UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira returns to the Octagon on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 313. Pereira will defend his title against arguably the toughest challenger of his reign, No. 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev.
How tough of a challenge is Ankalaev expected to be for Pereira? According to betting odds, the challenger is the favorite to dethrone the Brazilian star.
In the co-main event, Rafael Fiziev has stepped up on a week’s notice to challenge Justin Gaethje in a rematch. The two men met in March 2023, where Gaethje pulled out the victory via majority decision.
Fiziev has been on the shelf since suffering a leg injury in September 2023 in a loss to Mateusz Gamrot. Gaethje hasn’t fought since he was viciously knocked out by Max Holloway in April 2024 at UFC 300.
Here is a look at the rest of the card in bout order, according to ESPN.
UFC 313
Date: Saturday, March 8, 2025
Location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Main Card: 10:00 PM ET | Prelims: 8:00 PM ET | Early Prelims: 6:00 PM ET
Main Card (10:00 PM ET)
- Light Heavyweight Championship Bout: Alex Pereira (C) vs. Magomed Ankalaev
- Lightweight Bout: Justin Gaethje vs. Rafael Fiziev
- Lightweight Bout: Jalin Turner vs. Ignacio Bahamondes
- Women’s Strawweight Bout: Amanda Lemos vs. Iasmin Lucindo
- Lightweight Bout: King Green vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Preliminary Card (8:00 PM ET)
- Heavyweight Bout: Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev
- Flyweight Bout: Joshua Van vs. Rei Tsuruya
- Middleweight Bout: Brunno Ferreira vs. Armen Petrosyan
- Welterweight Bout: Alex Morono vs. Carlos Leal
Early Preliminary Card (6:00 PM ET)
- Featherweight Bout: Mairon Santos vs. Francis Marshall
- Middleweight Bout: Djorden Santos vs. Ozzy Diaz
- Featherweight Bout: Chris Gutierrez vs. John Casteneda
UFC 313: Fight of the Night Candidates
Any Gaethje fight brings FOTN potential. Fiziev is another fighter who is rarely in a boring fight. Because of their history, both apart and with each other, you’d have to consider the co-main event the most likely FOTN winner.
However, don’t sleep on Jalin Turner vs. Ignacio Bahamondes, Amanda Lemos vs. Iasmin Lucindo, or Joshua Van vs. Rei Tsuruya.
Turner-Bahamondes is a battle between two talented lightweight strikers going in opposite directions. Turner should be on a two-fight win streak, but carelessness at the end of his fight with Renato Moicano at UFC 300 cost him a win—and led to a TKO defeat.
He has now lost three of his last four fights and needs a win in the worst way.
Bahamondes is on a two-fight win streak, with both wins coming by stoppage. Turner is No. 13, and Bahamondes wants the number next to his name.
Lemos-Lucindo is a battle of Top-10 strawweights. Lemos, No. 5, has had her shot at Weili, and she fell short. Lucindo, one of the youngest fighters in the UFC at 23, is attempting to make her rise into contention.
Both Brazilians throw bombs, and there’s a good chance this winds up being a kickboxing match with a few sequences on the ground.
Last but not least, Van vs. Tsuruya. Van has improved with each fight, and he has no problem trading with his opponents.
Tsuruya is a 22-year-old with legit star potential. He has elite-level grappling, and that will likely be his path to victory if he can overcome Van and climb his way into the UFC’s Top 15 at men’s flyweight.
