2024 was a massive year for MMA fans and proved to be another explosive 12 months of hard-hitting action. It’s now firmly behind us though and this means looking ahead to what might happen in the sport during 2025 is worthwhile.
This is not just something interesting to do for MMA followers . For those who like to bet on bouts, it makes even more sense and enables them to find the top betting predictions involving fighters in 2025’s MMA lineup. Just remember to find the top welcome offers for newly registered players to claim when choosing where to wager on MMA bouts. Sportsbooks including Kwiff, GGbet and 10bet are good options when it comes to this.
But what are some of the best predictions for MMA sports bettors to consider in the coming year?
UFC 311 is not far away now and is set to deliver some thrilling action to watch on January 18th 2025. Arguably the pick of the fights is the rematch between big hitting Arman Tsarukyan and reigning champ Islam Makhachev.
Although Tsarukyan is a superb fighter and has enough power to trouble the very best MMA has to offer, it’s hard to see past Makhachev retaining his lightweight title. Previous wins over top-class opposition like Alexander Volkanovski and a unanimous victory over Tsarukyan at a UFC Fight Night in 2019 all make it hard to go against the current champion. Expect to see him negate the challenger’s power and take the win by submission at some point in the bout.
UFC 312 is due to take place in early February 2025 and sees middleweight champion Dricus De Plessis face off in a rematch with Sean Strickland. Du Plessis had a stellar 2024 and beat Strickland on points at UFC 297 to take the title. A successful defense against Israel Adesanya only enhanced his reputation and set up the Strickland rematch.
But how might this bout pan out? Although it will be no easy ride for Du Plessis, he looks on course to retain his title and gain another victory over his opponent. The sheer aggressiveness the South African brings to the octagon and the psychological edge of taking Strickland’s crown previously makes it hard to argue against him.
Futures markets are always big in sports betting, and this is certainly true in MMA. One big future’s pick to consider involves Montel Jackson and the feeling that he is ready to have a huge year in 2025. Although he has been hampered by injuries in the past, he has put together a run of impressive wins recently to suggest he’s back to his best.
The 18 second demolition of Da’Mon Blackshear in July 2024 was a good example of this and showed just how dangerous he can be. Whilst he might have only just crept into the top 15 currently, a good couple of wins in the early/mid part of the year could set up a title bid before 2025 is out.
Bellator is one of the main competitors to UFC in the MMA world and has some very famous names fighting in it. Patricio “The Pitbull” Freire is one but is seemingly not too happy with life there. Just one fight in 2024 left him frustrated and asking to be released from his contract so he can move to fighting in the UFC.
This would be a major coup for Dana White and it’s therefore very easy to see this happening during 2025. If it does, you would assume Freire would be given an instant title shot to sweeten the deal and this could see him take the featherweight title before the year is out. Current holder Ilia Topuria is no pushover (assuming he successfully defends his title in 2025) but Freire would be a real test for him.
It’s not just the UFC which is kicking off 2025 with a major event. Bellator Champions Series 6 is taking place at the end of January too and is set to see the competition head to Dubai for the first time ever.
The headline bout is between current lightweight world champion Usman Nurmagomedov and challenger Paul Hughes. Backing Nurmagomedov to retain his title seems a good bet and something that many fans expect to see happen.
To be fair to Hughes, he is an amazing fighter and one of the rising stars across MMA in general. His last win over top-tier opponent A.J. McKee proved this and showed just what he can do. It looks like Nurmagomedov will simply have too much for him to handle though and use his own experience of beating Bellator’s best in the past to his advantage.
There is no doubt that the current 2025 MMA lineup is loaded with exceptional talent. With big events like UFC 311, UFC 312 and Bellator Champions Series 6 coming up, there are plenty of opportunities for betting on the sport. Finding the best MMA picks can help when narrowing down which wagers to make and those listed above are some of the most interesting to mull over.