UFC 324: Gaethje for Interim Title Storylines & Stats
- The long wait is finally over for mixed martial arts fans after six consecutive winter weekends without a UFC event to watch.
- The UFC's 2026 schedule kicks off this Saturday with justin Gaethje adn Paddy Pimblett competing for an interim lightweight title in the main event of UFC 324 at...
- Former men's bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley returns to action against Song Yadong in the co-main event with the winner hoping to jump the line at 135 pounds and...
The long wait is finally over for mixed martial arts fans after six consecutive winter weekends without a UFC event to watch.
The UFC’s 2026 schedule kicks off this Saturday with justin Gaethje adn Paddy Pimblett competing for an interim lightweight title in the main event of UFC 324 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Former men’s bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley returns to action against Song Yadong in the co-main event with the winner hoping to jump the line at 135 pounds and earn a title shot against new champion Petr Yan.
The card took a major hit last week when Kayla Harrison withdrew from her anticipated title defense against amanada nunes. The reigning UFC women’s bantamweight champion and two-time Olympic gold medallist underwent surgery on her neck and her bout with Nunes was postponed indefinitely.
Even with Harrison vs. Nunes needing to be rescheduled, UFC 324 still boasts a strong undercard with multiple former UFC champions and recordholders set to compete.
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Fans can watch the official UFC 324 pre-fight press conference on Thursday, Jan. 22 on Sportsnet+ beginning approximately 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT,and the UFC 324 ceremonial weigh-in is available to stream Friday,Jan. 23 live on sportsnet+ beginning approximately 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
Aaron Bronsteter and Diana Belbita are in Las Vegas with Sportsnet and will be speaking with fighters throughout the week, while Arden Zwelling will provide on-site coverage for Sportsnet.ca.
One notable difference for UFC fans in 2026 will be the start times for numbered pay-per-view events. Instead of the typical 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT main card start time, the PPV portion of UFC 324 will begin at 9 p.m.ET/6 p.m. PT with preliminary card coverage on Sportsnet+ and Sportsnet 360 starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Following the UFC 324 main event, fans can stay tuned to Sportsnet+ for live post-event coverage of fighter press conferences and reaction from UFC president Dana White.
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WatchMeanwhile, Pimblett will look to become just the eighth fighter in UFC lightweight history to win at least eight fights in a row. The 31-year-old from Liverpool, England is 7-0 so far in the UFC and about to face the biggest test of his career. Pimblett has only fought once in each of the past three years, taking out veterans michael Chandler, Bobby “King” Green and Tony Ferguson, however none of those opponents have reached the heights Gaethje has in the UFC.
Five of Pimblett’s seven UFC wins have been finishes and each of those wins earned him a performance bonus. Pimblett can become the fourth English champion in UFC history and the first within the lightweight division. Other English UFC champs: Michael Bisping (middleweight), Leon Edwards (welterweight), and Tom Aspinall (heavyweight).
Referee Marc Goddard gets the main event assignment this weekend, while Mike Bell, Derek Cleary and Sal D’Amato have been named the three judges for Gaethje vs. Pimblett by the Nevada Athletic Commission.
Tsarukyan has rooting interest
A key piece of context around the UFC 324 main event matchup is the fact neither Gaethje nor Pimblett are the No. 1-ranked contender in the weight class yet an interim title is at stake. Arman Tsarukyan is the top contender at 155 pounds, and has been for a while, but he is not in the UFC’s good graces for a variety of unmeritocratic reasons and keeps getting passed over for the title shot.
Tsarukyan told Demetrious Johnson this week he’ll be cheering for the more experienced fighter who’s listed as the underdog this week.
“I hope it’s Gaethje because I don’t like Paddy, first of all, so I hope he’s going to knock him out,” Tsarukyan said.
Tsarukyan also said that he’s so confident he can make easy work of pimblett that he thinks the UFC will try to avoid making that matchup because he doesn’t think it would be competitive.
The UFC’s tentative plan is for the winner of Gaethje vs. Pimblett to face Topuria in a title unification bout later this year when the champ is ready to return to the cage,however for now Tsarukyan and his top contender status continues to linger over the division.
The last time O’Malley wasn’t featured in a main event title fight was back at UFC 280 in 2022 when he won a three-round split decision over Petr Yan in tightly contested bout that earned both men a Fight of the Night bonus. O’Malley used that win over Yan to get a title shot and became 135-pound champion the following year when he finished Aljamain Sterling then defended the title once when he avenged a previous loss to Marlon Vera. “Suga” is coming off back-to-back losses to Merab Dvalishvili – a five-round decision at UFC 306 and a third-round submission at UFC 316 – and getting back in the win column can do a lot more than merely boost his confidence.
Considering his star power combined with the fact he holds a previous win over the current champion, an notable showing against Yadong in the UFC 324 co-main event could pot
Okay, here’s a breakdown of the UFC 324 fight card, summarizing key stats and storylines from the provided text. I’ll organize it by fight/fighter, focusing on the records and notable facts presented.
Sean O’Malley vs. Yadong Song
* Sean O’malley: Boasts impressive striking stats – 61.2% strike accuracy (division history), 6.3 strikes landed per minute (4th best in division history), and a 2.88 striking differential (best in the division).
* Yadong Song: A power puncher who could tie O’Malley, Rob Font, and Marlon Vera for second-most KO/TKO wins in the division with a win. has won 3 of his last 4 fights. His only loss in the last three years was a decision to Yan.Derrick Lewis vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta
* Derrick Lewis: UFC’s all-time KO/TKO wins leader with 16.This is also the 3rd most finishes in UFC history overall.He’s 3 wins behind Andrei Arlovski for most wins in heavyweight history. A win could put him back in the heavyweight title conversation. Has finished 3 of his last 4 opponents.
* waldo Cortes-Acosta: Fighting for the 6th time in the last 10 months, coming off back-to-back first-round knockout wins.Natalia Silva vs.Rose Namajunas
* Natalia Silva: Has won 7 consecutive bouts in the women’s flyweight division (tied for 2nd-longest streak in division history).Leads the division in striking differential (2.58) and takedown defense (92.3%).
* rose Namajunas: Has won 3 of 4 as moving to flyweight. Her average fight time at 125 pounds is the longest in the division (21:00). Her striking defense ranks 2nd best all time (68.1%). The winner is likely to challenge valentina Shevchenko for the flyweight title.Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva
* Arnold allen: Has 11 wins in the UFC featherweight division (tied for 6th-most all time). contemplated moving to lightweight but stayed at featherweight.
* Jean Silva: An all-action fighter with featherweight bouts averaging just 6:42 (4th-shortest average fight time in the division). Has the 3rd-best featherweight knockdown rate (2.24 knockdowns per 15 minutes).let me know if you’d like me to elaborate on any specific fighter or matchup!