A rematch between featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes will headline UFC 325 on Jan. 31 in Australia, UFC CEO Dana White announced Thursday.
The event, which will take place Feb. 1 locally in Sydney, comes after Volkanovski defeated Lopes in five rounds at UFC 314 in April.
Lopes returned to the win column after the loss by defeating Jean Silva via second-round TKO in September.
However, Volkanovski and Lopes' rematch has drawn negative reactions from MMA fans and fighters, as a pair of other featherweight contenders, Movsar Evloev and Lerone Murphy, remain undefeated. Evloev has yet to fight in 2025 due to injury, but Murphy was rumored to be Volkanovski's potential next challenger. Evloev and Murphy reacted to White's announcement on social media.
"Missing the opportunity to fight one of the featherweight GOATs is what hurts me the most," Muprhy wrote. "It's not about who's the best anymore. It's about who's most popular."
Lopes ranks No. 2 in the featherweight division, while Evloev and Murphy hold the No. 1 and No. 4 spots, respectively.
"Leon Murphy, I will give you the opportunity to fight the No. 1 contender," Evloev said. "Tell your people you're ready to fight me on the same card as the championship."
The UFC will kick off 2026 with back-to-back numbered events, with UFC 324 announced for Jan. 24. The event will be headlined by Justin Gaethje versus Paddy Pimblett for the interim lightweight title, and Amanda Nunes taking on Kayla Harrison for the women's bantamweight championship.
