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Merry Christmas everyone! As the year winds down and the UFC layoff continues, it’s a perfect time to look back over the most eventful moments of 2025. Specifically, we’ll be talking here about the best overall fights of the year. What makes a great fight? Do you appreciate technical mastery on display between two elite opponents or the kind of brawl that would feel right at home in one’s local dive bar? For me, it’s really all about momentum shifts, the ebbs and flows, the adjustments made by fatigued and wounded fighters that ultimately turn the tide in their favor … or don’t!

Let’s check out 2025’s “Fights of the Year.”

5. Melquizael Costa vs. Julian Erosa

Costa quietly put together one of the best years of any athlete on the roster (more on that in a different post), whereas Erosa is a long-in-the-tooth veteran who still can hang with the best of ‘em. Barring an early knockout, the matchup was an obvious “Fight of the Night” bonus in waiting, and the two Featherweights certainly lived up to the occasion.

As the faster and sharper man, Costa started strong. In the face of Erosa’s relentless pressure, Costa landed numerous hard counter punches and slammed his left kick into the body repeatedly. Erosa kept attacking, finding elbows in the clinch and the occasional takedown, but he was falling behind on the punch count. Costa’s lead grew further in the second with a clean high kick connection.

Somehow, “Juicy J” finished the round conscious and still throwing heat.

Down 0-2 after ten minutes, Erosa pushed the pedal to the floor in the third, really chipping away at Costa’s endurance with close distance knees and elbows. In the final minute, he really surged, cracking Costa with long combinations and turning the contest from savvy kickboxing match to all-out brawl. He didn’t quite manage the comeback win, but it was a remarkable effort from the veteran all the same.

Both men left to the hospital with a bonus $50k heading their way.

4. Joshua Van vs. Brandon Royval

It’s crazy to think this fight wasn’t supposed to happen. Were it not for Royval’s original opponent Manel Kape suffering a foot injury, the current Van title reign wouldn’t exist. Thankfully, it all worked out for fight fans, who were treated to the most nonstop striking match of the year at UFC 317.

Van started the fight well. Royval has a big issue with his game at the elite level in that he’s transitioned late in his career from brawler to technical outside striker, and he can be a little bit clunky as a result. Don’t get me wrong, Royval was throwing lots and landing good stuff himself, but Van’s counter punches were clearly the more impactful blows.

Royval adjusted beautifully by doubling down on his volume. He started initiating his offense, throwing during Van’s counter, and throwing afterward. He took some blows in the process, but Van’s left hand started finding the mark more and more often, and Van was wobbled at least once.

Van responded beautifully. With five minutes remaining and the outcome up in the air, Van started stomping on Royval’s lead leg. Without the ability to step confidently, Royval was much easier to counter. Van’s stomp interrupted Royval’s relentless assault, and round one already established that Royval could not win a technical striking battle. Royval had no choice but to TRIPLE DOWN on attacking despite the hard return fire that was landing at a more and more accurate clip, and he ended up sat down hard in the closing seconds of a chaotic fight as a result of his own aggression.

3. Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov

In the intro, I wrote about technical adjustments being a big part of what makes a fight great — this is not an example. “The Machine” doesn’t really do “adjustments.” Instead, Dvalishvili trusts that his process and his cardio will eventually turn the tide, and he’s correct a whole lot more often than not.

The fight did not start well for the champion. Nurmagomedov is an undeniably slicker striker, and he’s an outstanding wrestler in his own right. He cracked Dvalishvili with a lot of counter punches, slid kicks under his punches, and even won most of the early wrestling exchanges. Dvalishvili never backed down from an exchange, but he didn’t win many of them in the first round.

Beating Dvalishvili in the first round isn’t the task though. He kept coming even as Nurmagomedov landed well in the second, though the momentum shift had begun. By round three, Dvalishvili’s first takedown landed. More importantly, Nurmagomedov’s posture and cage position began to show his fatigue, allowing Dvalishvili to unload combinations more and more often. Many of those strikes were blocked, but Dvalishvili is a master of optics.

Everyone knew who was now in the driver’s seat even if the official strike count was competitive.

Round four was a wash for Dvalishvili, leaving it all tied up leading into the fifth. Like a champion, Nurmagomedov rose to the occasion in the final five, preventing Dvalishvili from establishing much control time while landing the sharper blows despite his fatigue. Nurmagomedov’s second wind nearly captured the crown until a picture-perfect Dvalishvili right hand wobbled his knees in the final 90 seconds. Nurmagomedov was rendered defensive by that blow, taken down afterward, and ultimately had the momentum he had worked so hard to regain stolen back in an instant.

