Dvalishvili to defend title vs. Nurmagomedov at UFC 311

UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili will defend his title against Umar Nurmagomedov in the co-main event of UFC 311 on Jan. 18 in Los Angeles, UFC CEO Dana White announced Wednesday.

Dvalishvili captured the 135-pound belt with a unanimous decision win over Sean O'Malley at UFC 306 in September at Las Vegas' Sphere. The 33-year-old Georgia native is riding an 11-fight winning streak and hasn't suffered a loss since 2018.

Nurmagomedov, the No. 2-ranked bantamweight and cousin of UFC legend Khabib, earned a title shot by beating Cory Sandhagen at UFC Abu Dhabi in August. The 28-year-old Russian is undefeated as a professional at 18-0 and is 6-0 in the Octagon.

Islam Makhachev is scheduled to defend the lightweight title in a rematch with Arman Tsarukyan in the UFC 311 main event, the promotion's first event at the brand-new Intuit Dome.