Chaos agents: The fighters who could shake up MMA in 2024،
Like any sport, mixed martial arts has a relatively established roster of stars.
Amanda Nunes and Valentina Shevchenko, for example – UFC champions and status quo for years. Israel Adesanya has made the middleweight division his own for many years. And don't forget the 155-pound dominance of Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
In addition to the status quo, there are also fighters waiting for their shot, agents of chaos for each division. Every year, someone is making things happen, and in 2023 those names included Sean Strickland, Alexa Grasso, Alex Pereira and Tom Aspinall. None of them came out of nowhere, but they did change their respective divisions. They modified the landscapes.
As we look ahead to 2024, here are some names that could replicate the upsets of 2023. These aren't championship predictions or simply naming the best fighters in each weight class. These are fighters who could break out in 2024 and have a chance to significantly alter the outlook around each division.
Strawweight: Josefine Knutsson
He's a distant contender in the 115-pound division, but don't be surprised if Knutsson flourishes this year. She's only 1-0 in the UFC, but she's not far from a finished product. Knutsson is a highly technical fighter from the AllStars training center in Stockholm, Sweden and looks physically strong to stand up to some of the intimidation styles of this division. There's no doubt that Knutsson, 28, would be favored against many strawweights currently ranked in the top 15. She won't become champion in 2024, but I think she could make a run at the title.
Men's flyweight: Tatsuro Taira
There are plenty of opportunities for a new flyweight to become a contender in the UFC. This division has been extremely entertaining at the top, but these fights have also had the same names for a while. The defending champion, Alexandre Pantoja, has already faced Brandon Moreno and Brandon Royval twice. Moreno and Royval have fought and will fight again in February. Kai Kara-France fought Moreno (twice), as well as Royval. You know what I mean? Any newcomer who can reach this next level in 2024 will have great opportunities. The two names that stand out are Taira and Muhammad Mokaev. Mokaev has received more fanfare than Taira so far, so we'll make the 23-year-old Taira a slightly more likely pick to shake up this division in 2024.
Women's flyweight: Manon Fiorot
This could essentially be a two-way tie between Fiorot and Erin Blanchfield, but we're going with Fiorot. Blanchfield was ESPN's agent of chaos for this division in 2023, and she did not disappoint, posting wins over Jessica Andrade and Taila Santos. Frenchman Fiorot is scheduled to face Blanchfield on March 30, and while the UFC could have easily let that match headline the UFC Fight Night event, it will instead take place under a headliner of Vicente Luque vs. Sean Brady. The winner is almost guaranteed a title shot. Fiorot likely has higher commercial appeal, as his rise could potentially attract a sizable French fanbase. Just like Alexa Grasso scored a big goal for Mexico in 2023, Fiorot could do the same for France in 2024.
Men's Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov
This was the toughest choice of any division, as bantamweight is loaded with talent. Last year's pick fell to Merab Dvalishvili, and he delivered a crushing performance against former champion Petr Yan. Cory Sandhagen is a leading candidate. He's ranked in the top 5 in the division and his style produces the kind of highlights fans love. But Nurmagomedov is the one who could see the biggest increase. We know Dvalishvili, Sandhagen, Henry Cejudo, Deiveson Figueiredo and even, to a lesser extent, Song Yadong. We know much less about Nurmagomedov. If the UFC is able to book him big fights and he performs as expected, he will be the division's breakthrough in 2024. It's as simple as that.
Women's Bantamweight: Kayla Harrison
It's a pretty obvious choice, after the UFC announced last week that it had signed the two-time Olympic gold medalist. Harrison had a great career with the PFL, but she had exhausted her options there. A fourth fight against Larissa Pacheco — whom she beat two out of three — would have been interesting, but again, it would have been their fourth fight. A mega-fight with Bellator's Cris Cyborg would have been great, but it was starting to feel like this match would never happen, even if they were in the same promotion. Harrison's outlook for 2024 just took a 180-degree turn. She is now up to 135 pounds, which is intriguing in itself. She has a huge opportunity right off the bat, against Holly Holm at UFC 300. Harrison is not only an agent of chaos in this weight class, she is one of the greatest in the sport.
Featherweight: Max Holloway
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Max Holloway excited for BMF fight with Justin Gaethje
Max Holloway joins Brett Okamoto to discuss his BMF title fight against Justin Gaethje.
How can Holloway – arguably the greatest featherweight of all time – be an “agent of chaos” in 2024? Let me explain. The reason I choose Holloway is because somehow it resembles sport very lowered his expectations of him last year. Since suffering three losses to Alexander Volkanovski since 2019, Holloway has been in this strange purgatory of defending his place in the division, but without a belt around his waist. But consider the possibilities in 2024. If he beats Justin Gaethje for the BMF belt at UFC 300, it's not unlikely he'll face the winner of the Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria title fight next month. If Holloway, who is 4-1 in his last five fights, remains undefeated in 2024, it will shake up 145 pounds in a very significant way.
Lightweight: Arman Tsarukyan
We had already seen Tsarukyan shake up the division last year. Finally, a new face has entered this first level of the division, which has long been reserved, almost exclusively, for Charles Oliveira, Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler. It's been virtually impossible to get new blood to join them, but Tsarukyan will do so this year when he faces Oliveira at UFC 300. Benoit Saint Denis is also in the mix here, as he faces Poirier at UFC 299 Of these two, Tsarukyan has a better chance of dethroning champion Islam Makhachev, which would obviously cause chaos.
Welterweight: Ian Machado Garry
Garry has been looking really good lately. He has been head and shoulders above his opponent in 2023, including in his decision victory over Neil Magny in August. He has already laid out his hit list for 2024, which includes Geoff Neal, who he will fight next month, Colby Covington and Sean Strickland. Garry has people talking about him – and not just from fans and media, but from other fighters, including former champions. The stage is set for a real year of breakout, potentially polarizing.
Middleweight: Sean Strickland
Strickland was the division's agent of chaos in 2023, and he could be again in 2024. There's big fights for Strickland in 2024. Rematches against Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev (who publicly claims to have owned Strickland in the gym). Not to mention that Strickland, in some ways, is chaos incarnate. Sure, we could go through the rankings and try to identify a new name on the rise in the middleweight division, but no one is capable of creating more chaos at 185 pounds than Strickland. He may no longer have the belt, but he's still at the center of intrigue in this division.
Light heavyweight: Vadim Nemkov
No one can really say that Bellator's Nemkov isn't already the best light heavyweight on the planet. It's almost impossible for a fighter to be ranked No. 1 in the world if he doesn't compete in the UFC, but Nemkov has the right to claim he's the best. In recent years, Nemkov has beaten every transfer from the UFC to Bellator, including Ryan Bader, Phil Davis, Corey Anderson and Yoel Romero. This year, he has a new talent pool to draw from, with the PFL and Bellator merger. He begins the year with a heavyweight fight against Bruno Cappelozza, which could be a precursor to more appearances at heavyweight. But there are some good fights for him at 205 with the PFL roster including Impa Kasanganay and Robert Wilkinson. Nemkov is someone we could reference a lot this year, even outside of the UFC.
Heavyweight: Jon Jones
If he wants to, Jones can become the agent of chaos that this division and the sport as a whole sorely want and need. I don't think many people in the MMA world expect Jones to be an active champion taking on all newcomers. If he were to do so, this division, which has been in a bit of a shambles due to aging stars and inactivity in recent years, would immediately become one of the premier weight classes in the UFC. So, on that note, please Jon. Be an agent of chaos in 2024. We would all like to see it.
