English MMA sensation Lerone Murphy has publicly expressed his disappointment after the UFC organization decided to bypass him for a featherweight title opportunity. Instead of rewarding Murphy's impressive undefeated streak, UFC president Dana White confirmed that champion Alexander Volkanovski will face Diego Lopes in a rematch at UFC 325 in January.
The Snub That Shook the MMA World
The decision has sent shockwaves through the mixed martial arts community, with many fans and analysts believing Murphy had earned his shot at gold. Murphy holds an undefeated professional record of 17-0-1 and recently delivered a spectacular first-round knockout victory over Aaron Pico at UFC 319 in August. That dominant performance was widely expected to secure him the next title fight in the competitive 145-pound division.
Murphy didn't hide his feelings about the UFC's controversial decision. Taking to social media platform X, the Manchester-born fighter wrote, "Missing the opportunity to fight one of the featherweight goats is what hurts me the most. It's not about who's the best anymore. It's about who's most popular." His comments quickly went viral among MMA enthusiasts.
Fellow Fighters Rally Behind Murphy
Murphy's sentiment found strong support from within the fighting community. Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling publicly backed Murphy's position and questioned the organization's decision-making. Sterling also pointed out that undefeated Russian contender Movsar Evloev had been overlooked in favor of Lopes previously.
In his reaction on X, Sterling stated, "I agree with Lerone. Even if I didn't get it, him or Movsar for sure should've been the guy. Movsar got passed over by Lopes once, and he gets another opportunity for gold lol. Fair play to Lopes, but you can see why guys start to lose love for the game. Cold world."
The Volkanovski-Lopes Rematch Context
The upcoming title fight between Volkanovski and Lopes represents a quick rematch of their UFC 314 encounter from April. In that previous bout, Volkanovski defeated Lopes by unanimous decision to claim the featherweight championship that had been left vacant after Ilia Topuria moved up to the lightweight division.
While Lopes gets his second chance at Volkanovski, Murphy now finds himself on the sidelines despite his perfect record and recent spectacular knockout victory. The UFC's preference for an immediate rematch over fresh contenders has sparked intense debate about whether popularity is increasingly outweighing merit in title shot decisions.
For now, Murphy must wait patiently while Volkanovski and Lopes prepare to headline UFC 325 in January. The undefeated English prospect's journey toward UFC gold continues, though the path has become unexpectedly longer due to the organization's latest matchmaking decision.
