The 10 | Awesome October Inside the Octagon

Recent title challengers and light heavyweight contenders Jiri Prochazka and Khalil Rountree Jr. share the Octagon in the final non-title bout at UFC 320 in Las Vegas.

Prochazka, who turns 33 less than two weeks after the event, enters off a 3rd-round stoppage win over former champ Jamahal Hill at UFC 311 in January. The inventive and explosive finisher has now earned stoppages in all five of his UFC victories, and if he can maintain that pattern through this fight, he could position himself for another championship opportunity in 2026.

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Rountree Jr. also enters off a victory over Hill, having gotten the better of “Sweet Dreams” on the scorecards in their long-awaited clash in Baku, Azerbaijan, back in the summer. The 35-year-old Las Vegas local is now 6-1 over his last seven outings and showed in his clash with Alex Pereira that he’s as good — if not better — than the rest of the contending pack in the division.

These men are walking weapons of mass destruction capable of finishing a fight in myriad ways, and the thought of them sharing the Octagon together, each looking to make the kind of statement that potentially secures them a title fight is just too exciting to think about for too long. Chaos will reign and fireworks will ensue.

Merab Dvalishvili vs Cory Sandhagen

Merab Dvalishvili makes his third title defense of the year, stepping in against well-rounded challenger Cory Sandhagen in this captivating bout for the UFC bantamweight title.

After claiming the title at Noche UFC last year with a unanimous decision win over Sean O’Malley, Dvalishvili has used 2025 to make his case for being the top pound-for-pound competitor in the sport. In January, he got the better of Umar Nurmagomedov in a competitive 5-round fight, which resulted in the Russian suffering the first loss of his career. Six months later, “The Machine” upped the ante with a 3rd-round submission win over O’Malley in Newark.

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Sandhagen touches down in Las Vegas having won four of his last five, most recently dominating Deiveson Figueiredo through the opening 8-plus minus of their fight before the former flyweight titleholder suffered a knee injury. The challenger looked more dialled in and sure of himself in that fight with Figueiredo, and another stretch of working with Trevor Wittman, Carrington Banks and Ryan Hall should have the 33-year-old Denver resident dialed in for his first shot at undisputed gold.

Dvalishvili has been dominant over his last 13 outings, losing very few rounds and possessing the conditioning and pace to drown opponents later in fights while showing more of a focus on working to finish last time out. As for Sandhagen, he’s arguably the most well-rounded and dynamic opponent the champion has faced to date, and it will be interesting to see how he chooses to approach this fascinating championship tilt at T-Mobile Arena.

Magomed Ankalaev vs Alex Pereira

Magomed Ankalaev and Alex Pereira face off again, only this time, the roles are reversed, with Ankalaev entering as the champion and Pereira standing as the challenger.

Back in March, Ankalaev used a pressure-oriented approach and varied attacks to keep Pereira moving backwards and unable to land much of real substance while wrestling the light heavyweight title away from him. The victory extended the 33-year-old champion’s unbeaten streak to 14 and elevated him to the position many forecasted him to one day reach since he debuted in the promotion 7-plus years ago.

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While “Poatan” had some moments of success in the first fight, he wasn’t as assertive and offensive as he has historically been, spending much of the fight moving backwards and hesitating to pull the trigger. He’s not a big fan of Ankalaev and has been critical of the new champion since their last encounter, and now he gets the chance to knock him from the light heavyweight throne.

Plenty of folks were surprised that Ankalaev won the first meeting between these two and speculation ran rampant about the reason for Pereira’s uncharacteristic performance. But that’s all in the past now, and at UFC 320, both men get the opportunity to write the next chapter in their respective stories and show whether what transpired at UFC 313 was real and replicable or an aberration.

UFC Fight Night: Oliveira vs Gamrot — Saturday, October 11 (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

Charles Oliveira vs Mateusz Gamrot

Former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira returns to his native Brazil for the first time in five years, facing off with Polish standout Mateusz Gamrot in a captivating short-notice showdown.

