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UFC 320 results, highlights: Alex Pereira back on top after knocking out Magomed Ankalaev

Daniel Yanofsky

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UFC 320 results, highlights: Alex Pereira back on top after knocking out Magomed Ankalaev image

Two of the UFC’s most dominant stars competed at UFC 320, one attempting to regain gold, while the other attempted to retain his title. The stars aligned in In Las Vegas, as Merab Dvalishvili retained the UFC light heavyweight title, while Alex Pereira is now a two-time UFC light heavyweight champion.

Thanks to a few punishing blows, Alex Pereira proved the loss against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 was a case of bad luck.

“Poatan” rushed into Ankalaev as round one began, a stark difference from his performance in the first fight. Pereira (13-3) landed a huge right that dropped Ankalaev (20-2-1, 1 NC) to the floor. As Ankalaev attempted a takedown, Pereira landed elbows and ground strikes. Not long after, the referee called the fight off.

Pereira regained the light heavyweight title to become a three-time UFC champion. The Brazilian could face Ankalaev in a trilogy, though he also has options in a rematch against Jiri Prochazka, who stared down Ankalaev following a war with Khalil Rountree Jr., or Carlos Ulberg.

WATCH: UFC 320: Ankalaev vs. Pereira 2 on ESPN+

Cory Sandhagen thought he had Merab figured out. Despite stuffing multiple takedowns, Merab proved why he’s “The Machine,” landing 20 takedowns to defend the UFC bantamweight title.

Merab (21-4) landed the most takedowns in a title fight in UFC history. It was a dominant second half for the Georgian after Sandhagen (18-6) started off hot in the first. Merab seemingly had a 10-8 round in the second after almost knocking Sandhagen out. After that, Sandhagen gave it his all, but it was all for naught.

That’s 14 straight wins for Merab, who guaranteed he’ll be the 2025 Fighter of the Year. He even teased fighting in December. 

Rountree looked sharp and had Prochazka in trouble early, but Prochazka recovered in the third and knocked him out, shocking the crowd.

Prochazka landed a spinning elbow and hard shots to Rountree’s face and body. It came after Rountree clipped him with massive rights. Prochazka created chaos to win his second straight fight. Is the former champion next for light heavyweight gold?

Youssef Zalal promised he would eventually become a world champion after forcing Josh Emmett to submit via verbal tapout. Meanwhile, Joe Pyfer proved he can be a major threat and can back up his confidence after choking out Abus Magomedov.

The Sporting News provided results, analysis, and highlights from UFC 320.

UFC 320 results, highlights

Pereira asked for a moment of silence for Jon Jones' late brother, Albert Jones. 

Alex Pereira back on top after taking out Magomed Ankalaev

Round one: Pereira went for a knockout early. He pressed forward instead of moving back like he did in the last fight. Inside leg kick. Big right and Ankalaev immediately tried taking Pereira down. Ground strikes from Pereira. Elbows connected. It's all over! Pereira is champion again!

The main event is up next: A rematch for the UFC light heavyweight title. Can Magomed Ankalaev go 2-0 against Alex Pereira, or will "Poatan" regain gold? Jiri Prochazka just stared down Ankalaev from the crowd following a war with Khalil Rountree Jr. What a visual! 

Merab wants to fight one more time in December. What a wild man. 

Merab Dvalishvili successfully defends gold against Cory Sandhagen

Round five: Merab with a big right. He dragged Sandhagen around following a big takedown. Big right from Merab. He landed combinations and a takedown. Left hand by Sandhagen but another takedown from Merab landed. Sandhagen with a few shots. Another takedown. That's 18. And 19. And 20. Merab won via unanimous decision. 

SN unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Merab (48-46 Merab)

Round four: Sandhagen with an early combination. Another takedown from Merab. Body shot from Sandhagen. Head kick from Merab. Merab was relentless by the cage. Sandhagen with a right. Massive takedown by Merab. He tried for the D'Arce Choke. 

SN unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Sandhagen (38-37 Merab)

Round three: Merab landed strikes to the body. Forcing Sandhagen by the cage, Merab landed counter shots. Sandhagen tried to land a few shots of his own. He managed to avoid a few takedown attempts. Sandhagen with a head kick. Merab forced Sandhagen down, for his tenth. Another takedown landed. He dragged Sandhagen's leg for another takedown.  

