Pimblett in spotlight – what does 2026 hold for MMA?

2025 has offered MMA fans a lot of twists and turns, from Tom Aspinall’s rollercoaster 12 months to Paddy Pimblett’s surprise title shot.

After Jon Jones retired in June, Aspinall’s first title defense was ended in bitter disappointment as a result of an unintentional eye poke from Ciryl Gane. He was promoted to UFC heavyweight champion.

In addition, Pimblett, who was only fifth in the rankings, won the biggest victory of his career in a dominant victory over Michael Chandler in May, which resulted in the setting up of an interim lightweight title fight against Justin Gaethje in January.

In other events, Dakota Ditcheva received a surprise callout from Cris Cyborg, while Alfie Davis (lightweight) and Fabian Edwards (middleweight) rose to the title of the PFL tournament and won.

After being accidentally poked in both eyes in the first round, Aspinall lost to Gane in a no-contest for the second time in two months.

UFC president Dana White stated after the fight that he wanted to schedule a rematch, but Aspinall’s return date is still unknown due to his injury.

After being diagnosed with a rare eye condition, Aspinall, 32, added that he continues to have persistent double vision and has been unable to train.

However, Aspinall has made it clear on social media that he intends to return “soon” in a vengeful remark to Gane.

“Your disgusting fingernails are making me unfit for fight and I’m about to have surgery.” Soon you cheat, I’ll be back to smash your face,” Aspinall said.

A rematch would be one of the biggest fights in 2026 given the relationship between the pair and the competitiveness of their first meeting.

Paddy Pimblett, a fellow Briton, takes on American Gaethje at UFC 324 on January 24 in Aspinall’s absence.

Because of issues in his personal life, champion Ilia Topuria won’t be fighting during the interim bout.

Topuria admitted to being subject to domestic abuse allegations from his ex-wife in a statement released last week, which the Georgian-Spaniard claims are false.

Some have suggested that Pimblett has been “cherry picked” for a title shot because he hasn’t yet won any of the top 10 in the UFC lightweight rankings.

However, the larger picture provides more insight into why Pimblett was chosen over other viable contenders, with a large portion of the decision being based on his level of entertainment value.

If Topuria wins the title, he and Gaethje could face off in an intriguing fight for the undisputed title.

After the pair had an argument at a hotel before UFC London in 2022, when Pimblett was filmed hand-sanitizing Topuria, they had history.

The Liverpudlian is joined by Davis and Edwards from the PFL at the start of the year by Pimblett, who is not the only Briton competing for the world title.

To prepare for a title fight with Russia’s Usman Nurmagomedov on February 7 in Dubai, Davis won the promotion’s annual lightweight competition and the $500,000 (£374,000) prize.

Meanwhile, Edwards won the middleweight title and will face Costello van Steenis, the champion, in Madrid on March 20.

On February 7th, Ditcheva will face Dutch flyweight Denise Kielholtz, who was the country’s first MMA world champion last year.

If Ditcheva wins, it could set up a super fight with MMA legend Cyborg, which would increase her unbeaten streak to 16 fights.

Ian Machado Garry of Ireland and Lerone Murphy of Britain are two fighters who could compete for titles in 2026.

After defeating Belal Muhammad last month, Machado Garry, who is third in the welterweight rankings, requested a title shot.

Shavkat Rakhmonov, Michael Morales, Michael Morales, and Carlos Prates, all in second place, are Machado Garry’s competitors, though.

If Machado Garry is given the go-ahead, he will become the first Irishman to compete for the title since Conor McGregor was beaten by Nurmagomedov in 2018.

Murphy, however, is unfortunate to have missed out on the chance to face Alexander Volkanovski, the featherweight champion, at UFC 325 on January 31.

In August, Murphy, who has won 17 fights and drawn one, stunned Aaron Pico in a stunning display of dominance.