“January 29, 2025 10:00 pm ET With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from January 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for January. At the bottom of the post, let us know”, — write: mmajunkie.usatoday.com
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.
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Nominees
The fight was a battle for 15 minutes. Well, almost 15. Both men got their licks in but when a Kopylov (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) head kick dropped Curtis (31-12 MMA, 5-4 UFC) in the final seconds, referee Mark Smith intervened to wave off the fight to the protest of Curtis and his team.
After absorbing a knockdown from Alhassan (12-7 MMA, 6-7 UFC) early in the contest, Almeida (6-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) got back to his feet and engaged in a firefight. He tucked his chin and connected with a huge punch, putting the lights out on his opponent in an incredible, highlight-reel comeback finish.
After both delivering big shots throughout the contest, Prochazka (31-5-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) landed best in the closing minutes of the final round that dropped Hill (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC). He pounced on top and landed some more shots until the referee waved it off.
The UFC bantamweight championship remained around the Georgian’s waist after Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) outpacing Nurmagomedov (18-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) to a unanimous decision in a thrilling battle where both men had their moments, but ultimately the champion’s conditioning proved to be a difference-maker in his favor once again.
The winner
Nurmagomedov (19-0) narrowly retained championship when an extremely game Hughes (13-2) put on the performance of a lifetime in pushing the Dagestan-born titleholder to his limit. It wasn’t enough, though, and Nurmagomedov was awarded the majority decision victory.
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