Date: December 17, 2024, 09:11h.
Last Updated: December 17, 2024, 09:11h.
For those eager for a Conor McGregor comeback to the UFC Octagon in 2025, particularly after remarks by UFC president Dana White over the weekend about “big fights” planned for 2025, the latest news is disappointing.
Missing Topuria Fight
In a series of tweets, McGregor addressed rumors of a potential fight with Ilia Topuria, the current UFC Featherweight champion.
McGregor stated on his X feed:
The rumors of a bout with Topuria are untrue. I am in early discussions with the Ambani family for a boxing exhibition against Logan Paul in India.
I have accepted.
Afterward, I will pursue my return to the Octagon.”
Exhibition Match
Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani is an Indian billionaire, chairman, and managing director of Reliance Industries, and holds the title of richest person in Asia.
Say what you will, the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight in November, broadcasted on Netflix and held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, brought in over $17 million in ticket sales. While neither Tyson nor Paul disclosed their exact earnings for the event, Paul mentioned at a press conference that he earned $40 million, and industry specialists estimated Tyson’s earnings at $20 million. Netflix reported 108 million total live viewers watched the fight.
Boosting Asia’s Combat Sports Market
Therefore, exhibitions like this pay off. Such a fight could greatly increase attention to the growing Asian combat sports market. White teased some major events after the UFC Fight Night last Saturday that concluded the 2024 schedule, hinting at one event that he said came together that very night.
“I expect a lot of significant fights,” White told journalists. “I have something in the works now that will blow you away; all you guys will be scrambling. I have something planned for 2025 that you won’t see coming, which started to take shape last night. We have some exciting things coming up.”
Makhachev’s Title Defense
UFC 311 on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, CA, features two title fights – Islam Makhachev defends his title against the No. 1 ranked Arman Tsarukyan in an epic lightweight division battle. Makhachev currently holds the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter spot in the UFC according to ESPN rankings, having last defeated Dustin Poirier by submission in June; and Merab Dvalishvili defends his bantamweight title against the No. 2 ranked Umar Nurmagomedov.
One of the big fights White mentioned could be a heavyweight division unification title fight between champion Jon Jones and interim titleholder Tom Aspinall, which White stated on Saturday would likely be “the biggest fight in heavyweight history and a huge event in the company’s history as well.” Jones has recently expressed an interest in facing Alex Pereira but may accept an Aspinall fight if the financial terms are right.