Volkanovski vs. Lopes: Title Rematch at UFC 325
The highly anticipated rematch for the featherweight title between Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes will headline UFC 325, an event to be held on January 31st. This was announced by UFC CEO Dana White.
This 145-pound championship fight will take place at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney.
For Volkanovski, this will be his first appearance in Australia, his home country, since his failed attempt for the lightweight title against Islam Makhachev in February 2023 in Perth. Despite losing by unanimous decision, Volkanovski starred in an outstanding performance in the fifth round.
Volkanovski, with a record of 27-4, will seek to defend his title for the second consecutive time against Lopes (27-27). In their previous encounter at UFC 314 in April, Volkanovski defeated Lopes by unanimous decision. The fight, although close, did not generate controversy, with judges’ scorecards of 49-46, 49-46 and 49-45.
Lopes secured the rematch after knocking out Jean Silva in spectacular fashion in September.
The announcement left several featherweight contenders waiting, including Movsar Evloev and Lerone Murphy.
Both fighters expressed their opinions about the fight through social media.
Lerone Murphy lamented the missed opportunity.
Evloev proposed a match with Murphy in early 2026 to define the next title contender.
According to the UFC ranking, Evloev and Murphy hold the number 1 and 4 positions in the division, respectively. Lopes is ranked number 2.
