Makhachev Submitted Moicano
Islam Makhachev retained the UFC lightweight championship against Renato Moicano on January 18, 2025. Their UFC 311 main event at Intuit Dome in Inglewood ended with a D’Arce choke at 4:05 of the first round after a late opponent replacement.
Tsarukyan was removed for medical reasons
UFC announced on January 17 that Arman Tsarukyan could not take part because of medical issues unrelated to weight cutting. The planned championship rematch was therefore removed from the card.
Moicano accepted the main-event opportunity after entering fight week on a four-fight winning streak. The change gave the Brazilian a short-notice title challenge against the reigning champion.
Makhachev answered the early striking
Moicano landed some sharp punches during the opening exchanges. Makhachev responded by taking him down and moving the contest into a grappling position that favored the champion.
When Moicano went to his knees and tried to work back up, Makhachev caught the D’Arce choke. The submission ended the contest before the opening round had finished.
A fourth successful defense
The result became Makhachev’s fourth consecutive successful defense of the UFC lightweight title. It completed the event’s revised headline contest without producing the originally advertised Tsarukyan rematch.
The co-main event also featured a championship decision, with Merab Dvalishvili defeating Umar Nurmagomedov to retain the bantamweight belt. For Makhachev, the evening ended with another title defense after a last-minute change required him to prepare for a different challenger.
Sources
- UFC: January 17 medical withdrawal and Moicano replacement
- UFC: submission sequence, fourth defense and championship results
