UFC 313 Fight Card Co-Main Event Opening Odds: Gaethje Vs. Fiziev 2

The UFC lost the original co-main event of UFC 313 earlier this week when a hand injury forced Dan Hooker to withdraw from the March pay-per-view card because of a broken hand. The UFC had booked Hooker to face former UFC BMF champion Justin Gaethje in a highly anticipated matchup between the all-action competitors. When news broke that Hooker was out, several potential opponents quickly raised their hands to step in on short notice to face Gaethje. Ultimately, the UFC picked a man who Gaethje defeated by majority decision in 2023, Rafael Fiziev. We look at the opening odds for Gaethje vs. Fiziev 2.

UFC 313 Co-Main Event: Justin Gaethje Vs. Rafael Fiziev

When Justin Gaethje (25-5) joined the UFC in 2017 he had a perfect record of 17-0. Leading up to that signing, Gaethje had won the World Series of Fighting lightweight title and then defended the belt five times. All six of his title fights under the WSOF banner ended by knockout.

Gaethje’s first fight with the UFC came in July 2017, when he met Michael Johnson in the main event of The Ultimate Fighter 25 finale card. Expectations were high for that matchup, and Gaethje delivered, picking up a second-round TKO win over Johnson and earning “Fight of the Night” and “Performance of the Night” bonuses for a contest that won several “Fight of the Year” polls for 2017.

Every UFC fight Gaethje has been involved in since has been viewed with anticipation as he has one of the most fan-friendly styles in the history of not just the UFC but all of MMA. Gaethje might not win every time he steps into the octagon, but he is a fighter always looking to earn a stoppage win and entertain the fans. His 12 fight-night bonus awards in 12 UFC outings can attest to that.

Gaethje won the interim UFC lightweight crown in May 2020 with a knockout win over Tony Ferguson. However, he failed to unify the belts, losing to then-champion Khabib Nurmagomedov by submission in October of that year. Gaethje also fell short in his second try at winning the UFC 155-pound belt, dropping a submission to Charles Oliveira for the vacant title in May 2022.

Gaethje bounced back from that loss with his majority decision victory over Fiziev at UFC 286. A fight that earned both men “Fight of the Night” honors. Geathje’s most recent win was his “Performance of the Night” bonus-winning outing over Poirier.

Gaethje has 20 career knockout wins, one submission victory, and he’s been on the right side of four decisions. The BMF champ’s career losses have come by knockout (three) and submission (two).

He is coming off a fight-of-the-year nominee for 2024, his UFC 300 KO loss to Max Holloway. Gaethje is the No. 3 fighter in the official UFC lightweight rankings.

Rafael Fiziev (12-3) joined the UFC in 2019. At the time he had a 6-0 record with six stoppages (five knockouts and one submission), with all but one of those fights ending in the first round. Fiziev’s UFC debut ended 86 seconds into the first round when he caught a spinning back kick from Magomed Mustafaev, who had not fought for more than two years.

Fiziev bounced back from his first career loss by going on a six-fight unbeaten streak. He climbed the rankings during that run, which began with an October 2019 decision win over Alex White and ended with a July 2022 knockout win over former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. Fiziev picked up five fight-night bonuses during that stretch.

With his impressive run, Fiziev earned the No. 6 spot in the official UFC rankings. His reward was a matchup against Gaethje in the co-main event of UFC 286. Fiziev entered that bout as a -230 betting favorite over the +195 Gaethje.

The two put on a striking battle over three rounds in front of an appreciative crowd in London that evening. In the end, Gaethje earned the majority decision win. In his next outing, Fiziev faced Mateusz Gamrot in a UFC Fight Night main event. That contest ended abruptly in the second round when Gamrot scored a TKO win after Fiziev planted his leg to throw a kick and dropped to the canvas.

Fiziev has not fought since he tore his ACL in that contest, even though he was cleared for action in September 2024. Despite his inactivity, Fiziev is the No. 11 fighter in the official UFC lightweight rankings.

UFC 313 Co-Main Event Opening Betting Odds: Justin Gaethje Vs. Rafael Fiziev

When the betting odds for the UFC 313 co-main event opened, Fiziev was the -145 betting favorite over Gaethje, who came in as the +125 betting underdog.

*Odds via BetOnline

UFC 313 Fight Card Opening Betting Odds

UFC 313 PPV Card Opening Odds

Alex Pereira (+170) vs. Magomed Ankalaev (-200)
Justin Gaethje (+125) vs. Rafael Fiziev (-145)
Jalin Turner (-210) vs. Ignacio Bahamondes (+180)
Amanda Lemos (-156) vs. Iasmin Lucindo (+136)
King Green (+285) vs. Maurício Ruffy (-350)

UFC 313 Preliminary Card Opening Odds

Curtis Blaydes (-258) vs. Rizvan Kuniev (+218)
Joshua Van (-170) vs. Rei Tsuruya (+145)
Brunno Ferreira (-150) vs. Armen Petrosyan (+130)
Alex Morono (+350) vs. Carlos Leal (-450)

UFC 313 Early Preliminary Card Opening Odds

Mairon Santos (-200) vs. Francis Marshall (+170)
Djorden Santos (+130) vs. Ozzy Diaz (-150)

*Odds via BetOnline

UFC 313 Date:

Saturday, March 8, 2025

UFC 313 Location:

T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV

UFC 313 How to Watch or Stream

PPV Card: ESPN+ PPV

Preliminary Card: ESPN

Early Preliminary Card: ESPN+

UFC 313 Main Event

In the main event of UFC 313, the promotion’s light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira looks to defend his title for the fourth time when he faces the No. 1 ranked fighter in the UFC’s 205-pound division, Magomed Ankalaev.

Pereira (12-2) won the UFC light heavyweight crown in November 2023. His most recent title defense came in October 2024 when he knocked out Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307.

Magomed Ankalaev (19-1-1-1) is unbeaten in his past 13 UFC fights. His only loss with the promotion came in his debut when Paul Craig submitted him with one second left in the third round for their 2018 matchup. Ankalaev is coming off an October 2024 decision win over Aleksandar Rakić.

We will have more news on UFC 313, including more info on the betting odds and betting trends, as fight night nears.