Dec 6, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, UNITED STATES; Petr Yan (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Merab Dvalishvili (red gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

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Top 5 UFC Upsets Of 2025 – Feat Petr Yan, Nassourdine Imavov And More!

The fight game has always been full of surprises. One punch can change everything. A perfectly timed submission can end years of hype. That’s what makes UFC so addictive to watch. You never really know what’s going to happen when that cage door closes, no matter what the betting odds say.

This year gave us some absolute shockers. We are talking about massive favorites getting completely dismantled by fighters nobody believed in. The Top 5 UFC Upsets Of 2025 reminded us why this sport is so unpredictable. Champions fell. Undefeated records got shattered. Veterans showed the young guns that experience still matters. Let’s break down the biggest surprises that nobody saw coming.

5. Nassourdine Imavov Knocks Out Israel Adesanya

Former two-time champion Israel Adesanya got knocked out cold in February at UFC Fight Night in Saudi Arabia. French fighter Nassourdine Imavov landed a thunderous overhand right in the second round that sent Adesanya crashing to the canvas. The finish came at the 4:30 mark after Imavov followed up with ground strikes.

Nassourdine Imavov stops Israel Adesanya, remove his teeth calls for winner of UFC 312 title fight😂

handed Adesanya his third-straight loss at UFC Saudi Arabia

A THREAD 🧵😲 pic.twitter.com/nSFUemqP56
— Kingsley (@realkingss) September 12, 2025

Adesanya had looked sharp in the first round, landing heavy kicks and using his trademark feints. But Imavov stayed patient. Early in round two, he pawed with a jab that caught Adesanya’s attention. Then he came over the top with that devastating right hand. Adesanya tried to recover, but Imavov pounced immediately and pounded out the finish. This was Adesanya’s third straight loss, dropping his recent record to 1-4 in his last five fights. Imavov moved to 4-0 in his last four fights and inserted himself directly into the middleweight title conversation.

4. Brendan Allen Breaks Reinier De Ridder At UFC Vancouver

Brendan Allen stepped in on short notice and forced heavily favored Reinier de Ridder to quit on his stool after four brutal rounds. De Ridder’s corner threw in the towel before the fifth round could begin. Allen earned the TKO victory and destroyed de Ridder’s title shot dreams in the process.

🚨 OH MY GOD RDR JUST QUIT ON HIS STOOL IN A TITLE CONTENDER FIGHT!!!!!

BRENDAN ALLEN WINS!!!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME???????? #UFCVancouver pic.twitter.com/2bUOGqT3Pa
— ACD MMA (@acdmma_) October 19, 2025

De Ridder was riding a four-fight UFC win streak and had just beaten Robert Whittaker in July. He was ranked number four and seemingly one win away from facing new champion Khamzat Chimaev for the middleweight belt. Allen was ranked ninth and took the fight on three and a half weeks notice after Anthony Hernandez pulled out with an injury.

3. Joshua Van Wins Flyweight Title Via Freak Injury

UFC 323 delivered a shocking title change in the co-main event. Joshua Van became the new flyweight champion after Alexandre Pantoja suffered a gruesome arm injury just 26 seconds into the first round. The 24-year-old Van won by TKO in the strangest way possible.

Pantoja threw a right roundkick to Van’s head. As Van blocked the kick, Pantoja used his left arm to brace his fall. Something went horribly wrong with his shoulder in that instant. It was clearly a freak accident, but the damage was done. The referee immediately stopped the fight when it became obvious Pantoja couldn’t continue.

Not the way he imagined it I’m sure, but Joshua Van becomes a UFC champion at 24. pic.twitter.com/Nx1OOyUUKU
— Owen 🥋 (@owenswdMMA) December 7, 2025

This wasn’t a traditional upset in the sense of one fighter dominating another. But it was shocking nonetheless. Pantoja had been a dominant champion, and nobody expected his reign to end 26 seconds into a fight because of an injury. Van became the second-youngest champion in UFC history behind only Jon Jones. Sometimes in this sport, luck matters as much as skill. Van was in the right place at the right time, and now he’s got UFC gold around his waist.

2. Raoni Barcelos Ends Payton Talbott’s Unbeaten Streak

The first major upset of 2025 happened at UFC 311 in January. Veteran Raoni Barcelos completely dominated rising prospect Payton Talbott, winning by unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 30-26. Talbott entered as a massive -1200 betting favorite. And Barcelos was getting zero respect from the oddsmakers.

Raoni Barcelos defeats Payton Talbott by unanimous decision! HUGE upset #UFC311

(30-27, 30-27, 30-26) pic.twitter.com/M8PlycxgCP
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) January 19, 2025

The 26-year-old Talbott had been one of UFC’s most hyped prospects. He was undefeated at 9-0 and coming off a 19-second knockout. Everyone expected him to dominate. Instead, Barcelos took him to school. The 37-year-old Brazilian scored eight takedowns and threatened with multiple rear-naked choke attempts. He controlled the ground game from start to finish. The veteran closed the show with heavy ground-and-pound. Barcelos said during fight week that he felt disrespected by the betting odds. He backed up his words with a perfect gameplan and flawless execution. Talbott learned a valuable lesson about experience versus hype.

1. Petr Yan Dethrones Merab Dvalishvili At UFC 323

This was the year’s biggest upset, saved for the final pay-per-view of 2025. Yan shocked the world by completely dominating Merab Dvalishvili to recapture the bantamweight title at UFC 323 in December. The Russian battered Dvalishvili for five full rounds, winning by unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47.

Dvalishvili came into UFC 323 riding a 14-fight win streak. He had already defended his title three times in 2025 alone, beating Umar Nurmagomedov, choking out Sean O’Malley, and dominating Cory Sandhagen. No UFC champion had ever defended their belt four times in one calendar year. Everyone assumed ‘The Machine’ would make history. But Yan had other plans.

PETR YAN DEFEATS MERAB DVALISHVILI BY UNANIMOUS DECISION!!!

AND NEWWWWW! (49-46 x2, 48-47) #UFC323 pic.twitter.com/gxWGaYGbz5
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) December 7, 2025

He stuffed 27 of Dvalishvili’s 29 takedown attempts while landing five of his own. The body shots were brutal. Yan’s precision striking opened cuts on Dvalishvili’s face and visibly hurt him with devastating kicks to the ribs. This was total revenge for Yan, who had lost to Dvalishvili back in March 2023 by unanimous decision.

(Image Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie – Imagn Images)

Brendan Allen

Joshua Van

Nassourdine Imavov

Petr Yan

Raoni Barcelos

Zaid Quraishi

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I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!