2026 in UFC

2026 in UFC

The year 2026 is the 34th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States.

UFC in 2026

Johnson v. Zuffa

Based on court filings from late July 2025, the Johnson v. Zuffa antitrust lawsuit, originally filed in 2021, is proceeding, and status conference for the case is scheduled for late August 2025.

Cirkunovs v. Zuffa and Davis v. Zuffa

In May 2025, two antitrust lawsuits were filed against the UFC. One, led by former fighter Misha Cirkunov, specifically challenges the enforceability of arbitration clauses and class action waivers in UFC contracts. The other lawsuit, filed by former fighter Phil Davis, alleges that the UFC's anticompetitive practices also negatively impacted the ability of non-UFC fighters to secure fair wages.

Paramount and CBS partnership

On August 11, 2025, the UFC announced a seven-year media rights agreement with Paramount Skydance Corporation worth $7.7 billion. Paramount+ will exclusively stream all events for seven years, starting in 2026. Some numbered events will also air on CBS. The agreement will allow the UFC to move away from pay-per-view as events will stream on Paramount+ at no additional cost. All 13 of the UFC's flagship events and 30 Fight Nights a year will be streamed on the Paramount+ service. UFC CEO and President Dana White announced the UFC would produce four big events per year on CBS, and that the UFC's planned card for the White House on June 14th, 2026 would be one of those events.

White House event

To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States, the UFC plans to hold a historic mixed martial arts event on the grounds of the White House in June 2026, marking the first professional sporting event ever staged at the presidential residence.

The event was first announced by US President Donald Trump on July 3, 2025, during a rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds: On August 29, 2025, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed via social media that plans for the event had been finalized, stating, "We had the meeting at the White House... The White House fight is on."

On October 6, 2025, President Trump announced that the event would take place on June 14, 2026, coinciding with his 80th birthday.

Post‑Fight bonus increases

Beginning in January 2026, starting with UFC 324, the UFC increased its post‑fight bonus structure, raising Performance of the Night and Fight of the Night awards from $50,000 to $100,000, and introducing additional $25,000 bonuses for any knockout or submission not selected among the standard four post‑fight awards.

Releases and retirements

2026 in UFC

These fighters have either been released from their UFC contracts, announced their retirement, or joined other promotions:

<table><thead><tr><th>Month</th><th>Day</th><th>ISO</th><th>Fighter</th><th>Division</th><th>Reason</th><th>Ref</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>January</td><td>9</td><td></td><td>Mohammad Yahya</td><td>Featherweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>23</td><td></td><td>Tecia Pennington</td><td>Women's Strawweight</td><td>Retired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td></td><td>Darrius Flowers</td><td>Welterweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td></td><td>Patchy Mix</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td>Signed with Rizin FF</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>February</td><td>5</td><td></td><td>Aaron Tau</td><td>Flyweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Rafael Cerqueira</td><td>Light Heavyweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td></td><td>Alex Morono</td><td>Welterweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Javid Basharat</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td>Contract expired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td></td><td>Lucas Almeida</td><td>Featherweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Jailton Almeida</td><td>Heavyweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>13</td><td></td><td>Adam Fugitt</td><td>Welterweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Mohammed Usman</td><td>Heavyweight</td></tr><tr><td>20</td><td></td><td>AJ Cunningham</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td>Retired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>25</td><td></td><td>Nathan Fletcher</td><td>Re-signed with Cage Warriors</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Gianni Vázquez</td><td>Released</td></tr><tr><td>27</td><td></td><td>Gavin Tucker</td><td>Featherweight</td><td>Retired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>March</td><td>2</td><td></td><td>Felipe Bunes</td><td>Flyweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>José Medina</td><td>Middleweight</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td></td><td>Philip Rowe</td><td>Welterweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td></td><td>Erik Silva</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Kris Moutinho</td><td>Bantamweight</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td></td><td>Eryk Anders</td><td>Middleweight</td><td>Retired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>26</td><td></td><td>Luan Lacerda</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Montserrat Rendon</td><td>Women's Bantamweight</td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td></td><td>Michael Chiesa</td><td>Welterweight</td><td>Retired</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Niko Price</td></tr><tr><td>April</td><td>1</td><td></td><td>Antonio Trócoli</td><td>Middleweight</td><td>Released</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Bruna Brasil</td><td>Women's Strawweight</td></tr><tr><td>Luana Carolina</td><td>Women's Bantamweight</td></tr></tbody></table>

Debut UFC fighters

2026 in UFC

The following fighters fought their first UFC fight in 2026:

<table><thead><tr><th>Month</th><th>Day</th><th>ISO</th><th>Fighter</th><th>Division</th><th>Event</th><th>Ref</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>January</td><td>24</td><td></td><td>Ty Miller</td><td>Welterweight</td><td>UFC 324</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>February</td><td>1</td><td></td><td>Dom Mar Fan</td><td>Lightweight</td><td>UFC 325</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Kim Sang-wook</td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Keiichiro Nakamura</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Sebastian Szalay</td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Lawrence Lui</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Sulang Rangbo</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td></td><td>Gianni Vázquez</td><td>UFC Fight Night 266</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>21</td><td></td><td>Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani</td><td>Welterweight</td><td>UFC Fight Night 267</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Josiah Harrell</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td></td><td>Damian Pinas</td><td>Middleweight</td><td>UFC Fight Night 268</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Wesley Schultz</td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Regina Tarin</td><td>Women's Flyweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Javier Reyes</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Ryan Gandra</td><td>Middleweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Imanol Rodríguez</td><td>Flyweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>March</td><td>7</td><td></td><td>Luke Fernandez</td><td>Light Heavyweight</td><td>UFC 326</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Rafael Tobias</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Alberto Montes</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td></td><td>Hecher Sosa</td><td>Bantamweight</td><td>UFC Fight Night 269</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Manoel Sousa</td><td>Lightweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Marwan Rahiki</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>21</td><td></td><td>Shanelle Dyer</td><td>Women's Strawweight</td><td>UFC Fight Night 270</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Mantas Kondratavičius</td><td>Middleweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Felipe Franco</td><td>Heavyweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Losene Keita</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Kurtis Campbell</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td></td><td>Tyrell Fortune</td><td>Heavyweight</td><td>UFC Fight Night 271</td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td>Lerryan Douglas</td><td>Featherweight</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Suspended fighters

2026 in UFC

The list below is based on fighters suspended either by (1) United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) or World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for violation of taking prohibited substances or non-analytical incidents, (2) by local commissions on misconduct during the fights or at event venues, or (3) by the UFC for reasons also stated below.

The Ultimate Fighter

2026 in UFC

The following The Ultimate Fighter season is scheduled for broadcast in 2026:

Title fights

2026 in UFC

Title fights in 2026
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Event	Notes
Lightweight	Justin Gaethje	def.	Paddy Pimblett	Decision (unanimous) (48–47, 49–46, 49–46)	5	5:00	UFC 324
Featherweight	Alexander Volkanovski (c)	def.	Diego Lopes	Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 49–46, 50–45)	5	5:00	UFC 325
Light Heavyweight	Jiří Procházka	vs.	Carlos Ulberg				UFC 327
Flyweight	Joshua Van (c)	vs.	Tatsuro Taira				UFC 327
Middleweight	Khamzat Chimaev (c)	vs.	Sean Strickland				UFC 328
Lightweight	Ilia Topuria (c)	vs.	Justin Gaethje (ic)				UFC Freedom 250
Heavyweight	Alex Pereira	vs.	Ciryl Gane				UFC Freedom 250