Don't look now, but the UFC's 2024 calendar is nearly complete. November brings multiple Fight Night cards, a pay-per-view event in UFC 308 and some new rules going into effect. In December, fight fans get one additional Fight Night and pay-per-view (UFC 309) until the holidays come and the calendar resets for 2025.
Big questions still loom for some of the sport's top stars. Can former champions Brandon Moreno and Rose Namajunas find their way back into the title picture? Did Ilia Topuria lock up the men's Fighter of the Year award? Will the removal of the 12-to-6 elbow ban be a difference-maker in the UFC? Andreas Hale, Brett Okamoto and Jeff Wagenheim break these questions down, starting with the main event in Edmonton. Okamoto: Not real at all.
Moreno is the closest thing the division has to a star, but he's 0-3 against Pantoja and his stock is the lowest it's been in years due to back-to-back losses and extended time off. He's only 30 and has the skill and charisma to make us care about that fight again, but not anytime soon. Wagenheim: I'll go with "surreal.
" Wouldn't it be wild if Moreno were booked for a fourth fight with Pantoja, considering he's 0-3 against the champ? If he loses that one, Moreno could fight Deiveson Figueiredo for a fourth time. No doubt Moreno would prefer a third championship reign, but if that's not in the cards, he could settle for being a novelty: the only fighter with two tetralogies. Hale: Not real.
As it stands right now, Pantoja is welcomin.
