Top Five UFC Fights To Look Forward To In April

Josh Emmett v Lerone Murphy

When: Sunday, April 6

Power meets perfection when elite featherweights Emmett and Murphy meet in the first main event of the month at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas.

The scariest knockout artist at 145 pounds, Emmett has been competing in the UFC for nearly a decade and has notable wins over the likes of Bryce Mitchell, Calvin Kattar and Michael Johnson. Back for the first time since his gnarly knockout of Mitchell in December 2023, the veteran seeks to hand Murphy his first loss.

The undefeated Murphy has steadily climbed the rankings and broke into the top 10 with wins over seasoned campaigners Dan Ige and Edson Barboza in his last two fights. Now, he looks to claim his biggest scalp yet in what should be an entertaining stand-up battle.

Alexander Volkanovski v Diego Lopes

When: Sunday, April 13

Volkanovski, the greatest featherweight of all time, looks to add to his legacy when he battles the young and surging Lopes for the vacant title in the main event of UFC 314 at the Kaseya Center in Miami.

A former champion, Volkanovski is a future first ballot Hall of Famer but at 36, he feels he’s far from finished and plans to rule over the 145-pound division once more. “The Great” was dethroned by Ilia Topuria last February and with Topuria vacating the belt and moving up to lightweight, Volkanovski has the opportunity to reclaim the title.

Rising star Lopes has taken the division by storm. The exciting Brazilian is on a five-fight win streak with his march up the ladder seeing him take down notable names such as Brian Ortega, Dan Ige and Sodiq Yusuff. Now, less than two years into his UFC career, he has a chance to defeat a legend and realise his dream of becoming champion.

Michael Chandler v Paddy Pimblett

When: Sunday, April 13

UFC 314’s co-headliner promises to produce fireworks.

Chandler is one of the most entertaining and violent fighters around, a savage showman who delivers every time, win, lose or draw. A former lightweight title challenger, “Iron” looks to get back on track following losses to ex-interim titleholder Dustin Poirier and former champion Charles Oliveira.

Vastly popular Pimblett has beaten every man set in front of him inside the Octagon thus far. His six-fight win streak in the UFC includes victories over former interim champion Tony Ferguson and King Green. This is his first big test, especially considering it’s scheduled for five rounds, and a win will see him break into the top 10.

Yair Rodriguez v Patricio Pitbull

When: Sunday, April 13

UFC 314 will also see the promotional debut of Pitbull, a former Bellator champion in both the featherweight and lightweight divisions.

One of Bellator’s all-time greats, he held the featherweight title three times and captured the lightweight crown with a quick knockout of Michael Chandler. At 37, he has zero time to waste in his search for UFC gold and thus jumps straight into the deep end against one of the best at 145 pounds.

A former interim featherweight champion, Rodriguez is arguably the most dynamic and unpredictable striker in the division. He holds wins over the iconic BJ Penn, former title challenger Brian Ortega and Josh Emmett, currently finds himself in the top five and vows he won’t allow Pitbull to use him as a springboard.

Jamahal Hill v Khalil Rowntree Jr

When: Sunday, April 27

Former light heavyweight king Hill and fellow top contender Rowntree top the marquee at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.

The pair of destructive strikers are looking to get back in the win column and begin another run towards a title shot. Hill is coming off knockout losses to then-champion Alex Pereira and ex-titleholder Jiri Prochazka, while Rowntree put up a good fight but was also stopped in his title fight against Pereira.

Two big, explosive, top-10 205-pounders, this will be a banger.