2026 in UFC

Last updated

2026 in UFC
Logo of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.svg
Information
First dateJanuary 24, 2026 (2026-01-24)
Last dateTBD
Events
Total eventsTBD
UFCTBD
TUF Finale eventsTBD
Fights
Total fightsTBD
Title fightsTBD
Chronology
2025 in UFC 2026 in UFC2027 in UFC

The year 2026 is the 34th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States.

Contents

UFC in 2026

Class action: anti-trust lawsuits

Johnson v. Zuffa

Based on court filings from late July 2025, the Johnson v. Zuffa antitrust lawsuit, originally filed in 2021, is proceeding, and status conference for the case is scheduled for late August 2025. [1]

Cirkunovs v. Zuffa and Davis v. Zuffa

In May 2025, two antitrust lawsuits were filed against the UFC. One, led by former fighter Misha Cirkunov, specifically challenges the enforceability of arbitration clauses and class action waivers in UFC contracts. [2] [3] The other lawsuit, filed by former fighter Phil Davis, alleges that the UFC's anticompetitive practices also negatively impacted the ability of non-UFC fighters to secure fair wages. [4] [5] [6]

Paramount and CBS partnership

On August 11, 2025, the UFC announced a seven-year media rights agreement with Paramount Skydance Corporation worth $7.7 billion. Paramount+ will exclusively stream all events for seven years, starting in 2026. Some numbered events will also air on CBS. The agreement will allow the UFC to move away from pay-per-view as events will stream on Paramount+ at no additional cost. All 13 of the UFC's flagship events and 30 Fight Nights a year will be streamed on the Paramount+ service. [7] UFC CEO and President Dana White announced the UFC would produce four big events per year on CBS, and that the UFC's planned card for the White House on June 14th, 2026 would be one of those events. [8]

White House event

To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States, the UFC plans to hold a historic mixed martial arts event on the grounds of the White House in June 2026, marking the first professional sporting event ever staged at the presidential residence. [9] [10]

The event was first announced by US President Donald Trump on July 3, 2025, during a rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds: [11] On August 29, 2025, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed via social media that plans for the event had been finalized, stating, "We had the meeting at the White House... The White House fight is on." [12]

On October 6, 2025, President Trump announced that the event would take place on June 14, 2026, coinciding with his 80th birthday. [13]

Post‑Fight bonus increases

Beginning in January 2026, starting with UFC 324, the UFC increased its post‑fight bonus structure, raising Performance of the Night and Fight of the Night awards from $50,000 to $100,000, and introducing additional $25,000 bonuses for any knockout or submission not selected among the standard four post‑fight awards. [14]

Releases and retirements

These fighters have either been released from their UFC contracts, announced their retirement, or joined other promotions:

MonthDay ISO FighterDivisionReasonRef
January9 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammad YahyaFeatherweightReleased [15]
23 Flag of the United States.svg Tecia Pennington Women's StrawweightRetired [16]
28 Flag of the United States.svg Darrius FlowersWelterweightReleased [17]
29 Flag of the United States.svg Patchy Mix BantamweightSigned with Rizin FF [18]
February5 Flag of New Zealand.svg Aaron TauFlyweightReleased [19]
Flag of Brazil.svg Rafael CerqueiraLight HeavyweightReleased [20]
10 Flag of the United States.svg Alex Morono WelterweightReleased [21]
Flag of Afghanistan (2013-2021).svg Javid Basharat BantamweightContract expired [22]
11 Flag of Brazil.svg Lucas AlmeidaFeatherweightReleased [23]
Flag of Brazil.svg Jailton Almeida HeavyweightReleased [24]
13 Flag of the United States.svg Adam FugittWelterweightReleased [25]
Flag of Nigeria.svg Mohammed UsmanHeavyweight
20 Flag of the United States.svg AJ CunninghamBantamweightRetired [26]
25 Flag of England.svg Nathan FletcherBantamweightRe-signed with Cage Warriors [27]
Flag of Mexico.svg Gianni VázquezBantamweightReleased
27 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Gavin Tucker FeatherweightRetired [28]
March2 Flag of Brazil.svg Felipe BunesFlyweightReleased [29]
Flag of Bolivia.svg José MedinaMiddleweight

Debut UFC fighters

The following fighters fought their first UFC fight in 2026:

MonthDay ISO FighterDivisionEventRef
January24 Flag of the United States.svg Ty MillerWelterweight UFC 324 [30]
February1 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Dom Mar FanLightweight UFC 325 [31]
Flag of South Korea.svg Kim Sang-wook
Flag of Japan.svg Keiichiro NakamuraFeatherweight [32]
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Sebastian Szalay
Flag of New Zealand.svg Lawrence LuiBantamweight [33]
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Sulang Rangbo
7 Flag of Mexico.svg Gianni VázquezBantamweight UFC Fight Night 266 [34]
21 Flag of the United States.svg Jean-Paul LebosnoyaniWelterweight UFC Fight Night 267 [35]
Flag of the United States.svg Josiah Harrell [36]
28 Flag of Aruba.svg Damian PinasMiddleweight UFC Fight Night 268 [37]
Flag of the United States.svg Wesley Schultz
Flag of Mexico.svg Regina TarinWomen's Flyweight [38]
Flag of Colombia.svg Javier ReyesFeatherweight [39]
Flag of Brazil.svg Ryan GandraMiddleweight [40]
Flag of Mexico.svg Imanol RodríguezFlyweight [41]

Suspended fighters

The list below is based on fighters suspended either by (1) United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) or World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for violation of taking prohibited substances or non-analytical incidents, (2) by local commissions on misconduct during the fights or at event venues, or (3) by the UFC for reasons also stated below.

