Tonight, Islam Makhachev defends his lightweight title against Renato Moicano in the main event of UFC 311 – on one day’s notice.
Makhachev was expecting to fight Arman Tsarukyan here, six years after outpointing him in a competitive bout, but the Armenian-Russian suffered a back injury on the eve of UFC 311. That injury ruled out Tsarukyan, leading Renato Moicano to be pulled from his planned fight versus Beneil Dariush and placed in the main event.
Brazil’s Moicano is on a four-fight win streak but faces a stern test against Makhachev; the Russian champion has won 14 fights in a row, including three successful title defences. Last time out, Makhachev – who is coached by childhood friend and UFC lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov – submitted Dustin Poirier, a former interim champion. Meanwhile, Moicano scored a TKO over Benoit Saint-Denis, beating the Frenchman in Paris.
Elsewhere at UFC 311, the co-main event pits Merab Dvalishvili against Umar Nurmagomedov, a cousin of Khabib – who will be in Umar and Makhachev’s corners tonight.
The unbeaten Umar challenges Dvalishvili for his bantamweight title in that bout, while the card also features Kevin Holland vs Reinier de Ridder, Jiri Prochazka vs Jamahal Hill – a clash of former light-heavyweight champions – and more. Follow live updates and results from UFC 311, below.
UFC 311 LIVE
- Islam Makhachev defends lightweight title against Renato Moicano in main event
- Moicano steps in on one day’s notice, replacing injured Arman Tsarukyan
- Co-main event pits Merab Dvalishvili against unbeaten Umar Nurmagomedov
- Nurmagomedov, cousin of Khabib, challenges Dvalishvili for bantamweight belt
- Elsewhere, Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill meet in battle of former 205lb champs
- Outspoken Kevin Holland fights Reinier de Ridder in intriguing match-up
- Young talent Payton Talbott is one to watch earlier during tonight’s prelims
UFC 311 LIVE: Zachary Reese vs Azamat Bekoev
02:20 , Will CastleRound one
Both throw heavy strikes early on as Bekoev connects with a body kick, before Reese lands with a nice knee to the body. Bekoev immediately goes for the single and connects with an elbow, but is suddenly caught in a potentially dangerous position as Reese goes for the armbar. Reese is unable to lock in the submission and Bekoev escapes.
Both fighters stay on the mat, Reese on his back and Bekoev on top, with each man trading slicing elbows. Bekoev then rains in with the ground on pound, landing warhead after warhead - and just like that, Reese is out!
Azamat Bekoev def. Zachary Reese via first round TKO (ground strikes, 3:04)
UFC 311 LIVE: A lot to look forward to
02:10 , Will CastleHello there! You join me in the build up towards an absolutely stacked UFC 311 main card this evening.
Two titles on the line as well as a number of potentially division-shaping matchups to sink our teeth into. We’ve got a treat of a fightcard in store.
Things are only just hotting up here and after four decisions so far, we move into our next prelim of the evening: a middleweight bout between Zachary Reese and short-notice UFC newcomer Azamat Bekoev.
UFC 311 LIVE: It’s time!!!
02:02 , Alex PattleHere’s a rundown of the prelim results so far tonight:
Grant Dawson def. Diego Ferreira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Ailin Perez def. Karol Rosa via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Muin Gafurov def. Rinya Nakamura via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Bernardo Sopai def. Ricky Turcios via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Tagir Ulanbekov def. Clayton Carpenter via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27,, 29-28)
Now, over to Will Castle, who will provide you with blow-by-blow updates as the prelims continue.
Then, at 3am GMT, it’s the main card... Stick around!
UFC 311 LIVE: Every UFC fight confirmed for 2025 so far
01:58 , Alex Pattle
UFC 311 LIVE: Makhachev and Dvalishvili feature on Indy Sport p4p list
01:45 , Alex PattleWhy is Islam Makhachev our pound-for-pound No 1 fighter? And where does Merab Dvalishvili feature on our list?
Find out here:
UFC 311 LIVE: Last time out for tonight’s protagonists...
01:39 , Alex PattleAs for tonight’s co-main event participants:
Merab Dvalishvili was dominant against Sean O’Malley in taking the bantamweight title in September. Dvalishvili won comfortably on the scorecards, having out-grappled “Suga Sean” throughout the fight at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
One month earlier, Umar Nurmagomedov impressed greatly as he won a decision against Cory Sandhagen in Abu Dhabi. Nurmagomedov’s well-rounded game was on display, as he showed he’s not the single-track fighter that his cousin Khabib was.
UFC 311 LIVE: Last time out for tonight’s protagonists...
01:32 , Alex PattleIn his last fight, in June, Islam Makhachev won a gruelling affair with Dustin Poirier – eventually submitting the former interim champion in round five. In truth, Makhachev was one step ahead throughout the bout, but Poirier rallied impressively before succumbing to a D’Arce choke.
Three months later, at UFC Paris, Renato Moicano dominated hometown hero Benoit Saint-Denis, ultimately stopping the Frenchman in round two. The Brazilian’s TKO victory took him to four straight wins, with finishes in three of them.
UFC 311 LIVE: Conor McGregor faces fresh allegations
01:24 , Alex PattleA woman who accused Conor McGregor of sexual assault, but was unsuccessful in getting criminal charges filed, is now suing the former UFC champion and employees of the basketball arena where she says the attack took place.
The woman alleges that McGregor assaulted her in a bathroom of the Kaseya Center, home arena of the Miami Heat, on 9 June 2023 – when the Heat played the Denver Nuggets in Game 4 of the NBA finals.
Her attorney James Dunn filed the lawsuit Tuesday in the US District Court, Southern District of Florida.
