Justin Gaethje Earns Unanimous Decision Victory at UFC 313
Monster Energy's Justin Gaethje defeats Rafael Fizzier after 3 Rounds in Co-Main Event at UFC 313 in Las Vegas.
The Highlight is back! Monster Energy congratulates Justin Gaethje on defeating Rafael Fiziev via unanimous decision at UFC 313 in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the night’s co-main event fight contested in the Lightweight division, the 36-year-old from Tucson, Arizona, earned the win after three rounds. The spectacular battle also earned both fighters the UFC’s $50,000 “Fight of the Night” bonus.
Monster Energy’s Gaethje (26-5) came to Las Vegas looking for a win after recently suffering a loss against Max Holloway at UFC 300 in April 2024. Initially, Gaethje was supposed to fight American Dan Hooker, who was forced to withdraw from the fight due to injury.
Gaethje’s opponent on Saturday, Azerbaijani fighter Fiziev (12-4) took the fight after his most recent loss to Mateusz Gamrot at UFC Fight Night 228 in September 2023.
As the night’s co-main event got underway, both fighters charged with reckless abandon in a wild opening sequence. Within less than one minute, Fiziev swept Gaethje to the mat and attempted to secure a reverse triangle, which Gaethje escaped. After both fighters exchanged punches and leg kicks, Gaethje rocked Fiziev with big overhead right hand before the end of the round.
Gaethje dialed up the aggression in the second round, finding openings for hard right hooks that stung his opponent. Towards the end of Round 2, Gaethje dropped the challenger to the canvas with a heavy uppercut, followed by fierce ground and pound, but Fiziev survived until the bell.
The final round saw Gaethje assert his dominance with another big uppercut, followed by elbows to the midsection. As Fiziev attempted to capitalize on his Muay Thai skills, Gaethje shut him down with punches and a surprise head kick. In the final moments of the fight, Gaethje connected precise one-two combinations and remained unfazed by Fiziev’s body shots. When all was said and done, Gaethje was pronounced the winner by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
“I had to come back. I had to show everybody,” said Gaethje after returning to the victory column at UFC 313. “I don’t care how far down you are…It’s on you. You have to get back on the horse.”
The fast-paced fight earned both athletes the UFC’s $50,000 “Fight of the Night” bonus for the second time. Their first battle earned the award at UFC 286 in March 2023. Gaethje secured the victory in both fights by decision.
What’s next for Gaethje? At the UFC 313 post-fight press conference, he shared his determination to fight champion Islam Makhachev for the Lightweight division title. “I want to fight for the belt, obviously. That’s a much different matchup than the one I just had.”
