California has the privilege of hosting the first UFC pay-per-view of 2025 as fighting fans are excited for an action-packed event. The Main Event sees Islam Makhachev looking to break the record for the most Lightweight title defences as he takes on the #1 contender, Arman Tsarukyan, in a rematch five years in the making. The Co-Main Event witnesses Merab Dvalishvili making his first Bantamweight title defence against the #2 contender, Umar Nurmagomedov. Here is everything you need to know before some incredible brawls begin.
early prelims
Tagir Ulanbekov vs Clayton Carpenter (UFC Flyweight Bout) - Ulanbekov is currently on a two-fight winning streak with both of them ending by submission as his most recent victory came at UFC 296 against Cody Durden. With 15 victories in MMA, eight of them have ended by eight as the Russian specialises on the ground. Ulanbekov will be aiming to continue his impressive streak and maintain his #11 ranking in the Flyweight division.
Carpenter is undefeated with eight fights, winning two of those in the UFC which ended by submission as his last triumph came against Lucas Rocha at UFC Vegas 98. Concrete very rarely goes the distance in his battles with two ending by KO/TKO and four by submission. Carpenter has an excellent opportunity to earn a place in the Flyweight rankings in his biggest fight yet.
Ricky Turcios vs Benardo Sopaj (UFC Bantamweight Bout) - Turcios only had one fight in 2024 which did not go as planned, losing by second-round submission to Raul Rosas Jr at UFC Louisville. The majority of the Bantamweight's 14 wins in MMA have ended by decision, as well as earning three KO/TKO wins. The Houston-born fighter is looking to find redemption in his first UFC PPV event.
Sopaj fell victim to one of the best knockouts of 2024 when he lost to Vinicius Oliveira in the third round at UFC Vegas 87. The Lion King has only gone the distance once in his 14 triumphs in mixed martial arts, with seven being stopped by KO/TKO and three by submission. The Albanian is still in search for his first win in the UFC as it will be the biggest victory of his career if he is successful in Inglewood.
Rinya Nakamura vs Muin Gafurov (UFC Bantamweight Bout) - Nakamura is undefeated in MMA with nine fights, three of those have been in the UFC as his most recent win ended by unanimous decision against Carlos Vera at UFC 298. The Hybrid has six stoppage wins in his career with five of his conquered opponents being knocked out and one submitting to the Japanese fighter. Another win for Nakamura could see potentially see him contest for a spot in the Bantamweight rankings.
Gafurov broke his two-fight losing streak when he defeated Kyung Ho Kang by unanimous decision at UFC Saudi Arabia, making it his first win in the organisation. The Tajik does not like to go the distance in his fights with 10 ending by KO/TKO and seven by submission. Gafurov has the chance to begin a winning streak in the UFC and become the first fighter to defeat his opponent.
Karol Rosa vs Ailin Perez (UFC Women's Bantamweight Bout) - Rosa redeemed her last fight when she beat Pannie Kianzad by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 95. The Brazilian is yet to earn a finish in the UFC, but has four KO/TKO wins and two submissions. The #9 Bantamweight contender has not been on a winning streak since the beginning of 2022 as she has the opportunity to do so at UFC 311.
Perez is on a four-fight winning streak with her last victory ending by first-round submission against Daria Zhelezniakova at UFC Paris. The Argentinian has stopped six of her 11 conquered opponents with four ending by KO/TKO and two by submission. The #13 contender is on a roll and could boost up into the top 10 of the 135-pound rankings.
Zachary Reese vs Azamat Bekoev (UFC Middleweight Bout) - Reese went to the judges scorecards for the first time in his last fight as he defeated Jose Daniel Medina by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 96. The Savage has seven stoppage wins with all of them ending in the first round as five have ended by KO/TKO and two by submission. Reese will be aiming to continue his winning streak to three and become a bigger prospect in the Middleweight division.
