Justin Gaethje has new opponent for UFC 313
Instead of Dan Hooker, Gaethje will fight Rafael Fiziev
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The MMA Notebook runs every Friday.
In this edition:
Justin Gaethje no longer facing Dan Hooker at UFC 313
Henry Cejudo’s loss removes him from the main event
PFL tournament lacks star power
Weekend predictions
Justin Gaethje has a new opponent for UFC 313
UFC 313 has a new co-main event.
Dan Hooker is out of next week’s card, forcing to withdrew because of a hand injury. That led to UFC CEO Dana White announcing Wednesday night on Instagram that Rafael Fiziev will take Hooker’s place, competing against Justin Gaethje in a lightweight bout at UFC 313.
The fight is scheduled for three rounds, which means the final two rounds could be explosive. It is also a rematch from UFC 286 in March of 2023, when Gaethje absolutely pummeled Fiziev over the final 10 minutes to win by majority decision.
Gaethje entered the last bout against Fiziev in need of a win, as he had just dropped a fight against Charles Oliveira. He finds himself in a similar spot here, stepping into UFC 313 for the first time since suffering defeat at the hands of Max Holloway last April.
Now 36, Gaethje will eventually show signs of decline in the cage. But the loss to Holloway was not a fair barometer, as Holloway broke Gaethje’s nose in the opening round. Remarkably, Gaethje (25-5) still finished one second short of finishing the fight before getting knocked out. A short-notice bout is the perfect way for Gaethje to bounce back into the win column, especially as he gets Fiziev in his first fight since the fall of 2023.
Fiziev (12-3) tore his ACL in that bout. He has a lot to prove here, and Gaethje will be an extraordinarily difficult test in his return.
Surprisingly, the initial line is close. On DraftKings, Gaethje is only -120 on FanDuel, which is ludicrous. There is no reason for hesitation. Gaethje is going to win this fight, welcoming Fiziev back to the UFC in a violent manner.
Henry Cejudo lost the fight… and now he’s out of the main event
Song Yadong defeated Henry Cejudo this past Saturday night.
And he won in more ways than one.
Yadong was awarded victory by technical decision after three rounds since Cejudo could no longer see following a damaging (accidental) double eye poke. But he also dominated all three rounds, refusing to allow Cejudo to grapple and laying in far more damage with his striking.
Cejudo is furious that a point was not deducted for the eye poke. Clearly, however, it was not intentional. Why eye poke someone when you are dominating the fight?
The defeat and slow pace of the bout should remove Cejudo (16-5) from any further main events. While the former Olympic gold medalist still adds value to the UFC, he is 38-years-old and now immersed in a three-fight losing streak.
There is also no need for a rematch. Yadong and Cejudo left two drastically different statements in this fight. Yadong (22-8-1, 1 NC) showed he is ready for stiffer competition in the bantamweight division, and Cejudo’s struggles indicate he is firmly entrenched in the twilight of his career.
A lack of star power hurts the PFL
PFL announced the middleweight and lightweight division of this year’s World Tournament, which kicks off this April.
It is an incredibly underwhelming field.
Despite adding a talent-laden roster from Bellator, there has been no surge to the PFL product. Most of the top names from Bellator have already left the company, and that is visible in the world tourney, which will highlight the likes of Impa Kasanganay, Fabian Edwards, and Josh Silveira in the middleweight division. That means we could end up with a third bout pitting Edwards against reigning Bellator champ Johnny Eblen, even though Eblen has already defeated him twice.
Of course, the future of Eblen is also up in the air. He appears to be the next Bellator fighter to be granted his release.
For the lightweights, we’ll see the likes of Alex Shabliy, Brent Primus, and Clay Collard. Unfortunately, Paul Hughes is not part of the tournament.
With perhaps the exception of Kasanganay, none of these fighters are on the precipice of breaking through to stardom. In order to garner any semblance of attention, the tournaments will require some wildly entertaining fights.
Overall, it lacks any real excitement. Or any significant competition toward UFC.
The Pick ‘Em Section
UFC Fight Night flyweight bout: Manel Kape vs. Asu Almabayev
Pick: Manel Kape
UFC Fight Night middleweight bout: Cody Brundage vs. Julian Marquez
Pick: Cody Brundage
UFC Fight Night lightweight bout: Nasrat Haqparast vs. Esteban Ribovics
Pick: Esteban Ribovics
UFC Fight Night heavyweight bout: Austen Lane vs. Mario Pinto
Pick: Mario Pinto
UFC Fight Night light featherweight bout: Hyder Amil vs. William Gomis
Pick: William Gomis