10 fun non-title fights for the UFC to consider putting together in 2025

With the final two cards of 2024 on the horizon, an eventful year for the UFC is winding down and it allows us to look to what lies ahead.

The future is vast and unknowable, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t play armchair matchmaker and come up with some fun bouts to get amped up for 2025.

Many of the championship matchups likely to happen in the first half of next year are already largely locked in or apparent, so the focus will be solely on non-title bouts that could be put together.

(Note: These are not rumoured matchups and are purely hypothetical in nature)

DOMINICK CRUZ VS. CODY GARBRANDT 2

The “WEC Never Die” spirit within me wants to see Cruz face Jose Aldo in a clash of perhaps the two most notable champions in WEC’s history, but the realist in me sees the fight as something of a lose-lose scenario for Aldo.

Cruz dropped his bantamweight title to Garbrandt and since then, both fighters have had similar trajectories by falling out of the title picture entirely.

Cruz has stated that he wants to test himself in the Octagon one final time before he retires and a rematch with Garbrandt makes a lot of sense with both being unranked, Garbrandt looking to bounce back and Cruz hoping to exact revenge after dropping a decision to Garbrandt in 2016.

CARLOS ULBERG VS. KHALIL ROUNTREE JR.

Ulberg finds himself on a sneaky seven-fight winning streak and, after his most recent win over Volkan Oezdemir, wisely called out Rountree, who fell short in his championship opportunity against Alex Pereira earlier this year.

This matchup would be tailor-made for those who love striking, with neither fighter being one to shoot takedowns as part of their games.

This would be the perfect litmus test for Ulberg before he potentially competes for the championship in his subsequent matchup, while Rountree always loves to test himself in this style of fight.

ROSE NAMAJUNAS VS. NATALIA SILVA

Silva has won six straight fights since signing with the UFC and has won 12 straight overall. With her advanced striking, she has quickly moved up the women’s flyweight ranks, currently sitting in the top five, one spot ahead of Namajunas, who would be the perfect test for Silva at this stage.

Namajunas looked like she was on the verge of becoming a title contender after winning the first two rounds of her fight against Erin Blanchfield in Edmonton before dropping the final three rounds and losing via unanimous decision. Namajunas now has ground to make up in the 125-pound division and having to face an up-and-coming prospect in Silva at this stage in her career could be the antidote.

KAMARU USMAN VS. JACK DELLA MADDALENA

Usman did not compete in 2024 and with Della Maddalena scoring a come-from-behind victory over Gilbert Burns, now is the time to test whether he is championship-calibre.

For Della Maddalena, Usman presents the perfect test and, alternatively, there are few fighters in the division that would give Usman the sort of currency that he needs to re-enter the title mix more than the surging Della Maddalena, who has won 17 consecutive fights.

With the UFC heading to Sydney for UFC 312, this would be the perfect co-main event.

CORY SANDHAGEN VS. DEIVESON FIGUEIREDO

There are no soft landings in the bantamweight division and with Sandhagen and Figueiredo both coming off losses, this is the fight to make.

Stylistically, there are few fights that could be made that would be as fun as this one. Both fighters are well-rounded, high level and are working to stick around in the top five of the most stacked division in the sport.

There are many fun fights waiting to happen at bantamweight and this one stands out.

BENEIL DARIUSH VS. BRIAN ORTEGA

Ortega has made no secret that a move to the lightweight division is in his future and after losing to Diego Lopes at Noche UFC, there is no time like the present.

Dariush did not compete in 2024 and a matchup between these two grappling wizards who also have a penchant for getting into wars on the feet is exactly the sort of fight that should excite both of them at this stage.

This one likely wasn’t on many people’s radars, but is the perfect matchup for both fighters right now.

GEOFF NEAL VS. CARLOS PRATES

In recent years, Neal has served as the ultimate test for up-and-coming welterweights with both of UFC 310’s co-main event competitors Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry having passed that test.

Prates went 4-0 in 2024 and finds himself in the top 15 just two spots behind Neal and with Neal coming off an injury stoppage win over Rafael dos Anjos, he should be able to get back into the Octagon soon against Prates, who has a track record of wanting to be active. Both guys possess game changing power and it would be a delight to see how this one plays out.

ROMAN DOLIDZE VS. BO NICKAL

Following Nickal’s recent win over Paul Craig that lacked the sort of dominance seen in his previous performances, several middleweights were quick to call Nickal out.

One of those fighters was the No. 10-ranked contender, Dolidze, who stylistically would be an interesting matchup for Nickal. His leglocks would make Nickal think twice about the takedown and on the feet, Dolidze is not the most refined striker, which would allow Nickal to open up his striking a bit more.

The big question is whether UFC brass believe that Nickal is ready to test himself against ranked middleweights, because if he wins, the tests will only get harder.

TATSURO TAIRA VS. STEVE ERCEG

With both Erceg and Taira falling short in their previous bouts, this would be an incredible matchup for both of these former prospects turned contenders.

UFC 312 in Sydney would be a great landing spot for this particular fight with Japanese fighters historically competing on Australian cards and Erceg fighting on home soil once again.

Despite his two-fight losing streak, Erceg made a great account of himself when he fought Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight championship and should likely be ranked higher than he is as a result of how competitive he was at the championship level. Taira, meanwhile, had a great account of himself against Brandon Royval, who could be next in line for a title shot following UFC 310.

DIEGO LOPES VS. YAIR RODRIGUEZ

With the UFC reportedly going to Mexico City in March, what better way to headline that event than with two of the most relevant fighters from the region.

With Lopes ranked third and Rodriguez fourth, this matchup would be a perfect way to determine who would get the next featherweight title shot after Ilia Topuria and Alexander Volkanovski fight next.

Aljamain Sterling and Movsar Evloev compete at UFC 310 and if either of them have a strong performance, it will be up to Lopes and Rodriguez to prove that they should be next in line.

Stylistically, Lopes vs. Rodriguez would have the potential to be an epic battle wherever it goes.