Posted on: December 17, 2024, 09:11h.
Last updated on: December 17, 2024, 09:11h.
For those hoping for a Conor McGregor return to the UFC Octagon in 2025, especially after comments by UFC president Dana White this past weekend about “big fights” he had in his pocket for 2025, this morning’s news is a disappointment.
No Topuria Fight
In a series of tweets, McGregor addressed rumors of an Ilia Topuria fight. Topuria is the current UFC Featherweight champion.
Said McGregor on his X feed:
The rumors of a bout with topurio are false. I am in preliminary agreements with the Ambani family to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India.
I have agreed.
I will then seek my return to the Octagon.”
Exhibition Fight
Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani is an Indian billionaire, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, and is the richest person in Asia.
Critique it all you want, but the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight in November, streamed on Netflix, and held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, brought in over $17 million in ticket sales. Neither Tyson nor Paul disclosed their actual paydays for the event, but Paul said at a news conference it was $40 million, and industry experts pegged Tyson’s pay at $20 million. Netflix said 108 million total live viewers watched the fight.
Boosting Asia’s Combat Sports Market
So, fighting exhibitions like this pay. And that fight would go a long way in bringing attention to the Asian combat sports market, which is growing. White, meanwhile, teased some big events after Saturday’s UFC Fight Night that wrapped up the 2024 schedule, including one that he said came together that night, at the fight.
“I anticipate a lot of big fights,” White told reporters. “I got something in the works now that will drive you f%#&*#@ crazy, all you guys (reporters) will be running around. I got something in the works that you will never f&%$#@* see coming for 2025 that literally started to come together last night. We’ve got some fun stuff coming up.”
Makhachev Set to Defend Title
UFC 311 Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, CA, is coming up with two title bouts – Islam Makhachev defending his title versus No. 1 ranked Arman Tsarukyan in an epic lightweight division fight. Makhachev is the UFC’s No 1 pound-for-pound fighter currently according to ESPN rankings, last beating Dustin Poirier by submission last June; and Merab Dvalishvili defending his bantamweight title against No. 2 ranked Umar Nurmagomedov.
One of those big fights White was talking about might be a heavyweight division unification title bout between champion Jon Jones and interim titleholder Tom Aspinall, which White said Saturday would be “probably the biggest fight in heavyweight history and it’s a massive fight in the history of the company too.” Jones has said recently he wants a fight with Alex Pereira, but is believed to be willing to accept an Aspinall fight if the money is right.
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