The 2024 NFL season kicks off this Thursday, and in light of that, the MMA Fighting crew decided to get together to draft yet again, but this time, we’re having even more fun with it. While the previous MMA Fighting drafts have centered around promotions and stardom, this one stands in homage to all the millions of fantasy football leagues that are about to get underway. That’s right, we’re drafting Fantasy MMA for the remainder of 2024!
The rules are fairly simple: Alexander K. Lee, Jed Meshew, Mike Heck, and Shaun Al-Shatti all draft fighters to fill out an MMA roster, with slots in each of the 11 UFC weight classes, plus one wild card spot that can go to anyone. Then, for the remaining 13 events on UFC’s 2024 calendar, each fighter earns points for his or her team based on the scoring criteria. What are those criteria?
- +100 points for a win
- An additional +50 points for a finish, with an additional +20 if it’s in the 1st Round and an additional +10 if it’s in the 2nd Round
- +25 points for beating an opponent in the UFC rankings
- +20 points for being in a title fight
- +20 points for being in a main event fight
- +50 points for winning Performance of the Night or Fight of the Night bonus
Easy enough? We sure hope so.
Based on the Wheel of Justice, Mr. Heck has the first overall choice, followed by Mr. Lee, then Mr. Al-Shatti, with Mr. Meshew taking the wheel in the Snake Draft format.
So, let’s get drafting!
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 1
Heck — Alex Pereira, light heavyweight
It seems as if Alex Pereira and I are just made for each other, as once again, he sits in a tremendous position to boost my squad at the top, while also beginning the draft with a gut punch for my fellow competitors.
Pereira has already established himself as the current frontrunner for Fighter of the Year with sensational knockouts of Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka, and now, at least on paper, has a terrific stylistic matchup on Oct. 5 when he defends the light heavyweight title against surprising challenger Khalil Rountree Jr.
Big points as soon as he steps in the octagon, but the extra scoreboard-tally potential couldn’t be higher for “Poatan,” so it was a no-brainer to take my fellow New Englander from Danbury, Conn.
Lee — Jon Jones, heavyweight
Jon Jones is the GOAT! Dana said so! How can I not pick him first?
Doing some quick math here, good ol’ reliable “Bones” should net me an easy 200 points once we’re through with the ritual sacrifice of Stipe Miocic. With respect to the heavyweight great, this is Jones’ fight to lose, and if he doesn’t finish Miocic, then something went terribly wrong.
Now, all I need is for the matchup to, uh, actually be booked.
The plan from Day 1 has been for this clash of living legends to take place at Madison Square Garden in New York and that hasn’t changed, we just had to wait 12 months longer than expected. Surely, with November just a couple of months away, nothing will go wrong this time.
Surely.
Al-Shatti — Kayla Harrison, women’s bantamweight
Damnit, AK! I’d hoped to snag Jones at No. 3 since that’s about as guaranteed of a points bonanza as exists on UFC’s current championship slate, but since that’s not an option, Team Al-Shatti must pivot to our Plan B.
You know what else doesn’t exist on UFC’s year-end schedule? Women’s bantamweights. UFC might be lucky to squeeze out five women’s bantamweight bouts before 2024 is done, and virtually none of them inspire confidence to light up the scorecard given our scoring criteria. In that sense, this is a pick based on both value and scarcity. Give me Kayla Harrison effortlessly racking up 150+ points at UFC 307 while the rest of y’all try to wade through the Nora Cornolles and Daria Zheleznyakovas of the world.
Meshew — Sean O’Malley, bantamweight
Since this is the first time we’ve ever done this, I’m not entirely sure what the best plan of attack is, but I’ve settled on one I’ll be using: The title fight bonus is massive, and the potential for getting more than one fight in a year is too.
O’Malley gets me 40 points right out of the gate for being in a main event and a title fight, and if he wins, the numbers skyrocket. Plus, since he’s fighting next week, that means there is a world where he turns around for UFC 310 in December and I can double dip. He was No. 1 on my draft board and a steal here.
Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 2
Meshew — Alexa Grasso, women’s flyweight
This is a heck of a wheel for me, getting the betting favorite in both of the title fights taking place in a week. If one or both win (I think they both will) and then fight again this year, it should be a huge advantage.
Al-Shatti — Isaac Dulgarian, featherweight
And here is where things go off the rails.
