What is fighting about if not to establish oneself as the top dog? The UFC has hundreds of athletes and thousands of fighters around the world. So, it takes something special to get that golden strap. About half the effort is in the initiation and build-up. AKA – UFC face-offs. The 2024 season had a few electric face-offs like none other.
There are many elements to martial arts – striking, feints, defending, pounding, jabs, hooks, and slicers. Building up the mood and setup with staredowns at a global platform like UFC is a pivotal part. Staredowns are the fighters’ favorite bet and tool when all else is done. Here is a close look at a few top such moments that gave into the fight, this 2024 season.
10. Henry Cejudo vs. Merab Dvalishvili
A wrestler vs. wrestler scrap is a pure skill-to-skill fest at the top echelon of combat sports. Think the latest ground exchanges and test of reflexes between Aljamain Sterling and Movsar Evloev at the UFC 310 PPV. A preview of Olympian wrestler Henry “Triple C” Cejudo vs. Sambo specialist Merab Dvalishvili went similarly in February.
Olympic-level wrestler, that’s it. It was enough said about Cejudo’s prowess, looking to return to shed some rust. He was also looking to rebound from his title loss to Sterling. But the Georgian Mean ‘Machine’ meant business. The wrestler holding down fort at Camp Syndicate MMA/Team Serra-Longo (Las Vegas) is a Judo black belt and multiple-time sambo champion.
UFC 298 had a plucky wrestler’s face-off (Source: YT)While strong inside the clinch, Dvalishvili also scrambles well with chain attacks and lean-ins. His striking effort was shaping up to be something else at the time as well. Dvalishvili outlanded Marlon Moraes by a total of 212 strikes at UFC 266. It is the largest margin of differential in a single UFC/WEC bantamweight competition bout. Then, there’s his offensive wrestling and habit of doing takedowns every other instance.
Hence it was quite the build-up of the ’24 season. The Official UFC 298 PPV Ceremonial Weigh-in Face-offs was as lively as ever. It saw the Georgian triggered as Cejudo tried to rile him up with some Russian remarks in the final moments. Of course, Dvalishvili took it sportingly and retorted; an onset of the kind of champ he’d be later on in the year.
9. Ian Garry vs. Michael ‘Venom’ Page
Michael ‘Venom’ Page was the hot new thing a relatively fresh signing in the UFC ranks. But his trend to pull comically spicy poses was as viral as ever. Yes – the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix Semifinalist with 13 pro career KOs who’d dawn a golden “Infinity Glove” gimmick! But Ian ‘Machado’ Garry wasn’t there to play.
Garry models himself after Irish compatriot Conor McGregor, to be the disruptor in the ranks. The time before that, when Page met Kevin Holland at Kaseya Center, for the UFC 299 event, he doused his infamous ‘Venom’ signage.
Venom snake vs. Irish Pit Piper: a face-off for strikers (Source: IG)But at UFC 303, Garry was ready to squash the viper by all means. The face-off was as high-spirited as ever with his camp and security personnel holding the Irish welterweight back. At the time, their clash seemed like it’d be the greatest striking clinic in UFC competitions.
8. Ilia Topuria vs. Alexander Volkanovski
A year ago, no one would have considered to even read those two names in this order. Aussie legend Alexander Volkanovski is the greatest of names and a former top UFC Pound-for-pound best. That is until he failed his dual dip bids against Islam Makhachev and then Ilia Topuria knocked him out!
This was again at UFC 298 in Anaheim, the second PPV of the year. The ever-cocky Topuria kept saying he’d be that 15-0 guy that knocks out Volk and the biggest of fans and pundits refused to put stock into it. Topuria even spiced things up with that copycat belt snatch that McGregor once did.
UFC 298 was the start of a great championship saga (Source: X)But no — this wasn’t that gimmicky face-off with ‘Old Man Volk.’ This was at the on-sale presser, where the world was introduced to the calm and tactile, crisp, Topuria. Oozing with confidence, “El Matador” would stare down the champ and his gold, which would later be his. He even tried to rattle him, take his belt, and put his hand on him despite saying all week he respects him.
If there was one particular moment where things turned around, this would be it. Not at UFC 290, but this one. Ten or more years down the line, the Next-Gen combat sports fan would refer to this and say “Where were you at this moment” when the Topuria Saga began?
7. Ion Cutelaba vs. Philipe Lins
UFC 299 PPV was a special one. Ion Cutelaba vs. Philipe Lins was a special one when it comes to UFC face-offs. Sean O’Malley had an animated exchange with Marlon Vera. Maycee Barber would look sharp as ever. The hulking Robelis Despaigne was something, too. Big names like Petr Yan and Dustin Poirier were getting all the cheers. But the curious case of Cutelaba vs. Lins was just something at Kaseya Center.
Some UFC face-offs go the distance (Source: YT)Cutelaba was the green ogre ready to smash; he was a master of faceoffs, going all Hulk-green for the second time. Lins was the piercing knife ready to rip. As usual, promotional CEO Dana White was there to step in between when things looked like they were about to get loud. It’s about the extra effort when it comes to setting the stage. This was it; one of the biggest and best ones for 2024.
6. Wang Cong vs. Victoria Leonardo
Wang Cong logged a massive and brutal win in her UFC debut at UFC Vegas 96 (aka UFC on ESPN 62: Cannonier vs. Borralho). She knocked the winds out of Victoria Leonardo in 62 seconds to kick off the UFC Apex affair. But again, it was an “A” for effort on the face-off.
