Magomed Ankalaev became the new light heavyweight champion of the world this past Saturday night when he dethroned Alex Pereira via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) in the UFC 313 headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

MajorWager scored the contest 48-47 in favor of Ankalaev, who cashed tickets as a +110 underdog. Bettors backing ‘over’ 3.5 rounds netted a +106 payout at FanDuel.

The prop bet for Ankalaev to win by decision had a +335 return at BetRivers.

According to MMADecisions, 11 media members scored the bout 48-47 in favor of Ankalaev. One journalist had it a 47-47 draw, while nine media members had it 48-47 for Pereira.

At his post-fight presser, UFC President was asked about whether an immediate rematch could be granted. White’s response was, “Probably.”

BetOnline has Ankalaev listed as a -185 ‘chalk’ vs. Pereira, who is a +160 underdog. For the fight to have action, it has to take place before Dec. 21 of 2025.

In the co-main event, Rafael Fiziev was granted a rematch with Justin Gaethje, who had beaten Fiziev in March of 2023 in a scrap that garnered Fight of the Night honors at UFC 286. ‘The Highlight’ was originally scheduled to throw down with Dan Hooker, who was forced out of the contest after breaking his hand during training camp.

Fiziev had not competed since September of 2023 when he lost to Mateusz Gamrot by second-round TKO when he tore his ACL. ‘Ataman’ took the fight on 14 days of notice and had to fly all the way around the world from Thailand.

The stakes couldn’t have been higher for the 36-year-old Gaethje, who entered the bout with a 25-5 overall record and an 8-5 mark in the UFC. The former University of Northern Colorado wrestler has openly discussed head trauma through the years and has always been well aware of the consequences of his fighting style.

After suffering a devastating knockout loss at the buzzer of the fifth round against Max Holloway at UFC 300 last April, Gaethje didn’t have any contact in training for six months and was 11 months removed from the loss when he went into the Octagon this past Saturday.

Gaethje, who is debatably the most exciting fighter in UFC history, was very open about the fact that his next knockout loss might result in the end of his career. He knew exactly what was on the line at UFC 313.

And once again, Gaethje delivered another spectacular performance, winning a unanimous decision over Fiziev (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) as a +135 underdog. He collected the ninth Fight of the Night bonus of his career for an extra $50,000. He trails only Dustin Poirier and Edson Barboza, who have both won 10 FOTN bonuses.

Gaethje now has 14 total bonuses, as he’s won Performance of the Night honors five times. That has him ranked seventh with Anderson Silva, trailing Jim Miller, Joe Lauzon and Poirier by one for a share of fourth place with 15 career bonuses.

With a second victory over Fiziev, Gaethje remains in the mix for a title shot. The next title defense for lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is expected to come against former featherweight kingpin Ilia Topuria, who recently vacated his 145-pound strap to go up to 155.

Gaethje made it clear on Tuesday that he wants the winner of that matchup between Makhachev and Topuria.

Other winners on the UFC 313 main card included Ignacio Bahamondes, Amanda Lemos and Mauricio Ruffy. Bahamondes recorded a first-round submission win (triangle choke) from his back over Jalin Turner, who decided to retire after suffering his fourth loss in his last five outings.

Lemos won a UD over Iasmin Lucindo (29-28, 29-28, 29-28), while Ruffy defeated King Green by first-round KO with a spinning wheel kick that’s probably the front runner for KO of the Year at this point.

Ruffy and Bahamondes both won POTN bonuses to take home an extra 50 large.