Another PPV is in the books and there’s a new king at light heavyweight. Magomed Ankalaev unseated Alex Pereira at the top of the 205-pound division on Saturday night at UFC 313 with a stunning unanimous decision win. It was a razor close fight that could have been scored in either direction, but all three judges saw it for the title challenger.
Ankalaev joins Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov as the only natives of Dagestan to wear UFC gold. Ankalaev took the long road to reach this point after getting one chance previously in 2022. The problem was that he fought Jan Blachowicz to a draw in a vacant title fight that UFC CEO Dana White hated so much, he refused to rebook either man for the second chance at the belt. Four fights later, Ankalaev is finally a UFC champion.
Elsewhere on the card, Justin Gaethje got back in the win column with an impressive showing against Rafael Fiziev. The two previously duked it out in 2023 with Gaethje earning the majority decision. This time, it was a bit more clear as Gaethje earned the unanimous decision against an opponent making his return from injury on 12 days’ notice. Plus, Ignacio Bahamondes made waves with his first-round submission of Jalin Turner, who promptly told reporters he planned to retire after his fourth loss in five fights.
CBS Sports was with you throughout fight week with the latest news, in-depth features and betting advice to consider. Thanks for stopping by and we’ll see you at UFC 314 in Miami.
UFC 313 fight card, odds
- Magomed Ankalaev def. Alex Pereira (c) via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47)
- Justin Gaethje def. Rafael Fiziev via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Ignacio Bahamondes def. Jalin Turner via first-round submission (arm triangle)
- Amanda Lemos def. Iasmin Lucindo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Iasmin Lucindo -140 vs. Amanda Lemos +120, women’s strawweights
- Mauricio Ruffy def. King Green via first-round knockout (spinning back kick)
- Joshua Van def. Rei Tsuruya via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Brunno Ferreira def. Armen Petrosyan via second-round submission (armbar)
- Carlos Leal def. Alex Morono via first-round knockout (punches)
- Mairon Santos def. Francis Marshall via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
- Ozzy Diaz def. Djorden Santos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
UFC 313 countdown
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