UFC 313 Preview
Alex Pereira batters Khalil Rountree Jr. with a right hand. Credit: MMA Fighting.
The UFC hits the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with a killer pay-per-view card. From start to finish, this card is filled with top prospects and established finishers all looking for a highlight reel victory this weekend. In the co-main event, we’ll witness a rematch of two outstanding Lightweights when Justin Gaethje faces Rafael Fiziev. In the main event, we finally receive a long-awaited champion and #1 contender matchup when Alex Pereira looks to defend his title against Magomed Ankalaev. Let’s take a look at the fights on the main card.
King Green vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Bobby Green tags Drew Dober with a clean right hand. Credit: Zuffa LLC.
Lightweight Bout
King Green: 32-16-1, 11 KO/TKO, 9 Sub.
Mauricio Ruffy: 11-1-0, 10 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.
Green has won three of his last five fights and has wins over #14 ranked Lightweight Grant Dawson (23-2-1), Tony Ferguson (26-11-0), and Jim Miller (38-18-0). Training at Pinnacle MMA, he is an excellent boxer, picking his opponents apart with quick combinations and damaging straights. He’s rarely in a boring fight, always willing to go to the center of the octagon and exchange blows. Green has been awarded Performance of the Night three times and Fight of the Night four times, backing up his scrappy tendencies. He also has excellent wrestling to supplement his striking, having defended 74% of takedowns attempted on him, and has a solid submission game and top control. He’s efficient both on offense and defense, having landed 53% of his significant strikes attempted and defended 62% of significant strikes thrown at him in the UFC. Green does a great job mixing up his strikes, attacking the head and the body evenly, and throwing the occasional kick to finish a combination.
Mauricio Ruffy cracks James Llontop with a straight left. Credit: MMA Fighting.
Ruffy is on a six-fight win streak and has UFC victories over Jamie Mullarkey (17-8-0) and James Llontop (14-5-0). A lethal, elusive striker, he’s always dangerous and constantly hunting a knockout. He’s highly accurate and favors power to volume, often throwing single shots with knockout intentions. Ruffy has fantastic distance control and head movement, typically staying at range and picking his opponents apart with brutal leg kicks. Training with the Fighting Nerds, he throws everything with impressive speed and is unpredictable, regularly attempting unorthodox strikes without telegraphing. He varies his shots well and will constantly look to draw in his opponents so he can land counterstrikes. Although 80% of Ruffy’s knockouts have come in the first round, he has solid cardio and can carry his power comfortably across 15 minutes.
#5 Amanda Lemos vs. #7 Iasmin Lucindo
Amanda Lemos fires a powerful left hook at Marina Rodriguez. Credit: Zuffa LLC.
Women’s Strawweight Bout
Amanda Lemos: 14-4-1, 8 KOT/KO, 3 Sub.
Iasmin Lucindo: 17-5-0, 8 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.
Lemos has won three of her last five bouts and has UFC victories over #6 ranked Strawweight Mackenzie Dern (15-5-0), #9 ranked Strawweight Marina Rodriguez (17-5-2), and #13 ranked Strawweight Angela Hill (18-14-0). She is a knockout artist with serious power in her hands and is dangerous anywhere. She throws every shot with power and knockout intentions. Lemos won’t push a crazy pace on the feet, making up for volume with power and accuracy, landing at a 54% accuracy rate. Training at Marajo Brothers Team, she is at her best when she’s controlling the center of the octagon and pressuring her opponent, throwing plenty of devastating front kicks and leg kicks when at distance. She averages just under one takedown landed per 15 minutes in the UFC and has shown a slick submission game, particularly her guillotine. Lemos has secured eight of her eleven finishes in round one and is most dangerous early on.
Iasmin Lucindo unloads a heavy front kick at Karolina Kowalkiewicz. Credit: Ag. Fight.
Lucindo has won four of her last five outings and has UFC victories coming over #9 ranked Strawweight Marina Rodriguez (17-5-2), Polyana Viana (13-7-0), and Karolina Kowalkiewicz (16-9-0). She’s an aggressive striker, always coming forward, pursuing a knockout. She’s very dangerous on the inside and is willing to eat one to land one, often tending to headhunt. Lucindo throws everything in combination and with brutal power, dealing out most of her damage with her punches. She’s landing, on average, over two takedowns per fifteen minutes and has landed multiple takedowns in all her UFC wins. She has solid offense when in top position, possessing heavy ground and pound and a sneaky submission game. Lucindo turned professional in MMA at 14, making her impressively experienced for a 23-year-old.
