Fight Coverage
THE 10 | MASSIVE FIGHTS ON THE SCHEDULE IN MAY
Outlining Several Of The Critical Matchups Set To Take Place In the Coming Month
There are all kinds of different ways to look at the UFC schedule over the course of a year — be it pay-per-views and fight nights, monthly increments, or broken down by quarters.
As a book and movie nerd, my brain has fixed on this year inside the Octagon featuring a classic three-act structure, which means this month is the beginning of Act II.
Act I is often referred to as “The Setup” and in the scheme of this year inside the UFC cage, I would say that the opening four months of 2025 set up a number of intriguing storylines, fascinating matchups, and gave us more than a few inciting incidents.
Which brings us to the opening month of Act II, which is “The Confrontation,” and let me tell you: we’ve got some serious confrontations ahead of us in the coming weeks.
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From pivotal matchups for fighters on the rise and contenders jockeying for position in the divisional hierarchy to a pair of massive championship bouts, the May slate is flush with fights that will continue to chart the direction of the promotion heading into the thick of the summer and create even more narrative arcs to explore going forward.
Here’s a look at the matchups I’m most excited about as May gets underway.
UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo — Saturday, May 3 (Des Moines, IA)
Reinier de Ridder vs. Bo Nickal
While both Reinier de Ridder and Bo Nickal are currently ascending talents in the middleweight division, this is much more a “veteran versus prospect” clash that will serve as a litmus test for the latter, and it’s one that stands to be highly informative.
Holland’s de Ridder has earned finishes in each of his first two UFC outings, submitting both Gerald Meerschaert and Kevin Holland to establish a baseline for where he fits in the 185-pound weight class. The former ONE Championship two-division titleholder is 19-2 overall with 17 finishes and stands as dark horse contender in the wide-open weight class heading into his 2025 debut.
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Nickal has won all four of his UFC appearances to date, and each of his first seven fights to begin his career, most recently sweeping the scorecards last November in a bout against Paul Craig. The former three-time National Champion wrestler from Penn State has looked the part of an elite prospect from the jump, and now takes another step forward in hopes of proving he’s ready to be considered a contender.
One of the fascinating elements here is that de Ridder is outstanding on the ground, which is also where Nickal does his best work. It will be interesting to see if they challenge one another on the canvas or if this plays out on the feet, but either way, it should tell us a great deal about where each man stands in the division heading into the summer, and give us a good indication of what to expect from each going forward.
Cory Sandhagen vs. Deiveson Figueiredo
A Top 5 battle in the bantamweight division headlines the UFC first trip to Iowa in 25 years as Cory Sandhagen and Deiveson Figueiredo share the Octagon on Saturday night.
Throughout the last couple years, Sandhagen has maintained his standing as one of the best fighters in the 135-pound weight class, earning decisive wins over Song Yadong, Marlon Vera, and Rob Font while giving TJ Dillashaw, Petr Yan, and Umar Nurmagomedov tough fights in losing efforts. The Colorado native currently finds himself on the fringes of the title conversation, but can put himself right back into the thick of things with a statement effort this weekend in Des Moines.
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After a three-year stint at or near the top of the flyweight division, Figueiredo made the successful move up in weight in 2023 with a win over Font, following it up with victorious efforts against Cody Garbrandt and the aforementioned Vera last year. He too came up short against Yan, which has pushed him out of the title picture at the moment, however, he can also change that in a hurry with a dominant showing on Saturday.
Will Sandhagen prove he’s on a different level than the former two-time titleholder or can Figueiredo get back into the win column by turning back one of the division’s most respected contenders?
UFC 315: Muhammad vs. Della Maddalena — Saturday, May 10 (Montreal, QC)
Jessica Andrade vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
Jessica Andrade and Jasmine Jasudavicius face off in a pivotal flyweight pairing on the UFC 315 prelims.
Now in her 13th year on the UFC roster, Andrade remains a fixture in the Top 15 in two divisions, entering this contest stationed at No. 7 in the flyweight rankings and No. 4 at strawweight. She landed on the wrong side of the cards in her most recent outing, but as a former champion and the female fighter with the most appearances in UFC history, you know that she will be dialed in and ready to deliver when she stomps out to the Octagon in Montreal later this month.
