A new year is here, and that means it’s time for Combat Press to take a look back at the best of MMA in 2025. In the coming days, Combat Press will announce its award winners in multiple categories, covering everything from the action in the cage to the biggest stories surrounding the sport.
With the sport’s biggest megastar, Conor McGregor, still away from the cage, the UFC can’t rely solely on star power to ensure memorable fight cards. There were a few memorable cards that had action top to bottom, but the International Fight Week card at UFC 317 in Las Vegas was far and away the most important and impressive event of 2025.
Ilia Topuria had a dominating victory over Charles Oliveira to claim the vacant lightweight crown in the main event, and Alexandre Pantoja retained his flyweight title by finishing Kai Kara-France in the third round of their clash. Those two fights alone would have made for a memorable card, but the other fights were just as impressive.
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Joshua Van and Brandon Royval put on a Fight of the Year contender on the main card with one of the most action-packed, back-and-forth fights in recent memory. Also on the main card were two solid fights that ended in decision wins for Beneil Dariush over Renato Moicano, and Payton Talbott over Felipe Lima.
The preliminary action set the stage for the main card with two devastating finishes to close out the pre-pay-per-view action. Jose Delgado needed just 26 seconds to dispatch Hyder Amil in a fight that started as a firefight from the opening bell. Gregory Rodrigues absolutely demolished Jack Hermansson in the first round of their middleweight fight, and Hermansson needed quite a long time to regain consciousness after having his lights turned off in one of the most brutal displays of power in UFC history. From start to finish, UFC 317 outshone the high expectations and is the clear winner for the 2025 Combat Press MMA Award for Event of the Year.
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