Look, I’m either going to look brilliant or absurdly stupid by the time this year is done, but someone needs to zig while the rest of y’all are zagging, so screw it, it may as well be me. Is Isaac Dulgarian a sexy pick? No. Could 99.9 percent of fight fans pick him out of a two-person lineup? Not at all. But you know which boxes he does check off? He’s a -3000 favorite being spoon-fed a showcase matchup just three days from now.
Like Billy Beane snatching Scott Hatteberg off free agency in Moneyball, we’re hunting for inefficiencies in the system here. Sure, we could go all-in on a 50/50 title challenger in hopes that they hit a home run. Or? We could slap up singles and doubles all day by locking down a guaranteed 120+ points and maximizing the chances of double-dipping with a second go-round in late 2024. Y’all are laughing now, but there’s a real world where Dulgarian demolishes Brendon Marotte on Saturday, nabs a performance bonus, then ekes out another win in December, and suddenly we’re looking at the year-end standings and Isaac Dulgarian is out here out-earning first-round picks like Jones and Pereira.
Maybe I’m crazy. Maybe not. All I know is that guys like Dulgarian? THEY GET ON BASE.
Lee — Ilia Topuria, featherweight
As the brilliant Mr. Meshew noted earlier, title fights are easy points on the board, so I’m snagging one of the other championship bookings with Ilia Topuria taking on Max Holloway at UFC 308. I’m not quite as confident in Topuria as I am in Jones (and even less confident that Topuria can finish Holloway), but I’ve long been a believer that the featherweight champ is the real deal, and I expect him to take care of business in his first defense.
Heck — Raquel Pennington, women’s bantamweight
Again, this gets me quick points, and I feel like Raquel Pennington has a very good chance of retaining her title — at least for this defense.
Julianna Peña hasn’t fought in more than two years, and there’s a pretty good argument to be made that she shouldn’t even get this opportunity; however, she has done a tremendous job of staying in the news cycle and talking a whole bunch of crap about everyone in the division.
“Rocky” seems to be in peak form right now, and before she’ll likely have to face the buzz saw that is Kayla Harrison, I expect Pennington to get the victory here to get me the quintessential “nine catches for 87 yards”-like showing.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 3
Heck — Alessandro Costa, flyweight
This might look like a surprising pick, but this is a play of value, and potential. Costa probably won’t be fighting for a world title anytime soon, but he is a sizable favorite to beat Matt Schnell this weekend at UFC Vegas 97 — and if he gets the job done, he will likely do so with a finish.
So the chances to get a win, do so over a ranked opponent, and with a stoppage, there’s just too many possible sleeper points on the table to let Costa go any further. Welcome to the team!
Update: Well, here’s my first blunder of the draft, as Costa suffered an injury and is out of the fight. Fun times.
Lee — Benoit Saint Denis, lightweight
I’m going finish-hunting with this pick. When the final odds come out for Benoit Saint Denis vs. Renato Moicano, I’m sure it will be close to a toss-up, but if “BSD” gets the job done, he’s either taking Moicano out inside the distance or they’re throwing down for a couple of Fight of the Night checks. Either way, gimme those bonus points.
Al-Shatti — Raul Rosas Jr., bantamweight
After last round’s Dulgarian stunner, Team Al-Shatti is now going all-in on two things:
1) Heavy betting favorites.
2) Fighters already booked for September.
Keeping with our prior Moneyball analogy, the goal is to bank as many singles and doubles as possible while maximizing the chances that a few of these athletes sneak into a second scoring opportunity in November or December. In that way, Rosas fits in perfectly. He a proven finisher pegged as a massive favorite (-700) on a fast-approaching stage (Sept. 14), and the UFC loves him enough that it won’t be shocking if he comes back for a second bite of the apple on one of the bigger year-end pay-per-views. Chiwiwis indeed.
Meshew — Tatsuro Taira, flyweight
Like my first two picks, Tatsuro Taira also has a main event slot — against Brandon Royval in October — and an opportunity to beat a ranked opponent and maybe even make a quick turnaround, depending on how the flyweight title picture unfolds. Taira gives me a good floor with high upside.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 4
Meshew — Derrick Lewis, heavyweight
Jon Jones was No. 1 on my Big Board overall, so if I want to fill my heavyweight slot with a real player, I had to get aggressive. The UFC’s all-time KO leader faces Jhonata Diniz in November.
