As the UFC enters the home stretch of its first year in the Paramount+ era, it has announced the final numbered events of 2026. The UFC heads to Abu Dhabi at the end of October for UFC 333, headlined by Alexander Volkanovski vs. Movsar Evloev.
In November, it’s back to Madison Square Garden, as Ciryl Gane and Josh Hokit finally fight for the heavyweight title. Lastly, the UFC heads home in December, as Charles Oliveira and Diego Lopes fight in Las Vegas for the BMF title.
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MMA fans are eating good to end 2026, but there’s always something to look forward to, and one of the biggest is Paddy Pimblett’s return.
The UFC always starts the new year with stacked fight cards. In January 2026, Pimblett headlined UFC 324, facing Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title.
After losing that fight, Pimblett rebounded at UFC 329, submitting Benoit Saint Denis in the first round.
Now the big question is when Pimblett will return. After such a dominant win, he’s ready to take on another top contender. Pimblett spoke about when he could return and who makes the most sense.
Paddy Pimblett Expects to Return in March or April
Speaking with All Out Fighting on YouTube, Pimblett shared his ideal timeline for returning to the octagon. His quote is as follows.
“I don’t know what’s happening at the minute. We’ll have to wait and see. Everyone in my division could be booked up. I’m never fighting in January again. If we don’t fight before the end of the year, it’ll be March or April.”
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Pimblett explained why he won’t fight in January: he doesn’t want to be in training camp during the holiday season. That leaves two options: fight by the end of the year, or wait until later in the first quarter of 2027.
Pimblett said this about who he’ll fight next.
“It looks like Arman is fighting Justin. Then there are only Ilia and Max ranked above me. I think Max is waiting for Conor. So it’s only Ilia left.”
Pimblett said Topuria is the only fight that makes sense, and he’ll never be the same now that he’s not undefeated.
“I don’t think Ilia ever gonna be the same. I lost my first fight when I was 18 and I had to build myself back up. He’s never lost before, and he’s about 27 or something. His whole aura was about being unbeatable and all that. Now he’s been beaten, and that’s in his head. I will prove it if I’ll end up fighting him next.”
This is clearly one of the biggest fights the UFC can put on, whether or not a title is on the line. Without a title, the fight won’t headline a numbered event, but it will be the co-main event and will be the people’s main event.
By March, Topuria will have had nine months to recover from what was a brutal loss to Gaethje. Given how badly Topuria’s face was injured, MMA fans should be as patient as possible for this fight.
Topuria needs to be 100% for this fight to live up to the rivalry it is.
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