#13 Jalin Turner vs. Ignacio Bahamondes
Lightweight Bout
Jalin Turner lands a brutal kick to the head of Dan Hooker. Credit: MMA Fighting.
Jalin Turner: 14-8-0, 10 K0/TKO, 4 Sub.
Ignacio Bahamondes: 16-5-0, 11 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.
Turner has won two of his last five fights and has UFC victories over King Green (32-16-1), Uroš Medić (10-3-0), and Jamie Mullarkey (17-8-0). He’s an excellent striker who usually fights in an upright stance and throws everything in combination. He constantly pursues a finish but remains patient, never overextending or telegraphing attacks. He’s a sizeable Lightweight, standing at 6’3”, and uses his length by fighting at range and damaging his opponent without getting hit. Turner has power in both hands and is very fluid on the feet, quickly chaining attacks together and using various strikes. Training at Carlson Gracie Riverside, he’s averaging about one takedown landed per 15 minutes and has an impressive submission game, with three of his four submission wins coming in the first round. Turner is as active on the ground as on the feet and constantly tries to improve position or find a finish.
Ignacio Bahamondes stuns Manuel Torres with a right hand. Credit: MMA Mania.
Bahamondes has won four of his last five bouts and has UFC victories over Trey Ogden (17-6-0), Rongzhu (25-5-0), and Roosevelt Roberts (12-5-0). He’s a flashy striker capable of producing highlight-reel knockouts at any moment. He has excellent kickboxing, constantly switching stances and throwing quick combinations followed by devastating kicks. Bahamondes does a great job remaining composed at range or in the pocket, willing to exchange strikes anywhere. Although he hasn’t landed a takedown in the UFC, he’s defended 85% of them attempted on him and has a slick submission game. Training at Valle Flow Striking, he has shown he has both the cardio and the chin to back up his striking tendencies, allowing him to get into wars and throw with volume. Bahamondes, on average, has landed 79 significant strikes per fight in the UFC and is constantly pushing the pace.
#3 Justin Gaethje vs. #11 Rafael Fiziev
Justin Gaethje lands a stinging left hook on Michael Chandler. Credit: The Fight Library.
Lightweight Bout
Justin Gaethje: 25-5-0, 20 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.
Rafael Fiziev: 12-3-0, 8 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.
Gaethje has won three of his last five outings and has UFC victories over #4 ranked Lightweight Dustin Poirier (30-9-0), #7 ranked Lightweight Michael Chandler (23-9-0), and his current opponent, Rafael Fiziev. He’s one of MMA's most brutal, vicious strikers and is always willing to throw down. Possessing devastating power in both hands, he’s developed into a much more technical, skillful fighter in his promotional tenure. To match his KO power, Gaethje has some of the hardest leg kicks in MMA and throws them constantly. He has a collegiate wrestling background and solid takedown defense but has only landed a single takedown in the UFC and rarely goes to the mat. He’s exceptionally durable and is always willing to eat a shot to land one. Training with Elevation Fight Team, Gaethje has fantastic cardio and is always dangerous, capable of producing both early and late finishes.
Rafael Fiziev launches a body kick at Brad Riddell. Zuffa LLC.
Fiziev has won three of his last five fights and has UFC wins over #10 ranked Lightweight Renato Moicano (20-6-1), Rafael Dos Anjos (32-17-0), and Marc Diakiese (18-7-0). He is a dangerous striker who constantly pressures forward and always pursues a knockout. Averaging about 70 significant strikes landed in his last five outings, he has volume along with power and throws everything in combination. Training at Tiger Muay Thai, Fiziev is highly technical, fights behind his jab, and moves in and out of the pocket quickly without taking much damage. He has very efficient striking and rarely misses shots, but is also defensively sound, possessing excellent head movement and elusive footwork. With a background in Muay Thai and a pro kickboxing record of 39-8, he won’t typically initiate grappling exchanges but has defended 89% of the takedowns attempted on him in the UFC. Fiziev has a massive arsenal of attacks and can land spectacular moves like flying knees and spinning kicks.
(C) Alex Pereira vs. #1 Magomed Ankalaev
Alex Pereira knocks Jamahal Hill unconscious with a devastating left hook. Credit: MMA Fighting.
Middleweight Title Bout
Alex Pereira: 12-2-0, 10 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.
Magomed Ankalaev: 20-1-1, 11 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.