Al-Shatti — Robelis Despaigne, heavyweight
Give me the 6-foot-7 giant who’s being given the type of friendly matchmaking that screams first-round knockout + Performance of the Night bonus on an otherwise unremarkable UFC APEX show.
Guaranteed points is what we’re after and guaranteed points is what we’re getting when “The Big Boy” meets get-or-get-got all-star Austen Lane in October.
Lee —Natalia Silva, women’s flyweight
“Natty Ice” is the truth.
The Brazilian star takes on her biggest challenge yet when she fights Jessica Andrade on Saturday, and if she can put “Bate Estaca” away then she’ll make a strong case for a title shot. More importantly, she’ll make a strong case to be the best pick at women’s 125 in this whole draft.
Andrade has piled up the stoppage losses in recent years, so I’m confident Natalia Silva keeps this one out of the hands of the judges.
Heck — Magomed Ankalaev, wild card
While offense wins game, defense wins championships. So while this seems like strange strategy, I can’t let a guy like Magomed Ankalaev fall into the late rounds to be snagged up by one of my opponents — especially a fighter with incredible talent who will have a massive chip on his shoulder heading into UFC 308. Sorry, gents.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 5
Heck — Ciryl Gane, heavyweight
UFC 308 will be a huge event for me, and much like Ankalaev, Gane will be competing as a guy that the MMA community seems to forget about in the heavyweight discussion. He has a tough matchup ahead of him against the surging Alexander Volkov, but Gane already holds a victory over the man, and I like him to get it done again.
Lee — Khamzat Chimaev, middleweight
Khamzat Chimaev, at his best, beats anybody, and I’m including the always enjoyable Robert Whittaker. Imagine if he actually finishes “The Reaper?” Gimme my points.
And yes, two of my first five picks are dependent on Chimaev and Jones making it to fight night. What could go wrong?
Al-Shatti — Morgan Charriere, wild card
Massive betting favorite? Check. (-1200.)
Proven finisher? Check. (14 stoppages in 19 wins.)
Fighting soon? Check. (Sept. 28.)
Morgan Charriere, come on down!
Apologies in advance, AJ Cunningham, for what awaits you at UFC Paris.
Meshew — Dominick Reyes, light heavyweight
Aside from Alex Pereira, 205 doesn’t have a lot of good options, but I like Reyes’s chances to do something violent against Anthony Smith when the two lock horns at UFC 309.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 6
Meshew — Gillian Robertson, strawweight
Like light heavyweight, strawweight is a tough division to feel good about in this game. There’s no guarantee we even get a title fight and there aren’t a lot of fighters with high finishing rates. Robertson is one though and she’s facing Luana Pinheiro at a Fight Night event in November.
Al-Shatti — Oumar Sy, light heayvweight
It’s already established that 2024’s year-end light heavyweight schedule is dog doo-doo, but y’all are really giving me an undefeated Frenchman fighting a dude who’s lost three straight (Da Un Jung) at a hometown show just a few weeks from now at UFC Paris?
Yes please.
Lee — Asu Almabayev, flyweight
Men’s flyweight is one of the thinner positions heading into the final stretch of the year, so it’s deep cut time. Asu Almabayev is a sleeper contender in the division while upcoming opponent Matheus Nicolau is trending in the opposite direction. Keep the good times rolling and get me some points, Almabayev.
Heck —Shara Magomedov, middleweight
Middleweight is tough with the current slate, and hand up — and I know I’m not alone on this — leaving Bo Nickal on the table because his next fight hasn’t been announced is a giant mistake.
On the flip side, “Shara Bullet” has a matchup he can look pretty good in. Fighting in Abu Dhabi and on a massive pay-per-view card will hopefully bring out his best, at least that’s what I’m banking on against Armen Petrosyan.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC Round 7
Heck — Mike Malott, welterweight
No disrespect to Trevin Giles, but UFC has something with Malott as they look to try to build the next crop of Canadian stars, and after a heartbreaking loss to Neil Magny in January, this seems like an excellent bounce back fight for Malott at UFC Edmonton.
Lee — Sean Brady, welterweight
We’re in safe pick territory now, and at least I know Sean Brady is booked and ready to go. He has an enormously tough test ahead of him in Gilbert Burns, but if the Philly native is ever to live up to his potential, the time is now. A win on Saturday makes Brady a steal at 170 pounds.