This was tremendously high-level stuff performed at a ridiculous pace between one of the most skilled fighters alive and a physical force of nature with a world title on the line. You can’t ask for much more — it’s all personal preference from here.

2. Diego Lopes vs. Jean Silva

Let’s kick the violence up a notch and add in some bad blood for good measure.

Jean Silva is a lunatic. A majority of MMA fighters are fairly normal, reasonably well-adjusted, and go on to function in regular societal roles (usually as a cop, coach, or real estate agent) after their careers without much issue.

“The Lord Assassin” is not that guy.

For reasons still unclear, the barking Brazilian decided he hated Diego Lopes, an incredibly fun and generally respected recent title challenger. Silva talked all sorts of wild s—t in the lead up, and then Lopes paid him back with an instant takedown straight into mount. Just about a minute into the fight, Silva was stuck beneath a massive jiu-jitsu ace, who carved his face open with elbows.

Credit to Silva, he was crafty in surviving, digging under the leg (and risking a triangle choke) to escape back to his feet. Once there, both men landed hard, as Lopes ripped into the calf while Silva started getting his hands going.

The heated exchanges continued into the second, and there were a couple minutes where Silva truly looked like a generational striking talent. Flowing from both stances with elbows, unloading absurdly powerful blows both on the lead and on the counter, snapping Lopes’ chin with a picture-perfect front kick — Silva was untouchable. All the while, Lopes kept his guard high and remained composed, waiting for his moment.

Thanks to that indestructible chin, Lopes was still conscious when the opportunity came. Silva got a little too wild and a little too aggressive after escaping a takedown, and Lopes detonated a beautiful spinning elbow that landed right on the temple, flooring Silva face-first. Lopes jumped him, hammering away and forcing the knockout stoppage.

Honestly, the only way this fight could have been any better was if the knockout came a round or two later. Every exchange was fascinating and filled with consequence, and it’s hard not to be left wanting more.

1. Jiri Prochazka vs. Khalil Rountree Jr

It shouldn’t be surprising that the typical Jiri fight is the year’s best.

Just another day at the office for “BJP” sometimes involves getting beaten up for the first round by one of the division’s best kickboxers with incredible natural power. Indeed, Rountree showed off his 10,000 hours of Muay Thai pad work at Prochazka’s expense for most of the round, landing ripping kicks and charging power punches.

Prochazka struggled to kick it into second gear, which is both unusual and part of what made the bout so intriguing. Already, he was finding better success in round two, blocking more of Rountree’s swings. Though largely ignored by the commentary team, Prochazka’s jab started landing with a real snap. Perhaps more importantly, his sneaky front kick was digging into the center of Rountree’s torso as well, and everybody knows “War Horse” slows down over time.

Despite the subtle shifting in momentum, Prochazka was still in the hole with five minutes remaining. Speaking only of my experience, however, what was about to happen felt obvious. Rountree’s most dangerous shots were already thrown, and there is no fighter more clutch than Jiri Prochazka.

Finally in round three, Prochazka pushed the pedal straight through the floor. He surged forward with extended combinations with urgency, walking through counter shots and taking careful pains to keep landing that snap kick into the mid-section. About 90 seconds into the round, Prochazka clipped Rountree clean with a pair of punches, and the snowball started rolling downhill.

There was way too much time on the clock for Rountree to survive. With wounded prey in front of him, Prochazka unleashed a truly endless stream of free-flowing offense. He chased Rountree down with marching combinations, timed pull counters, doubled up on digging body hooks, sliced him with chopping elbows, and smashed home knees in the clinch. In the end, it was the humble 1-2-3 that sealed the deal, collapsing Rountree to the canvas in a heap.

Jiri’s third round onslaught is infinitely rewatchable. On its own, it’s as fun as fighting can be. Given the context of the comeback and Prochazka’s greater story of working back towards gold, the moment was even more special.

I have said more than once that Jiri Prochazka is my favorite active fighter, and I think you’re a bit of a square if you don’t feel the same way. There’s something particularly glorious about how “BJP” embraces his flaws and has honed them into an edge as sharp as any of his katanas. He is true to himself in a way that is usually reserved for poets and philosophers. Point at defensive openings and criticize his style all you’d like — “The Czech Samurai” is still a multiple promotion world champion with a 32-5 professional record and 97% finish rate who should never, ever be counted out of a fight.

More importantly, you should never miss one.