The UFC is gearing up for a massive 2025 and we are just about a week away from their first PPV of the year which will feature title fights in the lightweight and bantamweight divisions. Every year I like to take a look at the divisional landscape and forecast who I think will be atop the divisions by the end of the calendar year. With that, let’s dive into the four heavier divisions and predict who will be champion once the year is over.
Who will be UFC champion?
Welterweight Prediction: Shavkat Rakhmonov
The next welterweight title fight is set it’s just a matter of when the fight will happen. Champion Belal Muhammad (24-3, 1 NC) will be taking on Shavkat Rakhmonov (19-0). They were supposed to fight in December for the title, but an injury forced Muhammad out of the fight. Rakhmonov defeated Ian Machado Garry in a five-round title eliminator.
Many folks cooled on Rakhmonov after his performance against Garry, but I still believe he’s going to be champion. That wasn’t the best version of Shavkat and I believe that when he gets his shot against Muhammad later this year, we will see that best version. That version will become UFC welterweight champion and I think he’ll still be champion when the year ends.
Middleweight Prediction: Khamzat Chimaev
I think we will also see the title change hands at 185. Currently, Dricus Du Plessis (22-2) is the champion and he’s scheduled to face Sean Strickland (29-6) next month. I think that will be another competitive fight with the winner tentatively penciled in to face Khamzat Chimaev (14-0).
Chimaev passed his middleweight test with flying colors a few months back when he ran through Robert Whittaker and submitted him in the first round. Chimaev is an absolute monster and for years I’ve predicted he’ll be a champion. This is the year it finally happens as I think he’ll defeat either DDP or Strickland and he’ll end 2025 on top of the middleweight division.
Light Heavyweight Prediction: Alex Pereira
The UFC light heavyweight title is staying put as I think Alex Pereira (12-2) will remain the champion. Poatan has become a savior for the promotion after stepping up time after time for them in the last year. In the last 15 months, Pereira has had four title fights and he’s gone 4-0 with four knockouts in those title fights.
Magomed Ankalaev is the number one contender and despite Pereira saying he’s not going to be next, I think Ankalaev gets that shot. When he does, I still think Pereira gets the win. From there, I could see Pereira entertaining a heavyweight title fight in the fall as he starts to wind down his career. Regardless of that result, I think he ends 2025 with the light heavyweight title.
Heavyweight Prediction: Tom Aspinall
This is the year that Tom Aspinall (15-3) becomes the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion in my opinion. I do believe that Jon Jones (28-1, 1 NC) and Aspinall will fight this year. It’s a fight that has to happen and I think that Dana White and Hunter Campbell will figure out a way to get it done.
My money is that the fight headlines International Fight Week. I think that Aspinall can easily win that fight, but even if he loses, I think he’ll end the year as champion. Should Jones win, I think he might opt to retire unless the Alex Pereira fight happens. In that scenario, I would predict Jones would retire at the MSG card in November. With that, I would imagine that Aspinall might fight for the vacant title either in December or in early 2025 where he’d win.
If Aspinall beats Jones, I think they’d either rematch or Aspinall would fight again in the fall and outside of Jones, I don’t see any heavyweight beating Aspinall right now. I’m 50/50 on the Jones – Aspinall fight, but I think safe money overall is that Aspinall closes out 2025 as UFC heavyweight champion.