Al-Shatti — Yazmin Jauregui, strawweight
It’s getting to be slim pickings at 115 pounds, so I’ll just bite the bullet here and snag the fighter who best hits that cross-section of delightful odds (-455) and instant availability (Sept. 14). Former Invicta FC champ Ketlen Souza is no walkover, but I like Jauregui’s chances to show out at the Sphere.
Meshew — Joanderson Brito, featherweight
This pick was a mistake. Brito is very likely to annihilate William Gomis at UFC Paris, but there was another option I left on the table that I couldn’t talk myself into taking because I’m not picking him to win. That was silly though as I left a lot of upside on the table.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 8
Meshew — Joaquin Buckley, welterweight
It doesn’t seem like Belal Muhammad will be defending his title anytime soon, so here I’m opting to just get on the board. Buckley faces Stephen Thompson at UFC 307 and it should be a straightforward wrestling clinic victory for big points.
Al-Shatti — Andre Petroski, middleweight
Hands up, I hate this pick. It’s my least favorite of this draft.
But middleweight is also a wasteland right now, and Petroski is a 3-to-1 favorite who fights as early as this Saturday. I’m not expecting a 175-point bonanza here, but if my eighth-rounder can slide in and out with a workmanlike 100 points against Dylan Budka at UFC Vegas 97, that’s fine by me.
Just get on base, Andre.
Lee — Jaqueline Amorim, strawweight
I’m as big a fan of Vanessa Demopoulos as anyone, but toughness and spunk only get you so far. Jaqueline Amorim’s grappling skills are elite and she should have more than enough on her tool belt to continue her submission streak against “Lil Monster.”
Heck — Jose Aldo, bantamweight
Death, taxes, and picking Jose Aldo to win a fight as an underdog against a solid, but somewhat unproven talent. Yes, Aldo’s fight at UFC 307 marks a return to the scene of the crime when UFC matchmakers did their worst job in the history of the position by booking Aldo in Salt Lake City against Merab Dvalishvili, but Aldo looked fantastic against Jonathan Martinez in May. Fresh with a new contract, I expect Aldo to get another win over a ranked fighter not named Dominick Cruz. (Why has that fight not been made?)
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC Round 9
Heck — Grant Dawson, lightweight
There’s too many unknowns at lightweight right now, and this is a bit of a risky play, but Grant Dawson is one of the 20 best fighters in the best weight class in MMA. Rafa Garcia is an absolute dog, but Dawson — like he did against Joe Solecki — knows the assignment. Just get the W. Grind away, suck the life out of Garcia on Oct. 12 at the World’s Most Famous APEX. Base hits boost the ol’ batting average, no need for a Wade Boggs 1987 year to prove you can hit 20+ homers. Singles and doubles, my man.
Lee — Merab Dvalishvili, bantamweight
Up to this point, we’ve yet to have a head-to-head pick, so leave it to me to stir the pot. O’Malley was my boy Jed’s first pick, so how fun would it be if Merab Dvalishvili ground out a decision win over him and denied Team Meshew all of those delicious points?
Al-Shatti — Daniel Zellhuber, lightweight
For better or worse, I’ll either be sitting pretty by the end of September or lose this whole damn draft. I’m not a patient man, so I’m OK with that.
Daniel Zellhuber is a future lightweight contender and his Sept. 14 bout against Esteban Ribovics is a certified banger. Some call it Mexican Independence Day, I call it Shaheen Scores All The Points Day.
Meshew — Julianna Peña, women’s bantamweight
Back on schedule! I was one of, like, three people to pick Peña to beat Amanda Nunes when she did, so maybe she can make me look like a genius yet again. If she wins, that means I stole a champion in the ninth round, and one in a weak weight class. Big payoff if this hits.
Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images Round 10
Meshew — Michel Pereira, middleweight
And give me the other Pereira for my middleweight. He’s fighting Anthony Hernandez in a main event so there’s a lot of point potential, plus “Demolidor” has always been my guy. Sometimes you’ve just gotta ride with your team.
Al-Shatti — Erin Blanchfield, women’s flyweight
I’ve already lost the main event bump in the days since we drafted — thanks, Brandon Moreno — but as a long-time believer in Blachfield’s potential, sometimes you have to just ride with your team (as Jed so astutely just mentioned). I’m terrified of touching Grasso-Shevchenko 3, so give me Blanchfield showing out in a bounce-back fight against Rose Namajunas after crashing back down to earth this past March.
