INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev submitted 10th-ranked Renato Moicano at 4:05 of the first round Saturday night at UFC 311 for his 15th straight victory.
It didn’t take long for Makhachev (27-1-0) after he took down Moicano (20-6-1), as he quickly administered a D’Arce choke.
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The 33-year-old Makhachev has the most title fight wins in the division with five, and accomplished what no other fighter in his division had ever done — successfully defending his belt four times. It was his 13th win by submission.
“I like this belt,” said Makhachev, the UFC’s top-ranked pound-for-pound fighter and the most decorated lightweight ever. “If somebody wants this belt, come to the cage."
Moicano was a last-minute replacement for top-ranked challenger Arman Tsarukyan, who pulled out of the bout Friday because “of significant back pain” related to an injury.
The 35-year-old Moicano, from Brazil, came in with nine victories in his past 10 fights, but proved to be no match for Makhachev, whose grappling has been unmatched as he continues to prove why he’s one of the best in the world
In an epic, action-filled bantamweight title match, champion Merab Dvalishvili (19-4-0) was successful in his first title defense as he extended his winning streak to 12 while handing second-ranked contender Umar Nurmagomedov (18-1-0) the first loss of his career.
The pace of the match saw both fighters dominate at different times in the fight, with Dvalishvili closing strong after two of the three judges had Nurmagomedov leading after the first two rounds.
Nurmagomedov said he felt he broke his left hand, and couldn’t use it after the first round.
In a light heavyweight match, former champion and second-ranked Jiri Prochazka (31-5-1) used a flurry of punches in the third round to overwhelm third-ranked Jamahal Hill (12-3-0) prompting a stoppage at 3:01 for a TKO.
In the heavyweight division, sixth-ranked Jailton Almeida (22-3-0) used a flurry of right hands to hurt seventh-ranked Serghei Spivac (17-5-0) late in the first round and used a ground-and-pound attack to finish the match with a TKO at the 4:53 mark.
Reinier de Ridder (19-2-0) wasted no time in taking down Kevin Holland (26-13-0) roughly 10 seconds into their middleweight bout and finished him off with a rear-naked chokehold at 3:31 of the first round.
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