2025 has come to a close, and it has, as always, been quite the journey. There’s never a lack of good fights in mixed martial arts, a sport where anything can happen. That’s precisely why we love it.
Still, one fight stood out above all the rest this past year. Well, sort of. Read on to find out just what we mean by that, and to see who gets our 2025 Fight of the Year award.
Fight of the Year 2025
Eddie Law: Prochazka vs. Rountree Jr – The first two rounds seemed grim from Prochazka. When it seemed that he was on his way to losing a lopsided decision he landed a step-in jab and then uncorked a Zeus-like right hand sending Rountree Jr into the shadow realm.
Gabriel Gonzalez: Brandon Royval vs. Joshua Van. In hindsight, the fight is made more epic considering Royval was preparing for a match with Manel Kape who now stands out as the top contender. The fact that Royval was preparing for such a match when Van stepped in on short notice and the two delivered a historic output in a back-and-forth battle is even more amazing. It was the kind of rare breakout moment that we hardly see and made it all the more memorable in 2025.
Jay Anderson: What makes a great fight? “Duh, the action!” is the response I’m expecting but there are intangibles that push a fight into the realm of greatness. Overcoming adversity in a fight, little looks or body language in fighters are you watch them strive to overcome, and exceeding expectations. With that in mind I’m going to side with Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Paul Hughes. The fight saw Nurmagomedov pressed like never before, and didn’t feel like a loss for Hughes. While the rematch didn’t have the same spark (and came down to a similar result, with Nurmagomedov winning a decision), the fight entertained and proved the PFL have at least a couple of bonafide stars at lightweight.
Brett Cagle: Brandon Royval vs. Joshua Van. This record-breaking fight cemented current Flyweight champion Joshua Van as one of the divisions elite. Royval and Van broke records for strikes landed in a flyweight fight and had fans on their feet for 15 minutes at UFC 317 in June.
Mathis Desjardins: Jiri Prochazka vs Khalil Rountree Jr. [UFC 320]. Usman Nurmagomedov and Paul Hughes’ technical thriller in January was probably the frontrunner for half the year until Brandon Royval and Joshua Van met in late June. However, for as marvelous as both of those fights were, neither of them was quite as gripping to watch as what Jiri Prochazka pulled off at UFC 320. When we saw him abandon all things resembling a gameplan to instead opt to slug it out with Khalil, we all collectively leaned in our chairs. Turning what was a technical striking battle into a war of attrition with someone as good as Rountree Jr. through sheer trust that you will outlast him is awe-inspiring.
Daniel Vreeland: Brandon Royval vs Joshua Van. Some people vote for fight of the year based on the entertainment factor. Some like to look at a technical back and forth fight. Luckily for voters this year, this one brought both of those in a fight with 425 strikes landed.
Bryson Hester: Jiri Prochazka vs Khalil Rountree Jr. Runner Up: Diego Lopes vs Jean Silva. First, for me, I’m choosing a Fight of the Year that didn’t go the distance but the hype behind Jiri vs Khalil delivered. A brutal and memorable standup battle that saw Khalil taking it to Jiri before the tables turned and the fight ended, all too soon, in the third round. This one narrowly beats out Diego Lopes extinguishing a bloodied Jean Silva in a main event back in September. Lopes halted at 12fight win streak in spectacular fashion and triggered a rematch with the featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.
End result: So, it’s a tie then. An odd number of voters, but one opted to go with Nurmagomedov vs. Hughes, leaving Jiri Prochazka vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. and Brandon Royval vs. Joshua Van as our co-winners for Fight of the Year. Fights of the Year? You know what, either way, we’re good with that. They were both wildly entertaining fights.