Lee — Payton Talbott, Wild Card
We’re taking a biiiiiiiiig swing here with a young man that doesn’t have a fight scheduled. The mercurial Payton Talbott could just be taking the rest of 2024 off to surf or binge watch anime or, I don’t know, go on a meditation journey to another plane or something. He’s in his 20s, he’s unpredictable.
But you can be sure that if Talbott is booked, it will be against someone that he can beat, and he’ll do it in impressive and fast fashion.
Heck — Karine Silva, women’s flyweight
Love this pick so late in the draft. Silva has looked fantastic, and she’s facing a fighter in Viviane Araujo at UFC 309 who is still pretty good, but is most certainly on the back nine of things at 37, soon-to-be 38. Looks good for another victory over ranked opposition.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 11
Heck — Max Holloway, featherweight
This is the getting a golf shirt at Marshall’s type pick — high quality stuff at tremendous savings.
Max Holloway is an absolute badass. The man is so damn good, and yes, he has his hands full. But with just one more pick after this, I can’t let “Blessed” sit on the board any longer. If he somehow pulls this off and beats Ilia Topuria at UFC 308 to regain the featherweight title — and he could absolutely do it — this fantasy MMA season is a wrap. Just give me the damn trophy if he wins.
Lee — Azamat Murzakanov, light heavyweight
With everyone else filling up their 205 slot early, I could sit on Azamat Murzakanov until the end. I actually had him several rounds higher on my board because his UFC 309 matchup with Nikita Krylov has finish written all over it. In fairness, it could be Krylov that does the deed, but I like Murzakanov’s chances of scoring a knockout to stay undefeated.
Al-Shatti — Ramazonbek Temirov, flyweight
There’s literally no one else left at flyweight who I like, so hell, give me the knockout machine hailing from the former Soviet bloc who’s matched against a dude with a 3-3 UFC record.
If you’re telling me I can snag an “-ov” name in the penultimate round, I’m happy with that.
Meshew — Manuel Torres, lightweight
Holloway is the steal of the draft. I should have taken him at featherweight and was planning to use him for my wild card here, but alas. So let’s fill out the lightweight roster post with a guy who should get an impressive win, some stoppage points, and maybe a bonus kicker.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Round 12
Meshew — Robert Whittaker, wild card
And then we will end as all fantasy drafts do, with a whimper. I should’ve gotten more aggressive and taken a swing on someone not booked, but I chose the cowardly path. I think Whittaker can beat Chimaev, and if Chimaev doesn’t show up for the fight, Whittaker will beat whoever steps in.
Al-Shatti — Shavkat Rakhmonov, welterweight
After going the Moneyball route virtually all draft, Team Al-Shatti may as well take a home run swing before we’re through. Shavkat Rakhmonov has already been offered a title shot in 2024. It’s clear UFC matchmakers want him to be the first challenger for Belal Muhammad. Sure, there’s a good chance Rakhmonov doesn’t end up fighting in 2024 and gives me a big ol’ goose egg, but there’s also a chance welterweight’s heir apparent sneaks onto that December card and wins us the whole damn draft with his long-awaited coronation.
Without an abundance of compelling options left on the welterweight board, it’s a risk worth taking.
Lee — Irene Aldana, women’s bantamweight
Saving the best for last with Irena Aldana as my pick in the UFC’s glamour division. She fights Norma Dumont at UFC 306 and I’m still not convinced that Dumont is actually good at MMA. Add in the fact that she’s one of the few women who can finish fights at 135 pounds and it’s clear that for the 12th round in a row, I’ve made the best selection.
Heck — Zhang Weili, strawweight
This all hinges on Zhang Weili fighting again this year, but if you check out her Instagram, she’s hossing heavy weight around like she’s preparing for something. I would pick Zhang against either Tatiana Suarez or Virna Jandiroba — or any other strawweight on the planet — but if she ends up defending her title in Macau in November, I expect her to face the latter while UFC holds Suarez for a pay-per-view card in early 2025.
Risky pick, but again, value is the name of the game. If Zhang fights — and I expect she’ll get another one in — she’ll hopefully get me some much-needed points down the stretch.
And there you have it! The first MMA Fighting UFC Fantasy Draft is in the books! A few notable names were left on the table, including the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Islam Makhachev, UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja, and uber-prospect Bo Nickal among them. Who got snubbed and which picks were reaches? Let us know in the comments, and we’ll see you in 2025 with the results and the next season.
Final Draft Results:
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