UFC 311 may have needed to clear some unexpected hurdles on fight week but when the athletes stepped inside the Octagon, the first PPV card of 2025 set a high bar.
The main card in particular, which saw both champions retain their titles, will be incredibly hard to top throughout the rest of the year with highlight reel finishes, incredible performances and two back-to-back barnburners.
Islam Makhachev continued his dominant winning streak at lightweight in the main event by making short work of his replacement opponent, Renato Moicano.
The Brazilian stepped up to replace Arman Tsarukyan on Friday but had his night cut short once the fight hit the floor and the champ locked up his signature D'Arce choke.
Makhachev's teammate Umar Nurmagomedov suffered his first loss in the co-main event following an instant classic title fight with Merab Dvalishvili.
Despite the challenger starting incredibly well, the insane cardio and output from the champion eventually started to take over the fight which won him the last three rounds.
Former light heavyweight champions Jiří Procházka and Jamahal Hill also put on a remarkable contest which saw both men have success on the feet.
In typical fashion, Procházka was able to keep sustain any damage that he took and keep hunting for the finish which he found in the third round.
The main card opened with consecutive first-round finishes from grappling specialists Jailton Almeida and Reinier de Ridder with the Brazilian earning a performance bonus for getting Serghei Spivac out of there.
The prelims had some big performances from the likes of Raoni Barcelos, Grant Dawson and the debuting Azamat Bekoev but the energy really picked up during the main card where the Intuit Dome really announced itself as one of the most exciting destinations for live sports.
Check out the full results listed below:
Main Card:
Islam Makhachev defeats Renato Moicano by submission (D’Arce choke) at 4:05 of Round 1
Merab Dvalishvili defeats Umar Nurmagomedov by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)
Jiří Procházka defeats Jamahal Hill by TKO (strikes) at 3:01 of Round 3
Jailton Almeida defeats Serghei Spivac by TKO (strikes) at 4:53 of Round 1
Reinier de Ridder defeats Kevin Holland by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:31 of Round 1
Prelims:
Raoni Barcelos defeats Payton Talbott by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Azamat Bekoev defeats Zachary Reese by KO (strikes) at 3:04 of Round 1
Bogdan Guskov defeats Billy Elekana by submission (guillotine choke) at 3:33 of Round 2
Grant Dawson defeats Diego Ferreira by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Fight Pass Prelims:
Ailin Perez defeats Karol Rosa by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Muin Gafurov defeats Rinya Nakamura by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Benardo Sopaj defeats Ricky Turcios by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Tagir Ulanbekov defeats Clayton Carpenter by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
