UFC president Dana White confirms three blockbuster fights for 2024
By Charles Perrin
UFC could well be in for a rip-roaring start to 2024 with three blockbuster fights signed and sealed, Dana White has confirmed.
The organizational body has revealed that there will be three headline bouts that will cover UFC 297, 298, and 299. The top billing for UFC 297, which will take place on January 20 in Toronto, sees Sean Strickland face off against Dricus Du Plessis for the UFC Middleweight title.
In February, Alexander Volkanovski will pit his wits against Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 for the UFC Featherweight title, while at UFC 299 in March, the second installment of Sean O’Malley vs Marlon Vera will see the pair lock horns as they vie for the UFC Bantamweight title.
However, as of yet, no locations have been confirmed for the UFC 298 and UFC 299 fight cards, although an announcement on that is expected in due course.
Nevertheless, the forthcoming UFC editions have three tantalizing fights for fans to sink their teeth into, in particular UFC 297. Yes, Strickland will be aiming to make a successful defense of his 185-pound title against Du Plessis, although previous reports seemed to indicate the latter was on a collision course to take on Israel Adesanya.
However, a spanner was thrown in the works and such plans were torn up when Strickland defeated Adesanya in September in what is deemed as one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Intriguingly, there was even speculation that Khamzhat Chimanev would get a crack at Strickland after he defeated Kamaru Usman at UFC 294.
Anyway, Chimanev suffered a hand ligament injury during that fight, requiring rehab. Perhaps there was more of a concerted move from Strickland’s team to try and clinch a deal to land Du Plessis rather than bide their time and wait it out for Chimanev.
Moving onto UFC 298, Alexander Volkanovski will put his featherweight title on the line against Topuria, and he has never tasted defeat at this level, ruling the roost since 2019.
Although the Australian was defeated twice in 2023, his losses came at the hands of Islam Makachev while challenging for the lightweight title in February and October. Nevertheless, Volkanovski will come up against a dangerous opponent in the form of Topuria, who remains unbeaten and has claimed 12 finishes from his 14 wins.
Elsewhere, American O’Malley is one of the undisputed stars in UFC, and having won the bantamweight title with a clinical knockout win over Alijamain Sterling in August, he will be on a revenge mission against Vera at UFC 299.
Indeed, the Ecuadorian beat O’Malley in 2019 by way of TKO after dealing “Sugar Sean” a leg injury, and plenty will be riding on the line this time.
Anticipation levels for the aforementioned set of fights during the first quarter of 2024 are set to hit a fever pitch, and there could be some intriguing twists and plots that could emerge. But it’s not just the fans that will have their appetites whetted. Many of the biggest UFC showdowns will attract plenty of interest from the UK’s biggest sportsbooks, and that includes betting sites not on GamStop.
Yes, there will be many operators, such as GoldenBet, that will advertise lines well in advance of a UFC event, and they will advertise a variety of pre-match specials and outrights to appeal to bettors. There will also be a statistics center to break down the action as it unfolds in play to keep fans abreast of what is going on inside the Octagon.
It’s fair to assert that the UFC is getting bigger and bigger, judging by what happened at UFC. Well, Alex Pereira carved out a slice of history by notching up his second divisional belt in just seven fights when he lifted the light heavyweight title.
2024 could well be a bumper-packed year for UFC, with the prospective return of a certain Conor McGregor, while the MSG Sphere in Las Vegas will host a fight card in September marking Mexican Independence weekend.
Giving his thoughts about using the MSG Sphere in Las Vegas, White said: “It’s going to be a massive challenge and I love every minute of it.
“I can’t wait to dive into this thing.”
But for now, all efforts will be directed towards the first few months of 2024, and showcasing the best of what UFC has to offer.