Full story:
Conor McGregor is being sued for alleged sexual battery at 2023 NBA final
UFC 311 LIVE: In other news...
01:17 , Alex Pattle
PFL reveals new tournament format, prize money and rules for 2025 season
UFC 311 LIVE: Islam Makhachev explains Nate Diaz water-bottle incident
01:09 , Alex Pattle
UFC champion Islam Makhachev details Nate Diaz water-bottle incident
UFC 311 LIVE: Khabib arrives despite being removed from flight
01:00 , Alex PattleAn interesting incident earlier this week, as Khabib Nurmagomedov was removed from a plane, days before needing to be in LA to coach his cousin Umar and childhood friend Islam Makhachev tonight...
UFC icon Khabib Nurmagomedov removed from plane after interaction with ‘rude’ staff
UFC 311 LIVE: Jiri Prochazka's heartwarming gesture to ill fan
00:40 , Alex PattleFormer UFC champion Jiri Prochazka has shaved his head before his fight with Jamahal Hill to show “solidarity” with a fan battling cancer.
Prochazka, who held the light-heavyweight title in 2022 before vacating the belt due to injury, will face Hill at UFC 311 tonight. Hill is also a former champion, who too relinquished the gold after suffering an injury in 2023.
Revealing a new look at Thursday’s press conference for UFC 311, Prochazka said: “This hair was inspired by Ashley. That girl, she’s fighting with cancer. She will come tomorrow.
“This is me showing solidarity, because it’s about sending good energy. Yesterday, I reached 1m followers on Instagram, so I will give 1m [Czech Koruna] by my foundation to oncologist patients.
“Martial arts has something to give back, it’s all about good energy.”
Full story:
UFC 311 star shaves head in ‘solidarity’ with fan in cancer battle
UFC 311 LIVE: Key fight odds
00:20 , Alex PattleMakhachev – 1/10; Tsarukyan – 6/1
Dvalishvili – 5/2; Nurmagomedov – 30/100
Via Betway. Get all the latest UFC betting sites’ offers.
The Independent vets betting sites for useability, security and responsible gambling tools. You can claim free bets here to use across a range of sports. Please read the terms. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
UFC 311 LIVE: Fight card in full
00:00 , Alex PattleThere’s a reason we write “subject to late changes”! Here’s the UFC 311 card in full, following Tsarukyan’s injury on Friday:
Main card
Islam Makhachev (C) vs Renato Moicano (lightweight title)
Merab Dvalishvili (C) vs Umar Nurmagomedov (men’s bantamweight title)
Jiri Prochazka vs Jamahal Hill (light-heavyweight)
Kevin Holland vs Reinier de Ridder (middleweight)
Jailton Almeida vs Serghei Pivac (heavyweight)
Prelims
Payton Talbott vs Raoni Barcelos (bantamweight)
Bogdan Guskov vs Billy Elekana (light-heavyweight)
Grant Dawson vs Diego Ferreira (lightweight)
Zachary Reese vs Sedrique Dumas (middleweight)
Early prelims
Karol Rosa vs Ailin Perez (women’s bantamweight)
Rinya Nakamura vs Muin Gafurov (bantamweight)
Ricky Turcios vs Benardo Sopaj (bantamweight)
Tagir Ulanbekov vs Clayton Carpenter (flyweight)
UFC 311 card in full as Makhachev defends title against Moicano
UFC 311 LIVE: How to watch fights
Saturday 18 January 2025 23:40 , Alex PattleUFC 311 will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights.
Discovery+ will also air the action in the UK.
In the US, ESPN+ will stream the event live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass.
UFC 311 LIVE: Timings tonight
Saturday 18 January 2025 23:20 , Alex PattleUFC 311 takes place at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles tonight – and the very first fight of the night just got under way.
The early prelims will run until 1am GMT (5pm PT / 7pm CT / 8pm ET tonight), when the regular prelims begin.
We’ll then have live updates for you at 2am GMT (6pm PT / 8pm CT / 9pm ET tonight), heading into the main card at 3am GMT (7pm PT / 9pm CT / 10pm ET tonight).
So, follow our coverage for a round-up of the prelim results and blow-by-blow updates from the main card!
UFC 311 LIVE: Welcome!
Saturday 18 January 2025 23:00 , Alex PattleTonight, Islam Makhachev defends his lightweight title against Renato Moicano in the main event of UFC 311 – on one day’s notice.
Makhachev was expecting to fight Arman Tsarukyan here, six years after outpointing him in a competitive bout, but the Armenian-Russian suffered a back injury on the eve of UFC 311. That injury ruled out Tsarukyan, leading Renato Moicano to be pulled from his planned fight versus Beneil Dariush and placed in the main event.
Brazil’s Moicano is on a four-fight win streak but faces a stern test against Makhachev; the Russian champion has won 14 fights in a row, including three successful title defences. Last time out, Makhachev – who is coached by childhood friend and UFC lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov – submitted Dustin Poirier, a former interim champion. Meanwhile, Moicano scored a TKO over Benoit Saint-Denis, beating the Frenchman in Paris.
Elsewhere at UFC 311, the co-main event pits Merab Dvalishvili against Umar Nurmagomedov, a cousin of Khabib – who will be in Umar and Makhachev’s corners tonight.
The unbeaten Umar challenges Dvalishvili for his bantamweight title in that bout, while the card also features Kevin Holland vs Reinier de Ridder, Jiri Prochazka vs Jamahal Hill – a clash of former light-heavyweight champions – and more.
Anyway, here’s how Friday’s drama with Tsarukyan, Moicano and Makhachev unfolded:
Major change to UFC 311 as Tsarukyan injury scuppers Makhachev main event
