5 massive fights UFC fans still have to look forward to before October is out

October hasn't been the greatest month for UFC fans so far, with the cards being somewhat lightweight in terms of name-value and ranked competitors.

Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker's main event fight, which had been billed as a potential fight of the year candidate, failed to deliver for many. On the same event, an exciting co-main fight between Kevin Holland and Kyle Daukaus was cut short after an accidental clash of heads.

More recently, UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Rodriguez only had one ranked fight on the entire card outside the main event. The same can be said for this weekend's UFC Fight Night: Ladd vs. Dumont card.

However, the latter half of October promises a number of great fights to reward UFC fans for their patience. In the following list, we breakdown five fights to look forward to before the end of the month.

Honorable mentions go to Alex Caceres vs. Seung Woo Choi, Magomed Ankalaev vs. Volkan Oezdemir and Alexander Volkov vs. Marcin Tybura.

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#5. Li Jingliang vs. Khamzat Chimaev - UFC welterweight

In 2020, Khamzat Chimaev became arguably the UFC's biggest breakout star of the year. 'Borz' tore through three consecutive opponents, finishing John Phillips, Rhys McKee and Gerald Meerschaert.

However, at UFC 267, Chimaev will face his first ranked opponent in Li Jingliang. 'The Leech' sits at No.11 in the 170-pound division. He's coming off a devastating knockout win over Santiago Ponzinibbio. He will no doubt be hoping a win over a name with a following like Chimaev will catapult him right into the list of contenders at 170 pounds.

Jingliang will serve as a big step up in opposition for Chimaev, who must rise to the challenge or become yet another hype train unable to live up to expectations. Both men are skilled on the feet and on the mat. Fans can look forward to an absolute war between the two elite welterweights.

#4. Dan Hooker vs. Islam Makhachev - UFC lightweight

At UFC 266, Dan 'The Hangman' Hooker went through an incredibly arduous process to get from New Zealand to the U.S. He eventually arrived the day before weigh-ins, made weighr and then went on to put on a three-round clinic against lightweight prospect Nasrat Haqparast.

Now only a month later, Hooker will step into the octagon once again, this time facing off against one of the most dominant fighters in his division, Islam Makhachev.

Makhachev is often considered to be the second coming of former undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. However, whilst the two men train together, are close friends and even share a similar martial arts base, they are by no means the same fighter.

Makhachev's striking is considerably different from his compatriot and he poses a number of different threats to that of Khabib. Despite that, his wrestling is still often the great divider.

Dan Hooker has had success against grapplers before, with the brutal KO of Gilbert Burns especially notable. However, Makhachev may well pose a problem that the native of New Zealand has not yet faced in the octagon.

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#3. Marvin Vettori vs. Paulo Costa - UFC middleweight

This main event fight between two former title challengers bizarrely appears to be one of the most overlooked fights of the whole month. That's despite a likely guarantee of extreme violence between two incredibly talented middleweights.

Both Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori are coming off losses to the UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. However, outside of their defeats to him, nearly every fight the two men have been involved in has resulted in fireworks.

UFC 241 Cormier v Miocic 2

En route route to his title shot, Costa initially racked up four consecutive KO victories, including two against Johny Hendricks and Uriah Hall. He was then matched up with Yoel Romero. The two men put on an incredible Fight of the Year contender, with Costa's hand being raised as the dust settled.

Meanwhile, prior to his title shot, Marvin Vettori had been on an impressive five-fight win streak against elite opposition such as Jack Hermansson, Kevin Holland and Karl Roberson.

#2. Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen - UFC bantamweight

With UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling not getting medically cleared to defend his title, the UFC has booked an interim title fight between former champion Petr Yan and top contender Cory Sandhagen.

This matchup screams fight of the night. Both men are two of the most skilled strikers in the division, despite having incredibly different contrasting styles. Cory Sandhagen has an impressive kickboxing background and is a master of utilizing flashy techniques to score big KO finishes.

Petr Yan's base is more centered around Muay Thai and the Russian uses it to great effect. The damage alone that Yan's opponents tend to accumulate is just brutal. He has the proven cardio to continue with it for five full rounds.

Fans can expect a striking masterclass from both men, although it remains to be seen whose skillset is superior to the other.

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#1. Jan Blachowicz vs. Glover Teixeira - UFC light heavyweight

UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz has repeatedly defied the odds to not only claim the 205-pound belt, but to also defend it. He now faces off against an opponent who has also been written off in the past. However, rather than wilt, Glover Teixeira has continuosly risen to the occasion.

This will be Glover Teixeira's second title shot and most likely his last. In 2014, Teixeira faced off against former champion Jon Jones. Like many before and after him, the Brazilian came up short.

After that, he bounced between wins and losses. That was, until 2019, when Teixeira submitted Karl Roberson, which would be his first win in an impressive five-fight winning streak that now sees him facing off against Jan Blachowicz.

UFC Fight Night Santos v Teixeira

Blachowicz himself is on a five-fight winning streak, although it is also worth noting he has only lost one of his last 10 fights. Amongst his recent victories are wins against Israel Adesanya, Dominick Reyes and Jared Cannonier.

Unfortunately, one of these UFC veterans' winning streaks has to go. However, fans can rest assured that they will no doubt be treated to an incredible display of skill and violence from both men before the fight is up.