At UFC Rio on October 12, 2025, Vicente Luque suffered a unanimous decision loss to Joel Alvarez. Throughout three rounds, Luque’s signature aggression was met by Alvarez’s superior range management and defensive grappling. Alvarez continually landed clean counter shots and stifled Luque’s offense, leaving the judges to score all rounds for the rising Spaniard. With this defeat, Luque’s record moves to 23-12-1, and he remains one of the most battle-tested and exciting welterweights on the roster.
The next logical step for Luque is a showdown with Jake Matthews. Matthews is coming off a recent submission loss to Neil Magny via guillotine choke at UFC Fight Night: Ulberg vs. Reyes on September 28, 2025, after previously submitting Chidi Njokuani and capturing decision wins over Francisco Prado and Phil Rowe. This matchup would pit Luque’s Muay Thai and proven durability against Matthews’ new-found submission skills and tactical versatility.
Luque brings relentless forward pressure and concussive striking, while Matthews counters with strong grappling and the stamina to thrive in drawn-out wars. For Luque, it’s an opportunity to defend his veteran spot in the rankings and halt his recent slide. For Matthews, it’s a chance to claim a statement win against one of the division’s toughest outs and bounce back from his most recent defeat.
Last Five Fights – Vicente Luque:
1. Loss to Joel Alvarez – Decision (unanimous), UFC Rio (October 12, 2025)
2. Loss to Kevin Holland – Submission (D’Arce choke), UFC 316 (June 8, 2025)
3. Win over Themba Gorimbo – Submission (guillotine choke), UFC 310 (December 8, 2024)
4. Loss to Joaquin Buckley – TKO, UFC Fight Night (March 31, 2024)
5. Win over Rafael dos Anjos – Decision (unanimous), UFC Fight Night (August 13, 2023)
Last Five Fights – Jake Matthews:
1. Loss to Neil Magny – Submission (guillotine choke), UFC Fight Night: Ulberg vs. Reyes (September 28, 2025)
2. Win over Chidi Njokuani – Submission (guillotine choke), UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Teixeira (July 13, 2025)
3. Win over Francisco Prado – Decision (unanimous), UFC 312 (February 9, 2025)
4. Win over Phil Rowe – Decision (unanimous), UFC 302 (June 2, 2024)
5. Loss to Michael Morales – Decision (unanimous), UFC Fight Night: Allen vs. Craig (November 19, 2023)
A Luque vs. Matthews matchup offers both fighters a pivotal opportunity to climb the welterweight ranks and would be an exciting, technical war for fans.