Persevering through tragedy, changing brands, and a boxing side mission, Francis Ngannou returned to MMA with a bang in 2024.

The Predator' took part in his second professional outing against Joshua in Riyadh earlier this year, but was brutally knocked out early on in their clash

Francis Ngannou is over all the Jon Jones talk. A matchup between Ngannou and Jones has been a dream for MMA fans for the past few years, with Ngannou becoming one of the most feared heavyweights in UFC history during his time with the promotion from 2015-2022 and Jones always having one eye on that division even as he ruled over the light heavyweight roster.

With the top of the UFC's featherweight division featuring a slew of names that range from the reigning champ Ilia Topuria to the streaking Diego Lopes, it's not hard to make a case for multiple 145ers on the come-up when it comes to awarding 2024's Under-the-Radar

Joaquin Buckley emerged as a UFC welterweight title contender in 2024. Buckley (21-6 MMA, 11-4 UFC) entered 2024 2-0 after dropping back down to 170 pounds. He kicked the year off with a big finish of perennial contender Vicente Luque at UFC on ESPN