Merab Dvalishvili might legit be a machine. Four title defenses in a single year? That’s some maniacal behavior from one of the UFC’s top maniacs. UFC 323 has a lot going on, from Merab’s rematch with Petr Yan to Alexandre Pantoja’s flyweight title defense against the phenom Joshua Van, to three former champions — Brandon Moreno, Henry Cejudo and Jan Blachowicz — all competing on the pay-per-view, too.
And speaking of pay-per-views, this is it. The alleged last UFC event to command your disposable income. As of 2026, it’s just a subscription required on Paramount+.
We’re here to tackle the burning questions for UFC 323. Let’s get right down to it!
1. If Merab Dvalishvili makes it four title defenses in 2025, is this the greatest year we’ve ever seen from a UFC champion?
Petesy Carroll: When Kamaru Usman completed three title defenses in 2021, we were pondering whether he was the greatest welterweight of all time, effectively ousting the greatest fighter of all time, Georges St Pierre, from that spot. If Merab gets this done, we have to at least give him Fighter of the Year, right? He is the UFC’s version of “The Ugly Duckling” — he may not fit the mold of what Dana White thought a champion was initially, but he has flourished in front of the world’s eyes, forcing us to collectively realize that he is a beautiful swan.
Feel me?
Chuck Mindenhall: I do feel you. At least Dana has thawed out some on his Merab stance. I think there was a time — perhaps right around when Merab dove headfirst into an iced-over lake — that he believed he had a Neanderthal on his hands. But I saw some love looks cast Merab’s way in Vegas at UFC 320 in October, and Dana was the one batting his eyes. I guess when you fight as frequently as Merab does, it tends to inspire some awe.
As far as the greatest year, I’d definitely put it up there. You’re right to mention Kamaru’s year, as that was special. Ronda Rousey nearly had three before that head kick in Australia did her in. Thinking it over, in terms of just brass tacks, no-nonsense going out and defending the title, this probably is the greatest year we’ve seen from a champion.
2. Petr Yan had a rough go of it when they fought in 2023 — what’s his path to victory against Merab this time through?
Chuck: Yan nearly quadrupled Deiveson Figueiredo in strikes when they met last November. When he beat Marcus McGhee, he was able to splice in some control time (a little over three minutes) to go along with superior striking. It’s been an impressive bounce-back for the merciless Russian, and I think he looks more and more like the Petr Yan you used to love so much in those halcyon days when he was still coming up as a contender, Petesy. That’s all very heartening.
But in this three-fight win streak, Yan’s gone to the judges’ scorecards each time. Given Merab’s preternatural cardio and pace, I feel it’s next to impossible to outpoint him in a five-round fight. Unless …unless, you know … he can hurt Merab to the point of no return. If he can keep it standing long enough to land the shot. I think that’s the only route for Yan. Land the big shot that shuts “The Machine” down. Make it a short night. Otherwise, it’ll be a long one.
Petesy: You’re right — Yan is definitely capable of hurting Merab, but it’s very difficult for me to see it happening given how the first meeting went. Back then, I thought Yan had a great opening round, but in his three-round days it was nearly a given that Merab would drop the opening stanza.
I thought it was really interesting to listen to Sean O’Malley break it down on Tuesday’s episode of “The Ariel Helwani Show.” He was full of praise for his former foe, but believes he’s started to fall in love with his hands. That was the downfall of the aforementioned Usman, and as “Suga” pointed out, Yan is the last dude you want to stand in the pocket with.
It’s a long shot, but I’ve been a Yan mark since his ACB days, so I won’t rule it out.
3. Does a victory over the young Joshua Van get Alexandre Pantoja into the flyweight GOAT conversation with Demetrious Johnson?
Petesy: You’re not gonna believe this, but I’m about to namecheck a dude that isn’t fighting for a third time in as many answers … isn’t Pantoja the Usman to Demetrious Johnson’s GSP?
Pantoja is excellent, one of the greatest fighters of his era and currently one of the pound-for-pound best. However, he happens to ply his trade in a division that once had a champion that won so much it became boring to the point the UFC acknowledged the existent of another promotion and traded him for Ben Askren.
Pantoja would be the best fighter ever in any division other than flyweight … and probably welterweight … and I’d put light heavyweight in there too, to be honest.
But s***, Chuck, he’s really, really good.
Chuck: Pantoja is a very strong sensation whenever we’re in the moment. When he fights, you’re overcome with his unique blend of savagery and skill, and you try to keep it in your brain the abandon in which he attacks these dudes out there gunning for him. I’ve never seen a champion so fearless in that way. But then other cards on the calendar come and go, and he quietly recedes into the backdrop, and you don’t think about him all that much until he appears again.
Petesy, I dig me some Pantoja. I want to anoint him the best, I think, because I believe he’s fighting harder competition than Demetrious. But because Demetrious was on top so long, it’s difficult for me to place Pantoja above him. Maybe if he’s still on top next year we can revisit.