Bekoev makes his debut at UFC 311 after going on a six-fight winning streak with his last bout ending by second-round knockout against Chauncey Foxworth at LFA 186. The Kingpin has 14 finishes out of 18 victories with six being stopped by KO/TKO and eight by submission. The Russian will be looking to make his mark in the UFC as he aims to impress the Californian crowd.
preliminary card
Grant Dawson vs Diego Ferreira (UFC Lightweight Bout) - Dawson is currently on a two-fight winning streak with his last bout ending by second-round TKO against Rafa Garcia at UFC Vegas 98. KGD specialises on the ground and has stopped most of his conquered opponents with five ending by KO/TKO and 13 by submission. The Cambria-born mixed martial artist is trying to climb back into the Lightweight rankings and a finish Intuit Dome could make him do just that.
Just like his opponent, Ferreira is on a two-fight winning streak with his last victory ended in the third round by TKO against Mateusz Rebecki at UFC St Louis. The Brazilian has stopped 12 of the 19 fighters he has triumphed over with five of those ending by KO/TKO and seven by submission. Ferreira has almost equalled the three-fight losing streak he was on back in 2021 as he tries to succeed for a third consecutive time.
Bogdan Guskov vs Billy Elekana (UFC Light Heavyweight Bout) - Guskov entered the Light Heavyweight rankings in his last fight when he knocked out Ryan Spann in the second round at UFC Vegas 91. The Uzbekistan fighter has a 100% finish rate in MMA with 14 fights ending by KO/TKO and two by submission. The #13 contender has only had three fights in the UFC, but he's looking experienced in the organisation and tries to maintain his ranking.
Elekana makes his UFC debut after stepping on short notice, due to an injury from Johnny Walker, as he currently sits on a three-fight winning streak. Fighting out of Las Vegas, the 29-year-old has eight fights on his MMA record with three of those bout ending successfully by KO/TKO. Elekana has the rare opportunity of entering the top 15 rankings in his first UFC fight as he could put on one of the biggest shocks in the sport.
Jailton Almeida vs Serghei Spivac (UFC Heavyweight Bout) - Almeida earned redemption in his last bout after submitting Alexander Romanov in the first round at UFC 302. Malhadinho has 21 fights in his career and 20 of those have ended by KO/TKO as he does not like going to the judges scorecards. The #6 Heavyweight contender is aiming to pick up momentum from his last win and secure another win in a UFC PPV event.
Spivac also redeemed himself in his last fight when he stopped Marcin Tybura by submission in the first round at UFC Vegas 95. The Polar Bear rarely goes the distance with his opponents, stopping seven of them by KO/TKO and eight by submission. The #7 contender has the chance to move closer to the top five as a win against Almeida could be the biggest in his career.
Payton Talbott vs Raoni Barcelos (UFC Bantamweight Bout) - Talbott remains to be undefeated in MMA after knocking out Yanis Ghemmouri in just 19 seconds of the first round at UFC 303. The Nevada mixed martial artist has only gone the distance once and loves to knock his opponents out with seven of those nine wins ending by KO/TKO. Talbott is looking like a big prospect in the Bantamweight division and another statement win could see him enter the rankings.
Barcelos redeemed his two-fight losing streak with a third-round submission win over Christian Quinonez at UFC Mexico City. The Brazilian is dangerous on the feet, but can be just as vicious on the ground as he's earned eight knockout wins and three submissions. Barcelos only has two wins in his last six fights as he continues to revive his recent form and become the first man to defeat Talbott.
main card
Kevin Holland vs Reinier de Ridder (UFC Middleweight Bout) - Holland suffered an unfortunate injury in his last bout which ruled as a first-round TKO loss against Roman Dolidze at UFC 307. Trailblazer likes to finish a fight as out of 22 stoppage wins from 26 victories, 13 have ended by KO/TKO and nine by submission. The former Welterweight and Middleweight contender has not been on a good run, losing three of his last four fights as he tries to get redemption in California.
