Makhachev has been nearly perfect in the Octagon, winning 15 of his 16 UFC fights. His lone loss was against Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in October 2015. Most recently, Makhachev beat Dustin Poirier by fifth-round submission to retain the belt at UFC 302 last June. Moicano took the fight on late notice, after Arman Tsarukyan withdrew due to injury.

UFC 311 took an unexpected major turn Friday morning, with Arman Tsarukyan withdrawing from his lightweight title fight against Islam Makhachev. A new UFC 311 main event is now set as Renato Moicano will step in to challenge Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) for the belt.

Arman Tsarukyan has been forced out of the main event at UFC 311, with Brazil's Renato Moicano stepping in to challenge Islam Makhachev on one day's notice.