Dana White managed to excite the entire fighting community with UFC 317. Now, talks of the mixed martial arts fight promotion visiting Brazil for a Fight Night event on 11 October 2025 have conquered social media platforms. Yes, the UFC head honcho and his team are planning to bring UFC back to the Farmasi Arena, Rio de Janeiro. 

UFC’s relationship with Rio de Janeiro began with UFC 134, when Anderson Silva secured a second-round knockout win over Yushin Okami. Since then, the fight promotion has hosted 10 events at the venue, with the last event being Alexandre Pantoja’s successful flyweight title defense against Steve Erceg at UFC 301. The UFC is going back to Farmasi Arena for the 12th time, hoping to sell more than 15,000 tickets. Of course, there will be official pronouncements soon. But who are the fighters that White may include in his announcements? Let’s look at the three fights that are most likely to happen at the next event in Brazil. 

Renato Moicano vs. Dan Hooker

Following his defeat against Beneil Dariush at UFC 317, Renato Moicano desperately needs a rebound match. This marked his second consecutive loss after getting submitted in the first round by the former lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev. Now, it’s high time for the #12 lightweight contender to redeem himself. And Dan Hooker can become the perfect opponent for ‘Money’s redemption. After all, the duo has already excited the fighting community with their online scuffles.

Moicano previously targeted Hooker when ‘The Hangman’ rose to the top five spot after defeating Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305. Although he later fell to the seventh position, he couldn’t escape from Moicano’s judgment. The Brazilian wasn’t happy at all with the committee’s decision to put Hooker as a top-five lightweight contender. During his appearance at the post-fight show at UFC Paris, Moicano said, “I don’t know how he’s in the top five, that’s unbelievable. It’s like seeing a turtle in a tree. Have you seen a turtle in a tree? Somebody put him there. That’s the whole thing, you know? He didn’t climb the tree, but he’s on the tree.”

Earlier in September 2024, Hooker accused Moicano of ducking him in Perth. To this, ‘Money’ responded in kind, with a challenge to fight in December 2024. But these talks never made it to reality. However, UFC Brazil can provide the perfect opportunity for both Hooker and Moicano to settle their differences inside the Octagon. 

The bout would be a classic grappler vs. striker matchup, with Moicano’s brains going up against Hooker’s grit. On top of that, the Brazilian crowd cheering for ‘Money’ and booing ‘The Hangman’ would set the stage for an electric buildup. This fight can easily become a main event. But what about the co-main event? Well, the UFC CEO can consider giving Gilbert Burns one more chance to redeem himself. 

Gilbert Burns vs. Joaquin Buckley

During the post-fight press conference for UFC on ESPN 56, Joaquin Buckley weighed in on a possible matchup against Gilbert Burns. Needless to say, ‘New Mansa’ was pretty excited about the bout. He had just defeated Nursulton Ruziboev with a unanimous decision and was confident regarding the fight against ‘Durinho’. He said, “Gilbert Burns, I think it’s a beautiful fight, a beautiful matchup. I don’t know when he’s going to be cleared or when he’s going to be ready, but Gilbert Burns definitely.”

To make things even more interesting, Burns agreed to make the fight happen. It was a time when Burns was already on a two-fight losing streak. But ‘New Mansa’ was a good enough name for him. Talking about the matchup on Renato Moicano’s talk show, the Brazilian welterweight contender said, “Let’s do it. The way I see it like, I’m not in the situation to call anyone out or to pick and choose… I don’t know. If they send me, I’ll say yes now. I never say no to a fight, and I’m not planning on start doing.” He even claimed that Colby Covington would be a tough match for ‘New Mansa’. But Buckley proved him wrong. 

Right now, Burns is on a four-fight losing streak, with his last loss coming from Michael Moraes via a first-round knockout. Buckley also lost his last fight against the former welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman. And a redemption fight is what both Burns and Buckley direly need, don’t you think? After all, the fans wouldn’t really judge Burns for calling it quits after one more loss. But it’s the battle between Virna Jandiroba and Amanda Lemos that can build the excitement up to the co-main event. 

Virna Jandiroba vs. Amanda Lemos

Virna Jandiroba beat Amanda Lemos in their previous fight with an armbar only two seconds before the bell rang to conclude round two. She won the Performance of the Night prize. After the Fight Night match in July 2024, both Lemos and Jandiroba won one fight apiece. Jandiroba is now the number one strawweight contender, and “Amandinha” is in the number four spot. And when UFC comes back to Rio de Janeiro, “Carcara” and Lemos can fight again to settle the score.

Both strawweight contenders hail from Brazil, and that makes the matchup even more exciting. If Jandiroba secures the win, she would solidify her position as the #1 strawweight contender, and that would lock her in as the next challenger for Zhang Weili. On the other hand, a victory for Lemos would validate her comeback credentials. She’d regain her momentum, and Dana White might get the title shot next. 

A grappling expert will face off against a top striker in this fight. Lemos has been practicing on her defense since she lost to “Carcara.” Also, she possesses the knockout power that has knocked out eight of her opponents in the past. But Jandiroba has won 14 of her fights by submission.

It’s hard to pick a winner in a rematch between the two, but we can be sure it will be a great fight. Who do you want to win the Octagon when UFC comes back to Rio de Janeiro? Do you think the main event at UFC Rio de Janeiro should be a championship fight?