There may not be anyone that enjoys going to work in the UFC cage more than Jasudavicius, who touches down in la belle province having earned three wins and two bonuses in 2024 before pushing her winning streak to four with a victory over Mayra Bueno Silva earlier this year. The Niagara Top Team representative has grown by leaps and bounds since her time on Dana White’s Contender Series, and should get a massive pop when she walks out to face off with Andrade here.
Order UFC 315: Muhammad vs Della Maddalena
This feels like a little bit of a crossroads fight for both competitors, in addition to carrying the usual stakes that accompany any matchup between two ranked fighters.
While three years younger than her Canadian opponent, Andrade has been fighting for significantly longer and been through some battles, and it’ll be interesting to gauge whether she’s still capable of being the veteran roadblock midway up the rankings. For Jasudavicius, this is her chance to take a big step forward in the ultra-competitive 125-pound ranks on the same night the title is up for grabs and before two more of the hopefuls ahead of her in the rankings battle it out later in the month.
Benoit Saint Denis vs. Joel Alvarez
If you need to replenish your snacks or make a trip to the bathroom during the UFC 315 main card, make sure you’re back in your seat before this one kicks off because there is absolutely no way on Taylor Swift’s Earth that this isn’t going to be violent and exciting from start to its inevitable finish somewhere before the final horn sounds.
Saint Denis entered last year on the cusp of title contention, having won five straight by stoppage and paired off with Dustin Poirier at UFC 299. After falling to “The Diamond,” the former French military man landed on the wrong side of a finish in his return to Paris last fall against Renato Moicano, sending him into this one on the first two-fight skid of his career.
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The 32-year-old Alvarez has 22 wins and 22 finishes, including seven in his last eight appearances inside the Octagon, with his only loss coming to divisional standout Arman Tsarukyan. Last time out, “El Fenomeno” knocked out divisional stalwart Drakkar Klose in the first round for the 17th first-round stoppage win of his career.
Someone is getting put away in this one. I don’t know how, I don’t know when, exactly, but it’s going to happen, and every single second between when the fight starts and when it ends is going to be riveting. I cannot wait for this one.
Alexa Grasso vs. Natalia Silva
Former champ Alexa Grasso and Brazilian contender Natalia Silva face off in the second of three critical flyweight battles set to take place at Bell Centre later this month in Montreal.
UFC 315 marks Grasso‘s first appearance since dropping the title back to Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 306 last September, and her first bout against someone other than “Bullet” in more than two years. She was unbeaten in the division prior to her last two outings, and will look to re-affirm her standing as an elite contender in the division by getting back into the win column and halting the ascent of Silva in this one.
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All Silva has done since arriving in the UFC is win. The 28-year-old has gone 6-0 to begin her tenure, bookending that run with wins over Jasudivicus and Andrade while climbing to No. 5 in the divisional ranks.
Can the former champ be the first to beat the streaking contender or will Silva hand Grasso a second straight defeat while stamping herself as a serious title threat?
Jose Aldo vs. Aiemann Zahabi
After welcoming several foes to his adopted hometown of Rio de Janeiro over the years, Jose Aldo fills the role of the “away team” in this clash with Montreal’s own Aiemann Zahabi.
Aldo ended a 21-month retirement last May with a unanimous decision win over Jonathan Martinez at home at UFC 301. He landed on the wrong side of a debated decision against Mario Bautista five months later at UFC 307 in Salt Lake City, and will look to avoid a second straight setback when he strides to the Octagon for his first appearance of 2025 later this month.
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Zahabi entered 2024 on a three-fight winning streak and forced his way into the rankings with additional victories over Javid Basharat and Pedro Munhoz. The 37-year-old is technically sharp and defensively responsible, and now gets the opportunity to share the cage with an absolute legend, at home, when he faces off with Aldo here.
As much this is a cool story for Zahabi, an unsung veteran on a quality winning streak, fighting at home for the first time in his UFC career, it’s also a crucial matchup for both men. Aldo didn’t come back to be a veteran name that is frequently turned back and overtaken in the divisional chase, while the Tristar Gym product Zahabi knows that a win over the UFC Hall of Fame member still carries significant weight in 2025 and will create even bigger opportunities for him later in the year if he’s able to add to his run of success.
Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot
Back on top of the flyweight division, Valentina Shevchenko makes the first title defense of her second reign against patient and dangerous French challenger Manon Fiorot.
