Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan will rematch with the biggest stakes possible when they clash for the lightweight title in the UFC 311 main event.
After Makhachev spoiled Tsarukyan’s short-notice promotional debut in April 2023 with a unanimous decision win in the Fight of the Night, the pair will run it back on Jan. 18 at the recently-opened Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
UFC officials announced the Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) vs. Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) headliner in a social media post on Wednesday (via X):
First PPV of 2025 is a BANGER 🔥@MAKHACHEVMMA vs @ArmanUFC 2@MerabDvalishvil vs @UNmgdv #UFC311 at the @IntuitDome | 🎟️: https://t.co/dX45J0Cwpw pic.twitter.com/QE3Evz1uQr
— UFC (@ufc) December 5, 2024
Makhachev, No. 2 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie pound-for-pound rankings and No. 1 at lightweight, is riding a UFC-best 13-fight winning streak, and will be looking for a third consecutive defense of his 155-pound title.
The pupil of UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov, the 33-year-old Makhachev has already defended gold against Dustin Poirier and Alexander Volkanovski by stoppage, and his current streak also includes the likes of Charles Oliveira, Dan Hooker, as well as the triumph over Tsarukyan at UFC Fight Night 149.
Tsarukyan, No. 2 at lightweight, has earned his way to his first UFC title shot and the rematch with Makhachev through a series of notable victories. The 28-year-old knocked out Beneil Dariush in 64-seconds in December, then followed it up with a split decision victory over former divisional kingpin Oliveira at UFC 300 in April.
Speaking to MMA Junkie during UFC 308 fight week in October, Tsarukyan said he intends to leave no doubt with the outcome against Makhachev and will be seeking a finish.
“You can’t say it’s going to be an easy fight,” Tsarukyan said. “I try to think it’s going to be easy for me, and I don’t want to think it’s going to be a decision. I want to finish him.”
The latest UFC 311 lineup now includes:
- Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan – for lightweight title
- Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov – for bantamweight title
- Jamahal Hill vs. Jiri Prochazka
- Kevin Holland vs. Reinier de Ridder
- Jailton Almeida vs. Serghei Spivac
- Grant Dawson vs. Diego Ferreira
- Muin Gafurov vs. Rinya Nakamura
- Bogdan Guskov vs. Johnny Walker
- Ailin Perez vs. Karol Rosa
- Sedriques Dumas vs. Zach Reese
- Raoni Barcelos vs. Payton Talbott
- Bernardo Sopaj vs. Ricky Turcios
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 311.
