Islam Makhachev fights Renato Moicano on UFC 311 fight card after Tsarukyan injury | News, results, highlights, stats and rumours

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NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 01: Islam Makhachev of Russia prepares to face Dustin Poirier in the UFC Lightweight Championship bout during the UFC 302 event at the Prudential Center on June 1, 2024 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

UFC President Dana White announced Friday that Islam Makhachev will defend the UFC lightweight title against Renato Moicano at UFC 311 on Saturday night.

Makhachev was originally scheduled to face Arman Tsarukyan, but White said Tsarukyan contacted him Thursday night to tell him he would not be able to compete due to “significant back pain.”

UFC 311 will take place at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, marking the first time a UFC event will be held in the Los Angeles Clippers’ new arena.

Moicano took to X after White’s announcement to express confidence that he will upset Makhachev for the lightweight championship:

Renato Moicano @moicanoufc

Hey guess what I’ll be world champion tomorrow! God is so good! Thanks for all the support #ufc311

Makhachev also made a post apparently welcoming the challenge of facing a new opponent on short notice:

Makhachev Islam @MAKHACHEVMMA

“What does this title represent? It means you’re the best in the world, and if you’re the best in the world, it doesn’t matter who’s going to be facing you. What can I say? No? NEVER. Let’s do this!” pic.twitter.com/Nyj05z1mGs

The 33-year-old Makhachev is 26-1 in his professional MMA career and is in the midst of a 14-fight winning streak.

Since beating Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title at UFC 280 in 2022, Makhachev has twice defeated Alexander Volkanovski, and he scored a fifth-round submission victory over Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 in June.

White referred to Makhachev as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, making him Moicano’s toughest opponent to date.

The 35-year-old Moicano owns a career record of 20-5-1, and Saturday will mark his first title fight in the UFC.

Since losing to Rafael dos Anjos by unanimous decision at UFC 272 in March 2022, Moicano has won four straight, beating Brad Riddell, Drew Dober, Jalin Turner and Benoît Saint-Denis.

White noted that Moicano has been preparing as an alternate opponent for Makhachev should something happen to Tsarukyan, allowing him to step in as a replacement.

Tsarukyan, 28, previously fought Makhachev on a UFC Fight Night card in 2019, and Makhachev won by unanimous decision.

Since then, Tsarukyan has won nine of his last 10 fights, including a split-decision win over Oliveira at UFC 300 in April that put him in line for a title shot.

Instead, Tsarukyan 22-3 will have to wait his turn again, although it would make sense for him to challenge the winner of Makhachev vs. Moicano.

While a late change of opponent can be tough on the champion at times, Makhachev is listed as a -900 favorite on DraftKing’s Sportsbookwhile Moicano is a +600 underdog.

In addition to the main event Makhachev vs. Moicano, UFC 311 will feature Merab Dvalishvili defending the UFC bantamweight title against Umar Nurmagomedov and Jiří Procházka clashing with Jamahal Hill in a light heavyweight bout.