Shevchenko walked into her trilogy fight with Grasso last year at UFC 306 bent on ensuring the judges didn’t interfere with her plans to reclaim the title, and made good on that effort, dominating her fellow TUF 32 coach and reclaiming the strap. Now the 37-year-old looks to show she’s still got plenty more in the tank as she puts the belt on the line in what will be her 12th straight flyweight title fight appearance.
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Fiorot lost the first fight of her professional career and hasn’t been beaten since, rattling off a dozen consecutive victories, including seven straight in the UFC. She secured her position as the No. 1 contender in the 125-pound weight class with a one-sided win over Erin Blanchfield last March in Atlantic City, and has been champing at the bit to get into the Octagon with Shevchenko ever since “Bullet” reclaimed the title in September.
Is this the start of another extended reign for the two-time champion or will Fiorot become the first French champion in UFC history in Montreal?
Belal Muhammad vs. Jack Della Maddalena
Belal Muhammad puts his welterweight title on the line for the first time in a clash with Jack Della Maddalena that headlines the UFC’s long-awaited return to Bell Centre later this month.
Last July, Muhammad rolled into Manchester and rag-dolled Leon Edwards to earn his sixth straight victory and ascend to the top of the welterweight division. Unbeaten in his last 11 bouts, Muhammad is the foremost example of a competitor that has learned to weaponize his conditioning and pace, using both, along with constantly improving hands, to overwhelm whomever has stood across from him over the last five years.
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Originally scheduled to face Edwards in England towards the end of March, Della Maddalena instead makes his return to action in a championship pairing with Muhammad. Hailing from Perth, Australia, Della — like Fiorot — has been streaking since suffering a pair of early setbacks, entering the UFC 315 main event on a 17-fight winning streak that includes seven victories and five finishes inside the Octagon.
Despite his championship win, Muhammad remains criminally underrated, but a win over the dangerous Dana White’s Contender Series grad and another dominant showing would go a long way to helping change that. As for the man Jon Anik calls “Three-Name Jack,” he has the opportunity to become the third Aussie and third DWCS alum to claim gold if he’s able to thwart Muhammad’s suffocating advances.
UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Morales — Saturday, May 17 (Las Vegas, NV)
Gilbert Burns vs. Michael Morales
Originally penciled in as a main card bout at both UFC 314 and UFC 315, Gilbert Burns and Michael Morales get the five-round main event treatment this matchup deserves when the UFC returns home to Las Vegas midway through the month.
Now 38, Burns kicks off his 2025 campaign with designs on halting a three-fight slide. While those setbacks have come against the two men battling for the title in Montreal and presumptive No. 1 contender Sean Brady, there are questions to be asked and answered any time a veteran struggles to find positive results, and this is a chance for “Durinho” to answer those questions.
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Unbeaten in 17 professional bouts, Morales is the next ultra-talented youngster making a push forward in the welterweight ranks. Still just 25 years old, the DWCS alum has gone 5-0 since matriculating to the Octagon, most recently starching Neil Magny last August in a bout that also took place at the UFC APEX.
Can Burns bounce back and hand the streaking rising star his first career loss or will Morales keep rolling and deliver a fourth straight defeat to the popular and respected Brazilian veteran?
UFC Fight Night: Blanchfield vs. Barber — Saturday, May 31 (Las Vegas, NV)
Erin Blanchfield vs. Maycee Barber
A few weeks after all the flyweight action in Montreal, Erin Blanchfield and Maycee Barber will share the Octagon in a main event clash that carries both immediate and long-term ramifications for the 125-pound weight class.
After losing to Fiorot last March, Blanchfield got things moving in the right direction again with a steely unanimous decision win over Rose Namajunas in Edmonton in November. The 25-year-old is 13-2 as a pro with wins over Namajunas, Andrade, and former title challenger Taila Santos, and has been ticketed for title contention throughout her rise through the ranks.
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Barber, who turns 27 two weeks ahead of this contest, fights for the first time since beating Katlyn Cerminara at UFC 299 to extend her winning streak to six. “The Future” has really found a groove by relying on her grit and tenacity since dropping back-to-back contests several years back, and will aim to keep rolling in her first UFC main event.
Not only will this bout determine where each of these women stand in the shifting flyweight landscape heading into the back half of the year, but it could also be a glimpse into what the top of the division may look like somewhere down the road if and when the likes of Shevchenko and Fiorot move on. For now, it’s an outstanding clash between two ultra-talented rising stars that are very much deserving of the main event spotlight.