ISO NameNicknameDivisionFromDurationTested positive for / InfoByEligible to
fight again
Ref.Notes
Flag of Ireland.svg Conor McGregor NotoriousLightweightSeptember 20, 202418 monthsThree anti-doping whereabout failures on June 13, September 19, and September 20, 2024.CSADMarch 20, 2026 [42]
Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Ramazan TemirovTemurlanFlyweightJuly 5, 20251 year Trimetazidine CSADJuly 5, 2026 [43]
Flag of Nigeria.svg Mohammed UsmanThe MotorHeavyweightOctober 9, 202530 months Testosterone and BPC-157 CSADApril 9, 2028 [44] Removed from UFC Roster February 12, 2026 [45]
Flag of Brazil.svg Iasmin Lucindo Women's StrawweightSeptember 24, 20259 months Mesterolone CSADJune 24, 2026 [46]

The Ultimate Fighter

The following The Ultimate Fighter season is scheduled for broadcast in 2026:

SeasonDivisionWinnerRunner-upRef

Title fights

Title fights in 2026
Weight classMethodRoundTimeEventNotes
Lightweight Justin Gaethje def. [47] Paddy Pimblett Decision (unanimous) (48–47, 49–46, 49–46)55:00 UFC 324 [a]
Featherweight Alexander Volkanovski (c)def. [48] Diego Lopes Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 49–46, 50–45)55:00 UFC 325 [b]
Light Heavyweight Jiří Procházka vs. [49] Carlos Ulberg UFC 327 [c]
Flyweight Joshua Van (c)vs. [50] Tatsuro Taira UFC 327 [d]
  1. For the interim UFC Lightweight Championship.
  2. For the UFC Featherweight Championship.
  3. For the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight Championship.
  4. For the UFC Flyweight Championship.

Events list

Scheduled events

EventDateVenueCityCountryRef.
UFC Fight Night 278Aug 29, 2026 Shanghai Indoor Stadium Shanghai China [51]
UFC 330Jul 11, 2026 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nevada United States [52]
UFC White House Jun 14, 2026 White House Washington, D.C. [53]
UFC Fight Night 277 May 30, 2026 Galaxy Arena Macau, SAR China [54]
UFC Fight Night 276May 16, 2026 Meta Apex Las Vegas, Nevada United States [55]
UFC 328 May 9, 2026 Prudential Center Newark, New Jersey [56]
UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs. Prates May 2, 2026 RAC Arena Perth Australia [57]
UFC Fight Night: Brady vs. Buckley Apr 25, 2026 Meta Apex Las Vegas, Nevada United States [58]
UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Malott Apr 18, 2026 Canada Life Centre Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada [59]
UFC 327: Procházka vs. Ulberg Apr 11, 2026 Kaseya Center Miami, Florida United States [60]
UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Duncan Apr 4, 2026 Meta Apex Las Vegas, Nevada [61]
UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs. Pyfer Mar 28, 2026 Climate Pledge Arena Seattle, Washington [62]
UFC Fight Night: Evloev vs. Murphy Mar 21, 2026 The O2 Arena London, England United Kingdom [63]
UFC Fight Night: Emmett vs. Vallejos Mar 14, 2026 Meta Apex Las Vegas, Nevada United States [64]
UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2 Mar 7, 2026 T-Mobile Arena [65]

Past events

#EventDateVenueCityCountryAtten.Ref.Fight of the NightPerformance of the NightBonusRef.
763 UFC Fight Night: Moreno vs. Kavanagh Feb 28, 2026 Arena CDMX Mexico City Mexico16,454 [66] Regina Tarinvs.Ernesta Kareckaitė Lone'er Kavanagh Imanol Rodríguez$100,000 [67]
762 UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Hernandez Feb 21, 2026 Toyota Center Houston, Texas United States17,160 [68] N/a Sean Strickland Uroš Medić $100,000 [69]
Melquizael CostaJacobe Smith
761 UFC Fight Night: Bautista vs. Oliveira Feb 7, 2026 Meta Apex Las Vegas, Nevada United StatesN/a [70] Michał Oleksiejczuk vs. Marc-André Barriault Mario Bautista Jakub Wikłacz$100,000 [71]
760 UFC 325: Volkanovski vs. Lopes 2 Feb 1, 2026 Qudos Bank Arena Sydney Australia18,102 [72] Alexander Volkanovski vs. Diego Lopes Maurício Ruffy Quillan Salkilld$100,000 [73]
759 UFC 324: Gaethje vs. Pimblett Jan 24, 2026 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nevada United States19,481 [74] Justin Gaethje vs. Paddy Pimblett Josh Hokit Ty Miller$100,000 [75]

See also

References

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