooker touches down in Doha on Saturday night with a record of 3-2 in his last five fights. Like Tsarukyan, Hooker has had a long wait to get back in the cage. His most recent fight happened in August of 2024 during UFC 305 in Perth.
That night, he scored a split decision victory over Mateusz Gamrot (25-4, 1 NC MMA, 8-4 UFC) after three rounds. It’s been about 15 months since his last fight, so how much ring rust does he have going into this one?
UFC Qatar Co-Main Event: No. 2 Contender Belal Muhammad vs. No. 6 Contender Ian Machado Garry
If the UFC Qatar main event is a cracking fight on paper, the co-main event is equally thrilling. Welterweight action is the focus of the co-headliner as No. 2 contender Belal Muhammad (24-4, 1 NC MMA, 15-4, 1 NC UFC) meets No. 6 contender Ian Machado Garry (16-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC.) This contest of three advertised rounds at five minutes per round.
Muhammad enters this week’s co-headlining attraction with a 4-1 record in his last five fights dating back to the spring of 2022. Most recently, he saw his 11-fight unbeaten streak snapped at the hands of Jack Della Maddalena (18-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) at UFC 315 for the UFC Welterweight Championship in Montreal this past May.
A fighter who’s just come off of a sustained unbeaten streak is often just as dangerous as one who’s on an active streak. Belal Muhammad was five rounds away from welterweight gold back in the spring. He’s had six months to stew over what went wrong over the Mother’s Day weekend. Can he bounce back this time?
Meanwhile, Ian Machado Garry will be making the walk this Saturday night sporting a record of 4-1 of his own in his last five fights. Back in April in Kansas City, KS, he returned to victory lane with a unanimous decision win over Carlos Prates (23-7 MMA, 6-1 UFC) after three rounds.
This is a crucial contest for both men, but Ian Machado Garry could find himself as little as two fights away from a title if he wins on Saturday in UFC Qatar. Who emerges victorious?
UFC Qatar: No. 9 Contender Volkan Oezdemir vs. No. 14 Contender Alonzo Menifield
Also on the UFC Qatar main card, light heavyweights take to the cage when No. 9 contender Volkan Oezdemir (20-8 MMA, 8-7 UFC) squares off against No. 14 contender Alonzo Menifield (17-5-1 MMA, 10-5-1 UFC.) Oezdemir enters this weekend’s card having gone 3-2 in his last five fights.
Back on Nov. 23, 2024 in UFC Macau, he dropped a unanimous decision at the hands of Carlos Ulberg. By the time Saturday rolls around, 364 days will have elapsed between fights. How will he fare after almost a full year away?
In the other corner, Alonzo Menifield has a 3-2 record himself over the past five fights. He’s been a bit of a streaky fighter of late, winning two fights consecutively after dropping two in a row.
On June 14, he scored a unanimous decision victory against Oumar Sy (12-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) in Atlanta. With Menifield being the fresher fighter of the two, will he win his third in a row? Tune in and find out.
Rest of the Card
The UFC Qatar main card is rounded out by these fights:
- a welterweight contest between Jack Hermansson (24-9 MMA, 11-7 UFC) and Myktybek Orolbai (14-2-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC,)
- a restructured heavyweight fight matching No. 7 contender Shamil Gaziev (14-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) against No. 6 contender Waldo Cortes-Acosta (15-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC,) this after Cortes-Acosta enters on three days’ notice after Serghei Spivac, Gaziev’s original opponent, withdrew from the card,
- and a flyweight bout pairing No. 11 contender Tagir Ulanbekov (17-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) with 40-fight veteran Kyoji Horiguchi (34-5, 1 NC MMA, 7-1 UFC) in the latter’s UFC return.
Which main card fights on UFC Qatar are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments.