Another staredown that won over the internet in 2024 (Source: X)Cong went as the ‘DC’ comic character Joker facepaint for the UFC on ESPN: Cannonier vs. Borralho final ceremonial weigh-ins. Nothing says more berserker than Joker and touting herself a better striker than Tiger Muay Thai’s Valentina Shevchenko. She won the internet again doing the same before UFC Macau but lost the bout.
5. Islam Makahcev vs. Dustin Poirier
Some staredowns go long for the effort. Others go long for the deeper connotations. Veteran lightweight Dustin Poirier is one of the good guys. But he is prone to wars; look to his scraps with Michael Chandler, Dan Hooker, and Justin Gaethje for that. Donning his “WAR” cap, his streetside Layfette lightweight ruggedness is sometimes at the forefront.
A lightweight staredown went the distance on miscommunication (Source: es.agfight.com/YT)That is exactly what happened when the slugger met Dagestani Islam Makhachev after UFC 302 Media Day. The bold ‘Diamond’ went crass, trying to warn off Makhachev. The reigning 155-pound king, a devout Muslim, did not take it well. At the tail end of their build-up, the exchange was as spicy as ever. Spicier than Poirier’s Hot Sauce in all of 2024!
4. Alex Pereira vs. Jamahal Hill
Former champ Jamahal Hill never lost out on his gold. He had to give up the stakes after a freak injury during UFC 290 PPV fight week. Hill, bold and brute on his return, didn’t think much of Alex Pereira’s inhumane striking skills and kickboxing/spatial prowess.
One of the top 2024 UFC face-offs went beyond scope of repair (Source: X)To make matters worse, he massacred the symbolic Moai head statue, one which has become a go-to reference to the stoic ‘Poatan.’ He brought a bloodied and beaten-up version of the head along to taunt the Brazilian out of the indigenous Pataxó culture in Bahia, Brazil.
So, when Pereira met Hill with his war paint on at the UFC 300 Ceremonial weigh-ins, it was a stately matter like no other. He warned that Hill had gone beyond what he should have and come the milestone Pay-per-view (PPV) main card headliner, he’d have his revenge.
3. Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya
Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya had been beefing over their “True African” origins for a year; a whole year! A racially-charged rivalry does not go bigger than that. During the UFC 305 on-sale kickoff conference this July, DDP argued that since he trained and stayed within Africa, he was a true representation of an African champ.
2024 had one of the biggest racial rivalries (Source: agfight/YT)That is unlike Nigerian-Kiwi-based Izzy, Cameroon’s Francis Ngannou, and Nigeria’s Kamaru Usman. Both Adesanya and Ghanaian-born UFC middleweight Abdul Razak Alhassan swarmed in on Du Plessis to keep his privileges in check. What followed was one of the most historic and racially-charged pre-fight staredowns. It’d set the mood for weeks to come.
2. Sean Strickland vs. Dricus Du Plessis
Speaking of bullying middleweights into lengthy UFC staredowns, DDP vs. Sean Strickland started the year with a different mood. Unhinged and loudmouth Strickland, then champion, found himself in an emotional pocket when Du Plessis would allude to his paternal abuse. The South African even promised to give him a harder hiding than his father did – too far? ‘Tarzan’ thought so.
2024 started off with one of the most brawny and brave face-offs (Source: X)They had already had a physical exchange right before that in 2023. So, when the two squared up after UFC 297 Media Day pre-fight press conference, it took all the effort to keep them apart. This rivalry started the year 2024 with a bang and a lot of physicality. Here’s looking forward to what the rematch brings.
1. Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka 2
Yes… this year it’s them again. Nothing beats two stoic warriors of different stems meeting up in a silent exchange. It’s like a nod to some old classic Kung Fu flick. When Pereira met Jiri Prochazka again at UFC 303, it was something else. While veteran voice Bruce Buffer announced the finer stats and tales of the tape, the duo had a whole 5-minute face-off! Not one blink!
Some UFC staredowns just go hard (Source: boxeag/Instagram-threads.net › @ufc/X)Prochazka is a stout follower of the disciplines of 61-duel “Kensei” and philosopher Miyamoto Musashi. So, more of a guts and grind kind of a guy. To him, ‘Poatan’ channeling his tribal spirits seemed like shamanic rituals. Both warriors were out to prove their way and effort as the best. What followed will go down as history as one of the best UFC face-offs, and definitely that of 2024.
Honorable mentions
Max Holloway ‘fake-pantseing’ Justin Gaethje was a nod to the brotherhood between two warriors ready to bleed for it. It also spoke to the history they already had, long before UFC 300 PPV in April. Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko Ceremonial weigh-in face-off for the second annual Noche PPV was resolute. In the first-ever WMMA trilogy bout, both women knew what was at stake.
UFC 2024 season had a lot of good moments (Source: X/agfight/superlutas.com.br)Raquel Pennington vs. Julianna Pena had some charged staredowns, wanting to complete their TUF saga. As did hot new bantamweight bruiser Kayla Harrison, whose marquee bouts proved quite good and amped up. The Ode Osbourne vs. Ronaldo Rodriguez faceoff after their verbal clash also was a mood.
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