Upcoming UFC Fight Schedules in January 2025
As we step into the new year, it's time to scrutinize the UFC schedule for January 2025. The prominent MMA organization takes a break until January 11, but it's set to host two events during the first month of the new year, both happening within the United States.
UFC Schedule January 2025: UFC Vegas 101
The initial event on the 2025 UFC schedule, UFC Vegas 101, is scheduled for January 11 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main event features a rematch between top-10 ranked strawweights Mackenzie Dern and Amanda Ribas. Let's examine the initial betting odds for the full UFC Vegas 101 fight card.
Mackenzie Dern (14-5) ranks sixth in the official UFC strawweight rankings. A UFC roster member since 2018, the 31-year-old Dern is renowned for her grappling skills, having garnered numerous world titles in the Brazilian jiu-jitsu realm.
Dern's UFC journey has been a mixed bag over the past four years. She began her UFC run with a 5-1 record, with her lone setback occurring in 2019 against Ribas in a decision match. Since then, Dern has recorded a 4-4 record in the UFC. She hasn't managed back-to-back victories since 2020-21.
Dern snapped her two-fight losing streak in August with a decision win over Loopy Godinez.
Amanda Ribas (13-5) stands at the eighth position in the women's 115-pound division. She also holds the 10th spot in the 125-pound division.
Ribas joined the UFC in 2017, but her debut was postponed due to a positive drug test. Ribas was initially given a two-year suspension following a positive test for ostarine. However, her suspension was annulled in early May 2019, when it was determined that the positive test was a result of a contaminated supplement. Ribas made her UFC debut in June 2019 with a submission victory over Emily Whitmire.
Ribas' last outing occurred in March 2024, which resulted in a decision loss to former two-time UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas at 125 pounds.
UFC Vegas 101: Dern vs. Ribas 2 streams on ESPN+, with prelims commencing at 4:00 p.m. ET, and the main card kicking off at 7:00 p.m. ET.
UFC Schedule January 2025: UFC Vegas 101 Full Fight Card
UFC Vegas 101 Main Card
Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas
Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris
Cézar Almeida vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan
Chris Curtis vs. Roman Kopylov
Christian Rodriguez vs. Austin Bashi
Punahele Soriano vs. Uroš Médić
UFC Vegas 101 Preliminary Card
José Johnson vs. Felipe Bunes
Marco Tulio vs. Ihor Potieria
Thiago Moisés vs. Trey Ogden
Preston Parsons vs. Andreas Gustafsson
Ernesta Kareckaitė vs. Nicolle Caliari
Magomed Gadzhiyasulov vs. Bruno Lopes
Fatima Kline vs. Victoria Dudakova
Nurullo Aliev vs. Yanal Ashmouz
UFC Schedule January 2025: UFC 311
The first pay-per-view event on the 2025 schedule, UFC 311, boasts 14 fights. The January 18 fight card includes two title matches at its pinnacle. In the main event, UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev defends his title against Arman Tsarukyan in a rematch. Meanwhile, the co-headliner pits UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili against Umar Nurmagomedov. We examine the initial betting odds for the UFC 311 fight card.
Since their initial encounter, which took place in 2019, and Makhachev emerged victorious via unanimous decision, Makhachev (26-1) has compiled an 9-0 record, with seven finishes (five submissions and two knockouts) and two decisions. Makhachev clinched the vacant UFC lightweight title in October 2022, defeating former UFC 155-pound champion Charles Oliveira via submission.
Makhachev has successfully defended his title three times since taking the belt from Oliveira. He began his title defense run with a decision win and a knockout against then-UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. In his most recent bout, Makhachev submitted former UFC interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 302.
Makhachev has netted fight-night bonus awards for each of his UFC title fights.
Tsarukyan (22-3) has compiled a 9-1 record since his loss to Makhachev, which occurred during Tsarukyan's UFC debut. He bounced back from that defeat with five consecutive victories before succumbing to a decision loss against Mateusz Gamrot in June 2022.
Following his loss to Gamrot, Tsarukyan racked up four straight wins with two knockouts and two decisions. His most recent outing resulted in a split-decision victory over Oliveira at UFC 300 in April.
Currently, Tsarukyan is ranked first in the official UFC lightweight rankings, while Makhachev sits atop the UFC's pound-for-pound rankings.
Merab Dvalishvili (18-4), a long-time sparring partner of former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, shone in the UFC's 135-pound division spotlight in September 2014. He clinched a unanimous decision victory over then-champion Sean O'Malley in the main event of UFC 306.
The now 33-year-old Dvalishvili joined the UFC in 2017, boasting intense hype. At the time, he was 7-2 and held the Ring of Combat bantamweight title, which he had both claimed and defended.
Dvalishvili's UFC journey didn't kick off smoothly, with two consecutive losses. He first suffered a decision loss to Frankie Saenz and then a submission defeat at the hands of Ricky Simon. However, in September 2018, Dvalishvili, a member of the Serra-Longo Fight Team, found his groove, and his unbeaten streak began.
Leading up to UFC 306, Dvalishvili was on a 10-fight winning stint. Prior to his showdown against O'Malley, he had outclassed Marlon Moraes, Jose Aldo, Petr Yan, and Henry Cejudo. His triumph over O'Malley extended his winning streak to 11 consecutive victories. Despite one of these triumphs coming at a 140-pound catchweight, Dvalishvili holds the record for the longest unbeaten streak in the division – 10 wins – surpassing Sterling's nine-win streak.
Umar Nurmagomedov (18-0) is the younger brother of Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov and the cousin of former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. He currently occupies the No. 2 position in the official UFC bantamweight rankings.
Nurmagomedov made his UFC debut in January 2021 with a submission victory over Sergey Morozov. Since then, he has added another five wins to his record. Most recently, he defeated former UFC interim title challenger Cory Sandhagen in a five-round main event bout in August.
Nurmagomedov's triumph over Sandhagen dispelled any doubts. Critics had previously raised concerns over Nurmagomedov's lack of noteworthy victories. However, his dominant display against the second-ranked bantamweight silenced such skepticism.
Nurmagomedov displayed the qualities of a future champion against Sandhagen. He battled for five rounds, staying calm and adhering to a solid strategy throughout the encounter.
UFC 311 PPV Card
Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan
Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
Beneil Dariush vs. Renato Moicano
Jiří Procházka vs. Jamahal Hill
Kevin Holland vs. Reinier de Ridder
UFC 311 Preliminary card
Johnny Walker vs. Bogdan Guskov
Payton Talbott vs. Raoni Barcelos
Jailton Almeida vs.Serghei Spivac
Zachary Reese vs. Sedriques Dumas
UFC 311 Early Preliminary Card
Grant Dawson vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira
Karol Rosa vs. Ailín Pérez
Rinya Nakamura vs. Muin Gafurov
Ricky Turcios vs. Bernardo Sopaj
Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Clayton Carpenter
*UFC 311 fight card is subject to change
UFC 311 is scheduled for January 18, 2025, at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. The pay-per-view portion of the event begins at 10:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV, following prelims on ESPN2 and early prelims on ESPN+.
Further coverage and stories on the UFC Schedule for 2025 will be provided as more fights are booked.
The UFC schedule for 2025 includes two events in January, with the first being UFC Vegas 101 featuring a rematch between Mackenzie Dern and Amanda Ribas on January 11. UFC 311, a pay-per-view event, is also scheduled for January 18, featuring title matches with UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev defending his title against Arman Tsarukyan and UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili against Umar Nurmagomedov. UFC events are ongoing throughout the year, providing fans with plenty of MMA action.
