The upcoming UFC 311 event has confirmed two thrilling title fights. Islam Makhachev will defend his lightweight championship against Arman Tsarukyan in a highly anticipated rematch, while Merab Dvalishvili is set to defend his bantamweight title against Umar Nurmagomedov in the co-main event. Mark your calendars for January 18 at the newly unveiled Intuit Dome in Los Angeles for these epic showdowns!
Dana White, the CEO of UFC, revealed this exciting news on Wednesday.
The Makhachev vs. Tsarukyan rematch has been long awaited for the January pay-per-view event, while the bantamweight title clash emerged unexpectedly.
Initially, Dvalishvili was eyeing a return in March, but scheduling conflicts arose with Nurmagomedov due to Ramadan approaching. This led to some intense exchanges between the fighters. While Dvalishvili considered a rematch with Petr Yan, Nurmagomedov was open to facing any opponent the UFC presented.
Recently, a turn of events occurred as White revealed the finalized bout for the bantamweight title fight.
White disclosed, “Merab came to the office late last night, expressing his discontent with Umar’s disrespectful remarks, and urged for this fight to happen promptly.” He added, “We reached out to Umar, who was in Dagestan sleeping, and he promptly agreed to fight under any circumstances.”
Dvalishvili enters this match with an impressive streak of 11 consecutive wins, including winning the bantamweight title from Sean O’Malley. On the other hand, Nurmagomedov holds an impeccable record of 18-0, with six wins in the UFC.
In the headline event, Makhachev faces Tsarukyan once more after their epic showdown in 2019, named Fight of the Night. Despite Makhachev emerging as the victor in their prior encounter, Tsarukyan proved to be a tough contender, stepping in on short notice.
Nearly six years later, they are set to clash again, with Makhachev vying for his fourth consecutive title defense following triumphs over Alexander Volkanovski and Dustin Poirier. Tsarukyan is also on a winning streak, with four consecutive victories and a 9-1 record since his debut loss to Makhachev.
Be sure not to miss the electrifying matchups of Makhachev vs. Tsarukyan 2 and Dvalishvili vs. Nurmagomedov headlining UFC 311, with more fights expected to be unveiled soon.