“Do Bronx” returns to action for the first time since failing in his bid to claim the vacant lightweight title at UFC 317 towards the end of June. He has alternated results since falling to Islam Makhachev three years ago but will look to show that he’s still very much in the thick of the chase in the 155-pound weight class by maintaining that “lose one, win one” pattern in his return to Rio.

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Gamrot was quick to raise his hand when Rafael Fiziev was forced out of this main event pairing, jumping at the chance to face a Top-5 fighter after fighting backwards in his most recent outing. The 34-year-old is one of the more underrated talents in the division, boasting a 25-3 record overall (with one no contest) and an 8-2 mark over his last 10 UFC appearances, which includes wins over Fiziev, Jalin Turner, and top contender Arman Tsarukyan.

Will Oliveira get right back into the win column and once again steady himself in the title chase or can Gamrot turn this short-notice pairing into the opportunity he needs to put himself in the title conversation?

UFC Fight Night: De Ridder vs Allen — Saturday, October 18 (Vancouver, BC)

Manon Fiorot vs Jasmine Jasudavicius

Top-10 flyweights Manon Fiorot and Jasmine Jasudavicius clash in this matchup of physical contenders aiming to cement their standing in the division.

Victories in each of her first seven UFC appearances (and a dozen consecutive fights overall) carried Fiorot into a championship matchup against Valentina Shevchenko earlier this year at UFC 315 in Montreal. While “The Beast” came away on the wrong side of the scorecards, she went into the final frame even with the two-time champion on two of the three scorecards, giving “Bullet” her toughest fight in quite some time.

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Jasudavicius has been rolling for the last two years, carrying a 5-fight winning streak into her return to Vancouver. The Dana White’s Contender Series grad and Niagara Top Team representative has already posted a dominant decision win over Mayra Bueno Silva and a submission finish of Jessica Andrade, and if she can maintain her success through this one, she’ll find herself on the doorstep of making her championship dreams come true.

This is a compelling stylistic matchup as both women thrive on using their size and grit to impose their will on the opposition. As much as they’re each elite talents, this one feels like it could serve as a measuring stick for the impact of momentum as the Canadian has continually stepped up her game over her last five fights and is going to get a thunderous ovation when she steps through the curtain at Rogers Arena on October 18.

Marlon Vera vs Aiemann Zahabi

Marlon “Chito” Vera returns for the first time in more than a year, stepping in against streaking French-Canadian Aiemann Zahabi in a critical bantamweight matchup.

The popular Colombian combatant makes the walk for the first time since facing Deiveson Figueiredo last August in Abu Dhabi. He has dropped consecutive contests and three of his last four, though it’s worth noting that one was against Sandhagen, who fights for the title this month, and another was in a championship bout opposite Sean O’Malley.

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Riding high off an emotional, come-from-behind win over Jose Aldo at UFC 315 in Montreal, Zahabi ventures to Canada’s West Coast in search of a seventh straight victory. He has won each of his last three fights on home soil, including a 1st-round knockout win last time the UFC was in Vancouver, and is in the midst of one of the coolest late career runs in recent memory.

Can “Chito” get things moving in the right direction and show he’s still a threat in the 135-pound weight class, or will Zahabi keep rolling and take another step forward in the bantamweight ranks?

Reinier de Ridder vs Brendan Allen

Reinier de Ridder looks to make his case for a title shot, while Brendan Allen hopes to slow his roll and assert his presence in the division in this middleweight main event fixture.

Less than a year into his UFC run, de Ridder is already 4-0 inside the Octagon and stationed at No. 4 in the division, having most recently landed on the happy side of a split decision verdict in a competitive clash with Robert Whittaker in Abu Dhabi. “The Dutch Knight” has tremendous size for the division, an outstanding submission game, and dangerous, if funky striking that has continually proven effective.

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Allen steps in for Anthony Hernandez, looking to build off his recent unanimous decision win over Marvin Vettori. The Louisiana native has worked his way towards the top of the division in the past, only to falter in his toughest tests, but he can shake things up by halting de Ridder’s rise and earning a second consecutive victory here.

