In an epic, action-filled bantamweight title match, Merab Dvalishvili defends his title against Umar Nurmagomedov.
Islam Makhachev has successfully defended his lightweight championship belt following 10th-ranked Renato Moicano’s first-round submission at UFC 311.
The Russian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter took four minutes and five seconds to claim his 15th straight victory at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California on Saturday.
Makhachev, who holds a record of 27 wins and one loss, was quick to administer a D’Arce choke on his Brazilian opponent after taking him down quickly.
The 33-year-old Makhachev has the most title fight wins in the division with five and has accomplished what no other fighter in his division has ever done – successfully defending his belt four times. It was his 13th win by submission.
“I like this belt,” said Makhachev, the UFC’s top-ranked pound-for-pound fighter and the most decorated lightweight ever. “If somebody wants this belt, come to the cage.”
Moicano was a last-minute replacement for top-ranked challenger Arman Tsarukyan, who pulled out of the bout on Friday because “of significant back pain” related to an injury.
The 35-year-old Moicano, from Brazil, came in with nine victories in his past 10 fights, but proved to be no match for Makhachev, whose grappling has been unmatched as he continues to prove why he is one of the best in the world.
Moicano was harsher on himself and said Makhachev was the better fighter. He worries, however, that it may have been his one shot at championship glory.
“That wasn’t a one-day notice,” Moicano said after the fight. “That was a life’s notice. I’m very sad. I spent my whole life for this moment and tapped in the first round.”
Makhachev said he does not have a preference for his next opponent.
In an epic, action-filled bantamweight title match, champion Merab Dvalishvili was successful in his first title defence as he extended his winning streak to 12 while handing second-ranked contender Umar Nurmagomedov the first loss of his career.
The pace of the match saw both fighters dominate at different times in the fight, with Dvalishvili closing strong after two of the three judges had Nurmagomedov leading after the first two rounds.
Nurmagomedov said he felt he had broken his left hand, and could not use it after the first round.
In a light heavyweight match, former champion and second-ranked Jiri Prochazka used a flurry of punches in the third round to overwhelm third-ranked Jamahal Hill, prompting a stoppage at three minutes for a total knockout (TKO).
In the heavyweight division, sixth-ranked Jailton Almeida used a flurry of right hands to hurt seventh-ranked Serghei Spivac late in the first round and used a ground-and-pound attack to finish the match with a TKO at the 4:53 mark.
Reinier de Ridder wasted no time in taking down Kevin Holland roughly 10 seconds into their middleweight bout and finished him off with a rear-naked chokehold at 3:31 of the first round.
