UFC 324 marked the first event for UFC in 2026 as well as the first event on the new deal with Paramount. UFC president Dana White announced that bonuses would be increased from 50k to 100k and that a finish would produce an extra 25k bonus. There were lots of weight cutting woes. A UFC and WEC legend was announced to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. But the fights themselves delivered despite rumblings from the UFC fan base of too many commercials. The 11-fight card featured five finishes with the five-fight main card delivering just one stoppage.
After the original co-main event of Amanda Nunes vs. Kayla Harrison fell apart, thanks to an injury to Harrison, Sean O’Malley took on Song Yadong in the slot. Song ended up dropping the pivotal bantamweight scrap. And in the main event, Justin Gaethje finally realized UFC gold as he captured the lightweight interim UFC strap. On the losing side, Paddy Pimblett, who was battered and dropped over the course of 25 minutes. Five ranked losers on the first edition of losers for 2026!
Paddy Pimblett
Justin Gaethje disfigured his opponent and scored multiple knockdowns against Paddy Pimblett on his way to a unanimous decision victory on Saturday night. Paddy had a great showing but ultimately Gaethje’s striking proved to be just too much against “the Baddy” from Liverpool. The loss, Paddy’s first in the UFC, snaps a nine-fight win streak dating back to his Cage Warrior days. Pimblett is now 7-1 with the promotion. He entered the fight ranked at #5 (Gaethje was #4).
Paddy has a few options for his next fight. The opponent that he draws depends on his healing time, UFC brass and upcoming fight outcomes. Paddy will most likely draw the loser of Dan Hooker vs Benoit Saint-Denis (Also possible: Loser of #9 Rafael Fiziev vs. #14 Mauricio Ruffy or Loser of #3 Max Holloway vs. #2 Charles Oliveira).
That fight goes down January 31st on UFC 325, so the timing would be perfect. Hooker is ranked at #6 in the division and coming off a second-round submission loss to Arman Tsarukyan in November. He’s 3-1 in his last four fights. Benoit Saint-Denis is riding a 3-fight win streak but is also 3-1 in his last four fights. BSD is ranked at #8. Giving Paddy the loser of this bout gives him a manageable name within the top 10, that’s a striking first fighter. Fight could easily be on a PPV main card or the main event of a fight night card. Winner would be right back in a title eliminator bout.
Pimblett’s next fight: Dan Hooker vs Benoit Saint-Denis Loser
Song Yadong
Sean O’Malley turned in a solid night’s work as he out struck Song Yadong on his way to a unanimous decision victory. Song is now 11-4-1 and has lost two of his last four. To be fair, Song’s last three fights have all been against former (and now current) champions (Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo, Sean O’Malley). Song entered the fight with a #5 ranking while O’Malley was ranked at #3. The 28-year-old is so close to a title shot he just needs one more win against that elite level competition.
Perfect next fight for Yadong would be against Deiveson Figueiredo. Figgy also fought on UFC 324, but he was in the feature prelim spot taking on Umar Nurmagomedov. Deiveson lost a unanimous decision. He entered the fight ranked at #6 while Umar was ranked at #2. Timing works out great, and so does rankings, only question mark here is that Figgy missed weight ahead of the bout. Still seems like a safe one to book, as Deiveson is the former flyweight champion and has already moved up in weight. This could easily be the main event of a fight night card, and the winner would get a title eliminator fight.
Yadong’s next fight: Deiveson Figueiredo
Derrick Lewis
Waldo Cortes-Acosta mostly had his way with Lewis on Saturday, toying with the veteran on the feet before finally scoring the ground n’ pound finish in the second. Rough outcome for Derrick as the #8 ranked heavyweight on the roster, he was getting a shot at the #5 guy. And Cortes-Acosta was coming off of a massive year last year, with lots of momentum (4-1 within 2025). To make matters worse, the loss also snaps a 2-fight win/finish streak (over Rodrigo Nascimento and Tallison Teixeira) which had gotten Lewis back on track from a 2-5 stretch just prior.
With all that in mind, Derrick’s next fight should be against Josh Hokit. Yes, it should be back to gate keeper status for the 40-year-old fan favorite KO-king. Hokit, a former NFL player and Contender Series product won his second UFC fight against Denzel Freeman in the second fight on the card. Josh has stopped all eight men that he’s faced thus far as a pro and has cut some ‘interesting’ promos while doing it. Who better to face him off against than the “Black Beast.” Also, Josh called for Waldo during his post-fight interview. I don’t know how much sense that matchup makes, but a bout against Lewis certainly does. This is another one where the timing matches up great and it could potentially be a co-main event on a Fight Night if the promotion would like to push Hokit.
Lewis’s next fight: Josh Hokit
Rose Namajunas
Natalia Silva outpointed former UFC strawweight champion, Rose Namajunas, on her way to one of the most impressive victories of her career. Rose entered the fight ranked at #6 in the women’s flyweight division while Natila was ranked at #2. Rose is now 3-3 since moving to flyweight in 2023 and 12-7 under the promotional banner as a whole.
With that in mind, Rose’s next bout should be against Karine Silva. Karine is currently ranked at #9 in the division. Silva is 5-2 in the UFC since coming off of the 2021 season of the Contender Series. She’s 1-2 in her last three fights having lost to Viviane Araujo and her most recent bout against Maycee Barber back in December. Barber was supposed to face Rose back in 2024 but the fight never happened. Rose and Karine are right on the same level right now. This is the fight to make, and it could easily land on the main card of a fight night card.
Namajunas’s next fight: Karine Silva
Arnold Allen
Jean Silva bested Arnold Allen in a wild, back and forth fight that ended up going the distance. Allen fought well and did a lot for his stock but ultimately just could not out point 5the dynamic striker that is wildman Jean Silva. Arnold entered the first main card bout of UFC 324, ranked at #6 at 145lbs., while his opponent was ranked at #10. Allen now falls to 11-3 within his UFC career. Arnold is currently in the roughest stretch of his pro career. The 20-4 fighter has lost three of his last four bouts.
Allen’s next bout should be against Aaron Pico. Bit of a wild card of a pick here. But Pico, a Bellator standout, was signed by the UFC last year and lost his debut to Lerone Murphy. Despite the UFC debut ending with a first-round finish Pico looked very promising. How’s about one more shot? 29-year-old Pico vs a 32-year-old Allen? It’d be a great chance for Allen to get back on the right track, keeps him fighting large names too. That’d be a great opportunity for Pico. Allen will surely keep his ranking following this loss and is a solid litmus test.
Allen’s next fight: Aaron Pico
