UFC/MMA best ‘Events of the Year’ 2024 - Top 5 List

Recapping the top athletes responsible for some of the most exciting and legacy-building moments of the years.

Andrew Richardson is a professional fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, Calif., providing MMAmania.com (and its readers) with expert technical fighter breakdowns, insight and analysis you can't get anywhere else.

What makes an MMA event standout from the rest? An abundance of great fights is the most obvious prerequisite. High stakes and title fights are of course nice, as is a good flow of talent distributed throughout the “Prelims” and main card. The main event has to deliver, and it’s quite helpful if there’s a lively atmosphere throughout (meaning, no, you won’t see any Apex events on my list).

Let’s checkout 2024’s “Events of the Year.”

5. UFC 298: Volkanovski vs. Topuria

In the interest of conciseness, I’m going to break from my previous mold and utilize bullet points.

The Good

• Ilia Topuria realizing his destiny with a tremendous KO over Alexander Volkanovski in the main event.
• Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa slugging it out for three rounds.
• Merab Dvalishvili talking to Mark Zuckerberg while kicking Henry Cejudo’s butt.
• Anthony Hernandez putting Roman Kopylov through the meatgrinder.
• Zhang Minyang, Danny Barlow, and Marcos Rogerio de Lima scored awesome KOs on the undercard.

The Bad

• Ian Garry vs. Geoff Neal was a bit of a stinker

4. UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway

The Good

• Ilia Topuria solidifying himself as “Fighter of the Year” (spoiler!) by becoming the first man to crack Holloway’s chin.
• Khamzat SMESHing Whittaker in terrifying fashion.
• Lerone Murphy vs. Dan Ige was a back-and-forth banger and great display of mixed martial arts.
• Shara Magomedov double spinning backfsit!
• Ibo Aslan, Geoff Neal, and Kennedy Nzechukwu scored quick strike stoppages.
• Mateusz Rebecki vs. Mytykbek Orolbai was INSANE!

The Bad

• Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakic never left second gear.
• Carlos Leal got robbed by the judges opposite Rinat Fakhretdinov.

3. UFC 306: O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili

The Good

• The Sphere itself was great fun. The make up and outfits of the Octagon girls, the video packages, and the special setting and atmosphere all served to elevate the evening a considerable degree and make up for the unfortunate ending (more on that below).
• Diego Lopes pummeled Brian Ortega to confirm himself an elite contender.
• Ribovics vs. Zellhuber and Osbourne vs. Rodriguez were as good a pair of back-to-back WARS as any in 2024.
• Joshua Van vs. Edgar Chairez on the undercard was similarly awesome.
• Irene Aldana’s gigantic cut forever has a place in the pantheon of MMA wounds.
• Ignacio Bahamondes and Ketlen Souza picked up excellent first-round finishes over skilled opponents.

The Bad

• Sadly, the two title fights atop the card were a bit slow. I found the Shevchenko vs. Grasso bout at least mildly compelling as a closer to their trilogy, but I’ll never watch it again. O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili was even worse, because it was clear “The Machine” was going to control the entire fight after about two minutes, eliminating all tension.

2. UFC 299: O’Malley vs. Vera

The Good

• Sean O’Malley treated Marlon Vera like a speed bag, and that knee sounded like a gunshot. “Suga” was LOCKED IN that night.
• Dustin Poirier informed Benoit Saint Denis about the levels of MMA with a come-from-behind KO for the ages.
• Michael Page’s success UFC debut vs. Kevin Holland made quite a splash and was a fun fight!
• Jack Della Maddalena’s Hail Mary flying knee over Gilbert Burns was outstanding.
• Petr Yan vs. Song Yadong is underrated as one of the best scraps of the year.
• Curtis Blaydes vs. Jailton Almeida was a really neat bout with a vicious finish.
• Michel Pereira and Robelis Despaigne steamrolled their foes on the undercard.

The Bad

• I don’t remember any of the fights being particularly slow, but 14 fights with nine decisions adds up to a serious runtime.
• Gamrot vs. dos Anjos was a fun bout but really didn’t need to happen.

1. UFC 300

The Good

It would be easier to just skip this section and link back to the fight card itself, because almost everything was so good! An Alex Pereira knockout that was both brutal and hilarious? Check. Zhang Weili battering Yan Xiaonan in-and-out of consciousness in an absurd display of heart? Five rounds of it. HOLLOWAY VS. GAETHJE?!?! Finishes from Jiri Prochazka, Bo Nickal, Kayla Harrison, Diego Lopes, Renato Moicano AND Deiveson Figueiredo kept the card moving well the entire night. From top-to-bottom, UFC 300 consistently provided great fights between known names and produced some sensational finishes. The hype ahead of time was outrageous, and the fighters managed to live up to the moment. There were more finishes than not, and the decisions — like Bobby Green vs. Jim Miller and Arman Tsarukyan vs. Charles Oliveira — were still plenty enjoyable.

The Bad

Aljamain Sterling dominated Calvin Katter too thoroughly to make for an interesting fight. This is a very minor nitpick, however, as “Funkmaster” still impressed with his Featherweight strength and grappling mastery.

Honorable Mentions

• UFC Paris
• UFC 305
• UFC Tampa

Best Submissions 2024 | Best KOs 2024 | Best Fights 2024 | Best Fighters 2024 | Best Events 2024