Khamzat Chimaev now sits on the throne, and Nassourdine Imavov made his case for a championship opportunity with his win over Caio Borralho in Paris last month. A dominant showing from de Ridder makes the conversation about who gets the first crack at the new champion more interesting, while a win for Allen would cause a reshuffling of things throughout the Top 10.

UFC 321: Aspinall vs Gane — Saturday, October 25 (Abu Dhabi, UAE)

Umar Nurmagomedov vs Mario Bautista

Umar Nurmagomedov and Mario Bautista face off in this clash of elite bantamweights in Abu Dhabi.

Nurmagomedov got out to an early lead against Dvalishvili in their championship engagement at UFC 311 in January before a broken hand the pace of “The Machine” resulted in him suffering the first loss of his professional career. How a fighter responds to their first loss is always fascinating and especially so when it comes in such a high profile moment, so all eyes will be on “Cousin Umar” to see how he bounces in this one.

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If Gamrot isn’t the most underrated talent on the roster, Bautista is, as the MMA Lab product has put together and 8-fight winning streak and 10-1 mark inside the Octagon since losing his short-notice debut to Sandhagen nearly seven years ago. Last time out, Bautista out-worked Patchy Mix in his hyped debut, proving once again that he’s a legitimate contender in the 135-pound weight class.

Will Nurmagomedov get things moving in the right direction straight away or can Bautista claim another victory and put himself in the thick of the title conversation?

Virna Jandiroba vs Mackenzie Dern

It’s a high-stakes rematch in the strawweight division as Virna Jandiroba and Mackenzie Dern renew acquaintances, this time with the vacant strawweight title hanging in the balance.

Jandiroba heads to Abu Dhabi on a 5-fight winning streak, having dominated former title challenger Yan Xiaonan in her most recent appearance at UFC 314 in Miami. “Carcara” is an outstanding grappler with a ton of moxie and will be looking for her sixth consecutive victory over a ranked opponent in this one.

UFC 320 FULL FIGHTS: Ankalaev vs Pereira 1 | Pereira vs Hill | Dvalishvili vs O'Malley 2 | Sandhagen vs Figueiredo 

The 32-year-old Dern opened the year with a 3rd-round submission win over Amanda Ribas to put her on a tidy two-fight winning streak and land her in a position to challenge for the vacant title here. She, too, is an outstanding grappler and has had a great deal of success against ranked opponents, but the consistency hasn’t always been there for the former Brazilian jiu jitsu standout.

These two met for the first time all the way back at the close of 2020, with Dern earning a unanimous decision win with scores of 29-28 across the board. She is 5-4 since then, while Jandiroba has posted a 6-1 mark, positioning this as a highly competitive battle that is likely to come down to who can find their way to dominant positions in the grappling entanglements throughout the fight.

Tom Aspinall vs Ciryl Gane

Tom Aspinall defends the undisputed heavyweight title for the first time against former interim titleholder Ciryl Gane in the UFC 321 main event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

The 32-year-old Aspinall won the interim title two years ago at Madison Square Garden and successfully defended it last year against Curtis Blaydes, ultimately being promoted to undisputed champion when Jon Jones opted to relinquish the title and retire. The British standout has been outstanding through his UFC run, as his only setback coming as a result of an injury, and each of his eight wins coming inside the distance with just a single foe managing to escape the first round.

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Gane has posted consecutive victories since running afoul of Jones in March 2023, earning a stoppage win over Serghei Spivac in Paris in September of that year before landing on a favorable side of a debated split decision verdict in a bout with Alexander Volkov last December at UFC 310. “Bon Gamin” remains a dynamic athlete and dangerous threat, and he will look to make the most of his third opportunity to claim the UFC heavyweight title.

Setting the belt aside, there is so much at stake in this fight that it has me wanting to see a countdown timer for Saturday, October 25. All eyes will be on Aspinall as he looks to solidify his standing atop the division, while Gane, who was forecasted to be the leader of the weight class prior to the champion’s ascent, aims to finally reach the summit after coming up short in his first two attempts to do so.