INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 16: (L-R) Opponents Islam Makhachev of Russia and Arman Tsarukyan of … [+]
The UFC’s first pay-per-view event of the year takes place on Saturday, January 18, at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.
UFC 311 will feature two championship bouts. In the main event, UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev will defend his title in a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan.
Makhachev won their first meeting by unanimous decision in a battle that collected Fight of the Night bonuses in April 2019.
In the co-main event, UFC men’s bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili will defend his title against Umar Nurmagomedov.
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 16: (L-R) Opponents Umar Nurmagomedov of Russia and Merab … [+]
Early prelims begin at 6:00 PM ET. Here’s a look at the full card, as well as start times for all three sections of the event, along with viewing information.
UFC 311 Main Card (10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ Pay-Per-View)
- UFC Welterweight Title Fight: Islam Makhachev (Champion) vs. (1) Arman Tsarukyan
- UFC Bantamweight Title Fight: Merab Dvalishvili (Champ) vs. (2) Umar Nurmagomedov
- Lightweight fight: (9) Beneil Dariush vs. (10) Renato Moicano
- Lightweight bout: (2) Jiří Procházka vs. (3) Jamahal Hill
- Middleweight bout: Kevin Holland vs. Reinier de Ridder
UFC 311 Preliminary Card (8 p.m. ET on ESPNEWS and ESPN+)
- Lightweight bout: (13) Bogdan Guskov vs. Billy Elekana
- Bantamweight fight: Payton Talbott vs. Raoni Barcelos
- Heavyweight fight: (6) Jailton Almeida vs. (7) Serghei Spivac
- Middleweight bout: Zach Reese vs. Azamat Bekoev
UFC 311 preliminary card (6 p.m. ET on UFC Fight Pass and ESPN+)
- Lightweight: Grant Dawson vs. Diego Ferreira
- Women’s bantamweight bout: Karol Rosa vs. Ailín Pérez
- Bantamweight bout: Rinya Nakamura vs. Muin Gafurov
- Bantamweight bout: Ricky Turcios vs. Benardo Sopaj
- Flyweight fight: (11) Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Clayton Carpenter
UFC 311 fights you’ll want to see
205 Live
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 16: (L-R) Opponents Jiri Prochazka of the Czech Republic and Jamahal … [+]
Two former UFC heavyweight champions, Jiří Procházka and Jamahal Hill will collide in an extremely important fight. The winner remains in the mix for another shot at Alex Pereira and the lightweight title.
Procházka has already lost twice to Pereira, and Hill has felt the wrath of Poatan once. Either way, this could become the Fight of the Night.
Reinier de Ridder’s second UFC fight
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 16: (L-R) Opponents Kevin Holland and Reinier de Ridder of The … [+]
Former ONE Championship two-division champion Reinier de Ridder makes his second foray into the Octagon as he takes on Kevin Holland. RDR has not tried to hide its game plan for the Netherlands.
He is planning to overthrow Holland and demand his surrender. Holland hits like a ton of bricks, but his takedown defense has been a little off. A win for RDR could give him a middleweight ranking. A loss would severely hurt his chances of rising to a championship level in the UFC.
Preliminaries are very strong
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 15: Payton Talbott poses for a portrait during a UFC photo shoot … [+]
Jailton Almeida is a real threat in the heavyweight division. He will face Serghei Spivac. Many dislike Almeida’s fighting style, but he arguably has the best Jiu-Jitsu of anyone in the heavyweight division.
It will be interesting to see what he can do with Spivac. Also, fast-rising prospect Payton Talbott will get his toughest test yet as he takes on Raoni Barcelos. Stay tuned for coverage after the event on Saturday night.