De Ridder made his debut at UFC Vegas 100 where he successfully defeated Gerald Meerschaert by third-round submission. The former ONE Championship two-division champion has only had two triumphant wins go the distance, with 12 of his 18 wins ending by submission. The Dutch Knight takes on one of the most recognisable and active fighters in the UFC as a win could see him contest for a place in the rankings in his next fight.
Beneil Dariush vs Renato Moicano (UFC Lightweight Bout) - Dariush has had a downfall in his career with his last two fights ending with a first-round knockout loss against Charles Oliveira at UFC 289 and Arman Tsarukyan at UFC Austin. The Iran-born fighter has 13 finishes in his MMA career with five by KO/TKO and eight by submission. The #9 Lightweight contender has taken a full year off to prepare for his redemption after being so close to earning a title shot.
Moicano is on a four-fight winning streak after winning by second-round TKO (Doctor Stoppage) against Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC Paris. The Brazilian is a dangerous fighter on the ground with 10 of his 20 victories ending by submission. The #10 contender is on fine form and a win at UFC 311 could possibly put him against a top five contender in his next fight as Moicano is not slowing down.
Jiri Prochazka vs Jamahal Hill (UFC Light Heavyweight Bout) - Prochazka failed to recapture the UFC Light Heavyweight title after getting knocked out by Alex Pereira in the second round at UFC 303. The Czech Republican has only gone the distance once in his MMA career as 26 of his 30 wins have ended by KO/TKO. The #2 Light Heavyweight contender is aiming to get back to winning ways as there is still questions for Prochazka's future plans in the organisation.
Hill suffered the wrath of Alex Pereira in his last bout when he failed to dethrone Poatan at UFC 300, losing by first-round knockout. Sweet Dreams is deadly on the feet with seven of his 12 triumphs in MMA ending by KO/TKO. The #3 Light Heavyweight contender believes he just needs a win over his opponent before getting a potential rematch with the king of the 205-pound division as he wants to plot revenge.
Merab Dvalishvili vs Umar Nurmagomedov (UFC Bantamweight Title Bout) - Dvalishvili is on a 11-fight winning streak after capturing the Bantamweight title at UFC 306 when he defeated Sean O'Malley by unanimous decision. The machine rarely gets a stoppage win in his fights, but 14 of his 18 wins have ended by unanimous decision. The Georgian Bantamweight is hoping to keep his crown at the Intuit Dome as not only does he make his first title defence, but has the chance to become the first fighter to defeat his opponent.
Nurmagomedov is undefeated with 17 victories as he won his last battle by unanimous decision against Cory Sandhagen at UFC Abu Dhabi. Half of the Russian's wins have ended with a stoppage as the title challenger has finished two of his opponents by KO/TKO and seven by submission. The #2 Bantamweight contender prepares for the biggest fight of his life as he could join his brother, Khabib, and become the second Nurmagomedov to win a UFC title.
Islam Makhachev vs Arman Tsarukyan (UFC Lightweight Title Bout) - Makhachev defended his title once last year in a thrilling fight with Dustin Poirier as he defeated him by fifth-round submission at UFC 302. The Dagestan fighter is just as dangerous on the feet as he is on the ground with five wins ending by KO/TKO and 12 by submission. The UFC Lightweight Champion could break the record for most title wins in the 155-pound division, if he is successful at UFC 311.
Tsarukyan earned his #1 contender's spot and title shot when he did just enough to defeat Charles Oliveira by split decision at UFC 300. Just like his opponent, the Armenian is deadly on the feet and ground with nine KO/TKO victories and five submissions out of 22 career wins. The Lightweight title challenger is looking for revenge after coming up short in his first battle with Makhachev as he has the opportunity to become the first UFC Champion from Armenia.
Which fight are you looking forward to the most? What are your predictions?
Written by Charlie Oxtoby
Instagram: charlie_oxtoby
MMA Instagram: undisputed._.mma
Twitter: Charlie_Oxtoby1
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