4. As with WWE, the UFC will book its great champions into fights meant for them to lose and help the other guy get over. Is that what’s going on here with Henry Cejudo and Joshua Van?
Chuck: Just like the inimitable Frank Ocean, the UFC loves itself some Payton Talbott. He’s that rare fighter who marches to the beat of his own drum, which is intriguing for a promotion that needs stars. This fight feels tailor-made to jump Talbott into a big spot as we head into the Paramount+ era. If he beats “Triple C” — who, let’s be honest, will go down in history as “Double C” — Talbott becomes a “fighter to watch in 2026.”
A win over Cejudo would certainly look good on Talbott’s resume, too, but I fear that expectations might outpace his ability. The only way up from there is against the kind of name who can bring things crashing back to Earth really quick. Talbott showed some serious mettle in his fight with Felipe Lima in June, but I can’t shake the Raoni Barcelos fight from my mind. That was a serious vertigo moment for the kid from Reno, who was something like an 8-to-1 favorite.
But yes, this is my roundabout way of saying this fight is designed to get Talbott over.
Petesy: I agree the UFC is attempting to put Talbott over here, but to your point, isn’t this a bit risky after what happened with Barcelos? And sure, Barcelos is a two-time South American wrestling champion, but Henry Cejudo is an Olympic gold medalist! If Barcelos was able to wet blanket him, surely Cejudo could too?
I was hitting GC with this equation on Wednesday’s show and he made a good point that Barcelos is a lot taller than Cejudo. While you could argue it’s a better situation for the wrestler to be smaller, it’s also a huge advantage for a striker to be taller, and therefore punching down on his opponent.
It’s a great fight and a massive opportunity for Talbott, who might not get another one like it if he comes away with another loss.
Van feels different to me. Pantoja, unlike Cejudo, is at the height of his powers, and I think it’s all happening a bit too quickly for Van. I wouldn’t rule him out of being a champion one day, but I doubt that day is this Saturday night.
5. Best fight not mentioned on UFC 323, and why?
Petesy: For me, it’s Chris Duncan’s lightweight tussle with Terrance McKinney, two out-and-out finishers. My Celtic brother Duncan has one helluva story. He was going to be shepherd before he found MMA. While he was weighing in for his first amateur fight, he got a phone call telling him his mother had died, and he still competed the following day. The guy is built different. At the risk of cursing it, it’s got does-not-go-the-distance written all over it, and I can’t wait!
Chuck: That’s a good one for sure, Petesy. I didn’t know people were still becoming shepherds. We don’t hear of guys out there trying to be coopers or blacksmiths before taking off their shoes to fight, so that’s a solid shout.
I am going with Jalin Turner and Edson Barboza. Maybe it’s a residual feeling of what Barboza used to do a decade ago, but this one feels like a dark horse to deliver a bonus, especially with Turner professing to have rediscovered his mojo.
Man. I know you were at the Cosmopolitan that night when Barboza and Tony Ferguson threw down, which was just as violent of a fight as you’ll ever see. In that small room you could hear the hollows of their chests and the thwaps of the knuckles meeting bone, the wheeze of blows being absorbed. Good lord, Petesy, if you’d have told me then Barboza would still be fighting in the UFC a decade later, I’d have laughed (or cried). Kid has/had no sense of self-preservation.
Good buffet that night, too, if you recall.
6. Now that the pay-per-view era has seemingly reached its end, what are you going to miss about the model?
Chuck: It’s a little bittersweet, isn’t it? I wrote a column about it when the Paramount+ deal was announced, and I still feel a little pre-nostalgic about it all. There was a time when the fan base gathered around these pay-per-views like it was a campfire, and it felt like an exclusive club to be in. Those were the days when Twitter was a fun hang, long before the X stamp.
Anyway, all of this is long gone, but in the late-aughts through the boom period we had something special going on. I will miss that. I also throw back all the way to the beginning, because I very much remember some of the advertisements for the taboo no-rules variation that rocked the Mile High City. We were paying to see something barely legal, Petesy! And there was a trace of that feeling the whole way through. I wonder how the UFC will make big events on Paramount+ feel special, you know?
Petesy: I remember those days too. There was nothing like having five or six lads in my old sitting room at five in the morning, trying to shout at the television as quietly as possible so we didn’t wake up my parents. Remember waiting months between fight cards and the excitement when the eventual fight week would come around? Those were UFC’s punk-rock days. We’re now in the McDonald’s era.
I hope we get those big fights, too, but there will still be a lot of Happy Meal weekends. If Dana’s initial IG Live on Thanksgiving is anything to go by, we probably aren’t getting wild promos any time soon. But as long as it’s making money hand over fist, do you think UFC actually cares? Unfortunately, I do not.
That said, I still get pumped for a big fight night, and UFC 323 certainly delivers in that regard.
See you on The Craic and on the post-fight show, my friend!