Pereira is on a five-fight win streak and has UFC victories over #2 ranked Middleweight Sean Strickland (29-7-0), #2 ranked Light Heavyweight Jiří Procházka (31-5-1), and #3 ranked Light Heavyweight Jan Błachowicz (29-10-1). He is a former Glory Kickboxing Middleweight and Light Heavyweight champion with a professional kickboxing record of 40-7. He is notorious for having the most devastating left hook in combat sports and loves letting it fly. Pereira has just as brutal kicks to back up his heavy hands, which he’ll often use to find his range before getting into the pocket to throw big hooks and devastating knees. He’s comfortable fighting on the outside of the octagon but is most dangerous when he takes the center and cuts off his opponent. He has shown solid takedown defense and continually improving grappling, but still prefers to keep it standing. Training at Teixeira MMA, Pereira doesn’t move a ton on the feet, occasionally standing straight in front of his opponent, waiting for them to throw something so he can fire back.
Magomed Ankalaev lands a cracking right hook on Thiago Santos. Credit: MMA Fighting.
Ankalaev has won three of his last five outings with a draw and a No Contest and holds victories over #5 ranked Light Heavyweight Aleksandar Rakić (14-5-0), #8 ranked Light Heavyweight Nikita Krylov (30-9-0), and #9 ranked Light Heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir (20-8-0). He holds the rank of Master of Sport in Combat Sambo and is a highly experienced grappler. Despite this, he averages just under one takedown landed per fifteen minutes and is comfortable in a striking battle. Ankalaev is very patient, typically throwing single shots with few combinations, but he makes up for his lack of volume with massive power. He constantly presses forward and throws every shot with purpose, with his pace increasing as the fight continues. Training at Gorets, he does an excellent job of holding the center and often looks to counterstrike. When Ankalaev takes the fight to the mat, he has smothering pressure in top position and will constantly look to posture up and land brutal ground and pound.
Best Bets
Ignacio Bahamondes Moneyline: An outstanding matchup of two exciting Lightweights, this will be a fun one. Each fighter seems to be trending in opposite directions lately, with Bahamondes on a two-fight, first-round knockout win streak. In contrast, Turner is coming off a tough knockout loss to Renato Moicano. Although Turner is a well-rounded fighter, typically one of his most significant advantages inside the Octagon is his height and reach, an advantage he does not possess in this matchup. Bahamondes also has a speed advantage with both his hands and kicks, and is overall the more technical striker. Turner does have an edge on the mat, but Bahamondes has shown solid takedown defense, and I anticipate this fight will primarily take place on the feet. I expect Bahamondes to keep Turner at range with long punches and kicks, deny any takedown attempts, and earn a hard-fought victory.
Justin Gaethje Moneyline: This fight is a rematch, with their first meeting taking place at UFC 286 in 2023. Despite what the current odds may suggest, Gaethje was the victor of their initial matchup via majority decision. Frankly, I’m baffled by Gaethje’s underdog status. While I can appreciate that he’s coming off a brutal knockout loss, he’s facing an opponent he’s already beaten, who’s coming in on short notice. Regardless of the circumstance, Gaethje is a horrible matchup for a fighter like Fiziev, who prefers a more technical pace and to stay at range where he can use his kicks. As he showed in their first matchup, Gaethje stays right in his opponent’s face, pushing a wild pace and never letting his opponent find any groove or comfort. Considering neither has changed their style much since their first fight (and Fiziev is coming in on short notice off an injury), I expect this matchup to play out similarly to the first one. I anticipate it being a bit wilder than the first, probably lacking any feeling out process to start, but I believe Gaethje walks away with another win.
Alex Pereira Moneyline: Finally, we get this long-awaited matchup of top-tier Light Heavyweights. There’s been plenty of build-up and back-and-forth between these two, so it’ll be interesting to see what gameplans these fighters utilize when they hit the cage. While its a safe bet Pereira will fight similarly to his recent performances, it’s tough to know exactly what Ankalaev’s plan is. While it seems obvious that Ankalaev’s best path to victory would be via wrestling, he doesn’t typically focus on takedowns and control time to win fights. Generally, he engages in stand-up battles and only resorts to wrestling when he’s hurt or losing the fight. Regardless of how Ankalaev approaches this puzzle, I believe Pereira has the skills to defeat him. Although we’re all aware of the power in Pereira’s hands, his leg kicks are equally devastating, which we saw Ankalaev struggle mightily with against Jan Błachowicz. He also struggled fighting all five rounds in that matchup, and has only done so twice in his career, while six of Pereira’s last seven fights were scheduled for five rounds. I anticipate competitive early striking exchanges before Pereira denies multiple takedowns, pieces Ankalaev up with his technical kickboxing, and earns yet another defense of his Light Heavyweight title.
