THRILLING LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT HEADLINES UFC 313

THRILLING LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
BOUT BETWEEN (C) ALEX PEREIRA AND
(#1) MAGOMED ANKALAEV HEADLINES UFC® 313

FEATURED BOUT:
(#3) JUSTIN GAETHJE vs. (#6) DAN HOOKER

UFC® 313: PEREIRA vs. ANKALAEV
TICKETS GO ON SALE FRIDAY, JANUARY 24 

 

 UFC® returns to T-Mobile Arena with a blockbuster light heavyweight championship tilt that sees Alex Pereira defend against No. 1 ranked contender Magomed Ankalaev. Also, No. 3 ranked lightweight contender Justin Gaethje battles No. 6 Dan Hooker in a five round co-main event guaranteed to deliver fireworks.

UFC® 313: PEREIRA vs. ANKALAEV takes place Sat., March 8 in Las Vegas, Nev. with the main card at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on ESPN+ PPV. The prelims will be available on ESPNEWS and ESPN Deportes, as well as simulcast in English and Spanish on ESPN+, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The early prelims will kick off at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on ESPN+ and UFC Fight Pass.

UFC® 313: PEREIRA vs. ANKALAEV tickets will go on sale Fri., January 24 at 10 a.m. PT and are available for purchase at AXS.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wed., January 22 at 10 a.m. PT via the website UFCFightClub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thurs., January 23 starting at 10 a.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.

Pereira (12-2, fighting out of Danbury, Conn. by way of Sao Paulo, Brazil) aims for his fourth successful title defense. A devastating knockout artist, he has delivered thrilling finishes against Khalil Rountree Jr., Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill. Pereira now hopes to continue his run atop the 205-pound division by handing Ankalaev his first KO loss.

Ankalaev (20-1-1 1NC, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia) plans to capitalize on his second UFC championship opportunity. Currently riding a 13-fight unbeaten streak, he has earned notable victories over Aleksandar Rakic, Anthony Smith and Volkan Oezdemir. Ankalaev now aims to dethrone Pereira and achieve his dream of capturing UFC gold.

Former interim lightweight titleholder Gaethje (26-5, fighting out of Denver, Colo. by way of Safford, Ariz.) looks to kick off his 2025 season with another highlight performance. Among the most exciting fighters in UFC history, he holds memorable KO wins against Dustin Poirier, Tony Ferguson and Donald Cerrone. Gaethje now intends to defend his spot in the rankings by stopping Hooker in emphatic fashion.

Hooker (24-12, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand) plans to steal the show to continue his climb up the lightweight ladder. A dynamic finisher currently riding a three-fight win streak, he holds thrilling victories over Jalin Turner, Gilbert Burns and Paul Felder. Hooker now hopes to secure the biggest win of his career and crack the Top 5 rankings.

Additional bouts on the card include:

  • Recent Dana White’s Contender Series signee Djorden Santos (10-1, fighting out of Brasília, DF, Brazil) debuts against Ozzy Diaz (9-3, fighting out of Los Angeles, Calif.) at middleweight
  • No. 13 ranked flyweight contender Bruno Silva (14-6-2 1NC, fighting out of Piracicaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil) looks to halt the momentum of No. 15 Joshua Van (12-2, fighting out of Houston, Texas)
  • Brunno Ferreira (12-2, fighting out of Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil) faces Armen Petrosyan (9-4, fighting out of Yerevan, Armenia) in an exciting battle of middleweight strikers
  • Alex Morono (24-11 1NC, fighting out of Houston, Texas) squares off with Carlos Leal (21-6, fighting out of Curitiba, Parana, Brazil) at welterweight
  • Mairon Santos Alves (15-1, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev. by way of Duque De Caxias, Rio de Janeiro) meets Francis Marshall (8-2, fighting out of Jersey City, N.J.) in a featherweight tilt
  • Chris Gutierrez (21-5-2, fighting out of Englewood, Colo.) faces undefeated Jean Matsumoto (16-0, fighting out of Braganca Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil) at bantamweight
  • No. 5 ranked strawweight contender Amanda Lemos (14-4-1, fighting out of Pará​, Brazil) collides with No. 7 Iasmin Lucindo (17-5, fighting out of Fortaleza, CE, Brazil)

For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit UFC.com. All bouts are live and subject to change.

About UFC®

UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 700 million fans and approximately 266 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world while broadcasting to over 900 million households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 80 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO) and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC and @UFC on X, Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok: @UFC.

About T-Mobile Arena

T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas Strip between Park MGM and New York-New York, opened April 6, 2016. The arena hosts more than 100 events annually including major headline entertainment, awards shows, UFC, boxing, basketball and other sporting events, family shows and special events. T-Mobile Arena also is the home of the Vegas Golden Knights, a National Hockey League expansion team and the city’s first professional sports team, as well as UFC’s exclusive Las Vegas arena destination. The venue, named the No. 1 venue on Billboard Magazine’s 2018 Arena Power List as well as the “Best New Major Concert Venue” by Pollstar Magazine in 2016, features 50 luxury suites, more than two dozen private loge boxes, complete broadcast facilities, and other specially designed exclusive hospitality offerings and fan amenities destined to create a guest experience second to none. Toshiba Plaza, an adjacent two-acre outdoor entertainment space, features performance stages, a variety of video screens and other interactive content and display areas. Industry-leading architect Populous designed T-Mobile Arena to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s standards for LEED® Gold Certification. T-Mobile Arena is a privately funded joint venture between AEG and MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM). For more information, visit T-MobileArena.com or follow on FacebookTwitter and Instagram.

About ESPN+

https://espnpressroom.com/us/espnplus/

 

About ESPN

ESPN, the world’s leading multiplatform sports entertainment brand, features eight U.S. television networks, the leading sports app, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, leading social and digital platforms, ESPN.com, ESPN Audio, endeavors on every continent around the world, and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.

 

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THRILLING LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT HEADLINES UFC 313
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THRILLING LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT HEADLINES UFC 313