Muradov vs Jotko is the fight the fans picked: Makhmud Muradov, 30-8, and Krzysztof Jotko, 30-6, will unify the Oktagon middleweight title in the Oktagon 100 main event on Tuesday, December 29, at the O2 Arena in Prague. The promotion put 2 possible headliners to a fan vote, and the fans passed on a Muradov rematch with Will Fleury for the heavyweight belt. The 2 UFC veterans were first booked against each other back in 2020, before Jotko withdrew.
Key takeaways
- Makhmud Muradov (30-8), interim middleweight and light heavyweight champion, faces middleweight champion Krzysztof Jotko (30-6) in the Oktagon 100 main event on December 29 at the O2 Arena in Prague.
- Fans picked the bout in a vote, choosing between this unification and a Muradov rematch with Will Fleury for the heavyweight title.
- Jotko won the Gamechanger tournament and then the belt from Kerim Engizek in July; Muradov took Fleury's light heavyweight title 19 seconds into round 2 on August 1.
Muradov vs Jotko: 2 belts, one champion
Jotko’s road
Krzysztof Jotko came to Oktagon through the Tipsport Gamechanger middleweight tournament, worth €1 million. He beat Ion Surdu, Marek Mazúch and Hojat Khajevand, then submitted Kerim Engizek with a rear-naked choke in round 1 of the final on January 17 in Düsseldorf. The Pole beat Engizek again on July 11 in Cologne, a 5-round unanimous decision, 48-46 on all 3 cards, to take his belt.
Muradov’s road
Makhmud Muradov has held the interim middleweight title since June 14, 2025, when he outpointed Patrik Kincl at Oktagon 72. On August 1 in Prague, in his 1st fight at light heavyweight, the Uzbek stopped Will Fleury with punches 19 seconds into round 2 and took the division’s title.
What’s at stake
That makes Muradov a 2-division champion, but his middleweight belt is still an interim one. Only one of these men leaves Prague as the undisputed champion of the division.
Why the vote passed on the Fleury rematch
A rematch first on the table
After Oktagon 92, Muradov and Fleury both said they were open to an immediate light heavyweight rematch in December. 4 days later, Muradov changed course and pitched either a shot at Fleury’s heavyweight title or a return to middleweight.
2 options put to the fans
Oktagon then let the fans choose the main event of its 100th numbered card: Muradov vs Jotko for the undisputed middleweight title, or Muradov vs Fleury for the heavyweight belt. The result was announced on September 25.
Fleury is not letting it go
Fleury, heavyweight champion since he knocked out Kasim Aras in June in Berlin, criticized the U-turn in a September 22 interview with MMA Fighting. The Irishman believes Muradov leaned on Oktagon to avoid the rematch, and wonders whether the promotion will keep protecting him.
At the press conference, I gave him massive credit. He composed himself really well between the first and second round.
2 UFC veterans and Oktagon's calendar
A fight that dates back to 2020
Jotko spent 9 years in the UFC, from 2013 to 2022. Muradov spent 5 there, from 2019 to 2024, going 4-3. The 2 were set to meet in the UFC on October 18, 2020, but Jotko pulled out injured and Kevin Holland replaced him. The Pole will be 37 on fight night.
One stadium a year
Oktagon returns to Frankfurt’s Deutsche Bank Park this Saturday, with close to 60,000 fans expected. The promotion has also announced Oktagon Infinity, a yearly stadium show whose 1st edition takes place on May 15, 2027, at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Düsseldorf.
Follow both champions
Records, latest results and our weekly rating of Oktagon fighters are in the FightHub app, with an alert for every card change between now and December 29.
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