UFC 311 predictions: Is anyone down with a Moicano upset, or will Makhachev keep flowing?

The UFC is in Southern California this week for its first pay-per-view of the calendar year with a pair of title fights at the top of the lineup.

UFC 311 (pay-per-view, ESPNews/Disney+, ESPN+) takes place Saturday at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif.

Get main card pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.

Kevin Holland vs. Reinier de Ridder

Records: Holland (26-12 MMA, 13-9 UFC), de Ridder (18-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC)
Past five: Holland 2-3, de Ridder 3-2
Division: Middleweight
Rankings: de Ridder honorable mention
Odds (as of 01.17.25): Holland +105, de Ridder -120
Junkie pick results: de Ridder 7, Holland 4

Jailton Almeida vs. Serghei Spivac

Records: Almeida (21-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC), Spivac (17-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC)
Past five: Almeida 4-1, Spivac 4-1
Division: Heavyweight
Rankings: Almeida No. 8, Spivac No. 9
Odds (as of 01.17.25): Almeida -485, Spivac +370
Junkie pick results: Almeida 9, Spivac 2

Jamahal Hill vs. Jiri Prochazka

Records: Hill (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), Prochazka (30-5-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC)
Past five: Hill 4-1, Prochazka 3-2
Division: Light heavyweight
Rankings: Prochazka No. 3, Hill No. 4
Odds (as of 01.17.25): Hill -130, Prochazka +110
Junkie pick results: Hill 6, Prochazka 5

Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov

Records: Dvalishvili (18-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC), Nurmagomedov (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC)
Past five: Dvalishvili 4-1, Nurmagomedov 5-0
Division: Bantamweight
Rankings: Dvalishvili No. 1, No. 12 pound-for-pound; Nurmagomedov No. 5
Odds (as of 01.17.25): Dvalishvili +205, Nurmagomedov -250
Junkie pick results: Nurmagomedov 9, Dvalishvili 2

Islam Makhachev vs. Renato Moicano

Records: Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC), Moicano (20-5-1 MMA, 12-5 UFC)
Past five: Makhachev 5-0, Moicano 4-1
Division: Lightweight
Rankings: Makhachev No. 1, No. 3 pound-for-pound; Moicano No. 12
Odds (as of 01.17.25): Makhachev -1200, Moicano +750
Junkie pick results: Makhachev 11, Moicano 0

Preliminary card picks

Although they don’t count toward the standings, MMA Junkie staff members still pick the fights on the prelims. Here are the results:

• Raoni Barcelos vs. Payton Talbott: Talbott 11, Barcelos 0
• Billy Elekana vs. Bogdan Guskov: Guskov 10, Elekana 1
• Grant Dawson vs. Diego Ferreira: Dawson 8, Ferreira 3
• Azamat Bekoev vs. Zach Reese: Bekoev 9, Reese 2
• Ailin Perez vs. Karol Rosa: Rosa 6, Perez 5
• Muin Gafurov vs. Rinya Nakamura: Nakamura 9, Gafurov 2
• Bernardo Sopaj vs. Ricky Turcios: Turcios 6, Sopaj 5
• Clayton Carpenter vs. Tagir Ulanbekov: Ulanbekov 9, Carpenter 2

Check out all the main card picks below.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

	Makhachev vs. Moicano	Dvalishvili vs. Nurmagomedov	Hill vs. Prochazka	Almeida vs. Spivac	De Ridder vs. Holland
Matt Erickson @MattE 4-2	Makhachev	Nurmagomedov	Prochazka	Almeida	De Ridder
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 4-2	Makhachev	Nurmagomedov	Hill	Almeida	De Ridder
Nolan King @mma_kings 3-3 2023 Champion	Makhachev	Dvalishvili	Prochazka	Almeida	De Ridder
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 3-3	Makhachev	Nurmagomedov	Hill	Almeida	Holland
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 3-3	Makhachev	Nurmagomedov	Prochazka	Almeida	Holland
Ken Hathaway @1khathaway 1-5 2017, 2022, 2024 Champion	Makhachev	Nurmagomedov	Prochazka	Almeida	De Ridder

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 311.