The first UFC event of the year, UFC 324: Gaethje vs. Pimblett, takes place on Jan. 24 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The event will make the start of a new era for the fight promotion in partnership with Paramount +. Looking ahead to the rest of the year, former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling listed the Top 5 matchups he’s like to see take place in 2026.
1. Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall
“First but not least, Jon Jones versus Tommy Aspinall,” Sterling said on his YouTube channel. “The final unification of the heavyweight division to give us some clarity. Who’s really the best heavyweight in the UFC?
“It’s a big fight. It should have happened. A lot of people said Jones was ducking. A lot of people said all these things. ‘He (Jones) didn’t want the smoke. He’s too young and hungry.’ I disagreed,” Sterling said.
“I would like to see that matchup so we get that definitive answer, and we can finally see who is really the baddest man on the planet.”
2. Petr Yan vs. Merab Dvalishvili 3
“My next fight, of course, the one and only Merab [Dvalishvili] versus [Petr] Yan 3. And this is in no particular order. I would just love to see this fight in 2026, hopefully sooner rather than later,” Sterling said
“Whe I say that meaning, none of these guys have to take a fight in-between the rematch, the trilogy. That’s where I’m at with that. I think that would be a great fight,” continued the former titleholder.
“The first one was a landslide for Merab. No one scored that anything other than 50-45. And then you have the rematch … Relatively a close back and forth battle with Yan looking better in most instances, in most exchanges. So, I’ll give him that, but it makes it very exciting for a trilogy fight.”
3. Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler
“People are going to call me crazy for this, but this man has gone on a spiritual journey, and I would love to see Conor McGregor versus Michael Chandler finally happen,” said Sterling. “This is the year.”
“I’m just hoping that, you know, he does what he says he’s going to do and comes back and gives us one more, gives us a vintage Conor McGregor performances,” Sterling continued. “If that guy is series and does come back, I’d love to see that for 2026.”
Related: Arman Tsarukyan pulling for Justin Gaethje to beat Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324
4. Arman Tsarukyan vs. Ilia Topuria
“Another big one, it has to be Arman versus Topuria. This has to happen,” Sterling said. “It’s a tough matchup too. I really can’t call it because I think Arman is smart enough on the feet defensively and uses great lateral footwork where I think it’s harder to trap him against the cage. Then I think we get to see glimpses of Ilia’s grappling.”
5. Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Alexandre Pantoja
“I’ve got to give the flyweights a little love.”
