UFC 317 fight grades: Which matchup could win fight of the year?

 On paper, this year's fight card for International Fight Week didn't appear to live up to the expectations fans have set. Admittedly, Ilia Topuria vs. Charles Oliveira for a vacant title didn't jump off the page compared to previous IFW event headliners. However, with lowered expectations, UFC 317 not only cleared the bar, it solidified itself as the best fight card of 2025 thus far.

Whatever you wanted out of a fight card, you got: dramatic finishes, dominant performances, frightening knockouts, thrilling slugfests and the crowning of a new star as Topuria became a two-division champion with a brutal knockout of a fan-favorite and future Hall of Famer.

Just how good was UFC 317 after the main event? Pretty damn good.

After each pay-per-view, we assess the quality of each matchup and the fight card itself based on skill displayed, competitiveness and what is at stake. Here are the fight grades for all 11 UFC 317 bouts.

This was a certified banger that formally announced the arrival of Van as a title contender. A fight contested entirely on the feet with no lulls in the action is as good as it gets. Van and Royval beat each other bloody and shattered the record for total significant strikes landed in a fight.

Just when it seemed that Van was running away with the fight with his precision punches, Royval kept pressing forward and connected with a series of strikes in Round 2 that put fans on the edge of their seats. You could feel the drama entering the final round with the fight hanging in the balance, and the flyweights came to show out. Big shots were thrown and connected, as neither fighter backed down. But Van would pull away after knocking down Royval in the final seconds. This was fantastic. Remember when there were rumors of the UFC shutting down the flyweight division? Thank the MMA gods that didn't happen. Go out of your way to watch this frontrunner for fight of the year.