Top 5 Fights in July

The The UFC The mass return to England is the highlight of July’s Octagon bouts, writes Quintin van Jaarsveld as he highlights the five most anticipated fights of the month, including two title fights.

Rose Namajunas vs. Tracy Cortez

Sunday July 14 SA time

The month’s UFC action kicks off at Ball Arena in Dallas, where former two-time strawweight queen Namajunas takes on rising star Cortez, who steps in on short notice for the injured Maycee Barber.

One of the biggest names and most popular fighters in women’s mixed martial arts history, Namajunas is a true future Hall of Famer. At 31, she still has plenty of time to add to her legacy, and she plans to do so by winning a title in a second weight class. “Thug” is 1-1 since moving up to flyweight, rebounding from a loss to Manon Fiorot with a win over Amanda Ribas in March.

Cortez remains undefeated since joining the UFC in 2019. She earned her fifth win inside the Octagon when she brought back Jasmine Jasudavicius last September, answering the call for what will be her first UFC main event.

Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad

Sunday July 18 SA time

Local favorite Edwards headlines the monthly pay-per-view bout, defending his welterweight title against the unwavering Muhammad at Co-op Live in Manchester, England.

Both men are on epic winning streaks. Edwards has been unstoppable since 2016, capturing the title with an all-time stunning knockout win over Kamaru Usman and defending it twice as part of a 13-fight unbeaten run to establish himself as the best welterweight in the world.

Muhammad is now undefeated in ten fights, since 2019. The two met in an unfortunate encounter in March 2021 when an accidental eye poke in the second round left Muhammad unable to continue fighting, resulting in a no-contest.

Now they finally battle again with the 170-pound title at stake.

Tom Aspinall vs Curtis Blaydes

Sunday July 28 SA time

The welterweight title isn’t the only belt on the line at UFC 304, as Englishman Aspinall will be making his interim heavyweight title defense for the first time.

The British giant won the title by knocking out Sergei Pavlovich last November. With the UFC pushing hard to have Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic battle it out for the ‘real’ belt later this year, Aspinall won’t be sitting still and will instead be making a long-awaited homecoming with something to prove.

Like the main event, the co-headliner is a rematch of a fight that ended unsatisfactorily. The first meeting between Aspinall and Blaydes took place in July 2022 when the former suffered a knee injury seconds into the bout, giving the latter a TKO victory. It sidelined Aspinall for a year and remains his only loss inside the Octagon.

As for Blaydes, he has been close to a title shot for a long time. The American has won three of his last four fights, but most recently defeated Jailton Almeida in March and finally gets a shot at championship gold.

Bobby Green vs Paddy Pimblett

Sunday July 28 SA time

Pimblett, another of England’s favourite fighters, will be looking to remain undefeated in the Octagon when he takes on the ruthless veteran Green.

“The Baddy” is a young and popular fighter who transcends mixed martial arts with his charisma, exciting style and social media presence. He is an absolute superstar in his home country and after scoring the biggest win of his career over former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson in December, he is looking to take down another UFC stalwart.

Green has won three of his last four fights and is ranked No. 15 in the 155-pound division. He crushed fellow veteran Jim Miller at UFC 300 in April and is looking to teach “spoiled brat” Pimblett a lesson.

Arnold Allen vs Giga Chikadze

Sunday July 28 SA time

Allen is another Brit who will perform in front of his home crowd at UFC 304. After building an impressive 10-0 record, “Almighty” finds himself in a tough spot after losing his last two fights in a row.

Former featherweight champion and current BMF titleholder Max Holloway handed him his first defeat, before falling short to another top contender in Movsar Evloev in January. Both defeats were by decision. He is still ranked No. 6, but he is looking to get back on track on home soil.

A dangerous striker with deadly kicks in particular, Chikadze is ranked ninth and is keen to ramp up his activity, having fought just once since a loss to Calvin Kattar in January 2022. That appearance saw “Ninja” take a decision win over veteran Alex Caceres last August.

This will be an interesting fight on the feet between two top 10 featherweights.

Quintin Van Jaarsveld is a former MDDA-Sanlam SA Local Sports Journalist of the Year and a former three-time Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal Sports Journalist of the Year. Previously Sports Editor and Outstanding Journalist of the Year winner at The Fever Media Group, Deputy Editor at eHowzit, Editor at SARugby.com and Senior Staff Member at Rugby365.com, he has over 15 years of experience and is currently a freelance sports journalist.