It wasn’t the plan, but Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev will square off in a rematch. Their lightweight bout scheduled for three rounds will take place Saturday, March 8 at UFC 313 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight came together only last week after Gaethje’s original opponent, Dan Hooker, suffered a fractured hand in training.
Gaethje (25-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) and Fiziev (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) first met in March 2023 at UFC 286, with Gaethje winning a hard-fought majority decision in the Fight of the Night.
Since then, Gaethje has gone 1-1, first knocking out Dustin Poirier and most recently suffering the Knockout of the Year to Max Holloway last April at UFC 300. Fiziev followed up his loss to Gaethje with a second consecutive injury TKO loss to Mateusz Gamrot in September 2023, and he hasn’t competed since.
When does the UFC 313 fight card start?
The UFC 313 lineup consists of 12 fights. Early prelims start at 6:30 p.m. ET, prelims at 8 p.m. ET, and the pay-per-view main card at 10 p.m. ET.
Justin Gaethje vs. Rafael Fiziev walkout time
- As the co-main event, Gaethje and Fiziev are expected to walk out to the cage at approximately 11:45 p.m. ET.
- The fight will stream on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.