SN unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Merab (29-27 Merab) 

Round two: Merab attempted a takedown, but it got stuffed. He finally took Sandhagen down, if only for a little bit. Sandhagen attacked the body. They exchanged punches. Combinations from Merab. He landed flurries and pushed Sandhagen by the cage. Sandhagen went down.

A knee by the cage. A takedown. Merab started to get comfortable. Another takedown landed. Merab is having fun. He ragdolled Sandhagen around the octagon. A dominant second round from Merab.

SN unofficial scorecard: 10-8 Merab (19-18 Merab)

Round one: Sandhagen with a few jabs, but Merab landed a few shots of his own. A left from Sandhagen landed multiple times. On the inside, Merab got hit with an uppercut. A right by Merab. Sandhagen blocked a takedown attempt. Dvalishvili landed knees to the body and finally got a takedown. 

Back up, Sandhagen landed combinations. Merab with some boxing on the inside. Sandhagen with a knee. 

SN unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Sandhagen

The UFC bantamweight title is on the line next. Cory Sandhagen attempts to finally win gold. In his way? The dangerous and dominant Merab Dvalishvili. 

Jiri Prochazka battles back, knocks out Khalil Rountree Jr.

11:27 p.m. ET: Big elbow from Rountree to start round three. Prochazka looked a bit off. They exchanged big shots. Kick to the body from Prochazka. Pushing forward, Prochazka connected with combinations. Rountree landed a few of his own. Rountree's eye looked bad. Body shots. Elbows from Prochazka. Knee to the body. Prochazka with a spinning elbow. A few punches later and Rountree went down! What a win, what a comeback! 

11:23 p.m. ET: Prochazka is slipping. High kick from Rountree. Combinations from Rountree connected. Rountree continued to land in round two. Spinning elbow by Prochazka. Big right by Rountree. High kick by Prochazka. Rountree with a leg kick and combinations. He pushed Prochazka back. Rountree continued to chop down his opponent. 

11:14 p.m. ET: Prochazka is very unorthodox. He landed a leg kick, and Rountree tried to knock him out right away. Rountree swung wildly, with one shot landing to the stomach. He landed a chop to the body and a kick to the chest. Prochazka was being pushed back. Flying knee and a sharp shot by Prochazka, but Rountree countered with combinations. 

11:09 p.m. ET: Jiri Prochazka vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. could be a wild one. 

Youssef Zalal forces Josh Emmett to tap

Zalal with a double leg after Emmett ran forward several times. There was a quick and quiet tap and Zalal beat Emmett. Emmett did not want his arm broken. That was a statement.

10:45 p.m. ET: Josh Emmett vs. Youssef Zalal is next. Can Emmett, the underdog, defy the oddsmakers? 

Confident Joe Pyfer chokes out Abus Magomedov

10:28 p.m. ET: Magomedov went down in round two following a few Pyfer strikes. On the floor, Pyfer landed elbows. Pyfer with a choke but Magomedov got out of it. Magomedov was cut by his eye. He eventually tapped out.  

10:25 p.m. ET: Magomedov with a double leg takedown attempt as Pyfer pushed forward. Pyfer with a takedown but Magomedov ended up on top. Magomedov with a scissor and kimura combination. Back on the feet, both exchanged vicious shots. 

10:19 p.m. ET: Abus Magomedov vs. Joe Pyfer opens the main card. The confident Pyfer attempts to prove he should be a top contender. 

10 p.m. ET: The UFC 320 main card opened with a tribute to Arthur Jones, brother of Jon Jones.

9:42 p.m. ET: A knee landed by Gautier in the opening few minutes of the first round. Vines attempted to take Gautier down but Gautier pushed him off and landed several big blows to end the fight. 

9:35 p.m. ET: Ateba Gautier vs. Treston Vines is next. Vines is a newcomer competing on just a few days' notices. 

9:20 p.m. ET: Santos with a great takedown following a few minutes of showboating. There was a clash of heads early in the fight. Yoo is acting extremely calm, to the delight of the fans. An early knockdown in round two and Santos won! Wow! 

9:12 p.m. ET: Daniel Santos vs. Yoo Joo-sang compete in a catchweight bout. 

8:59 p.m. ET: Mix almost got hit below the belt, but the referee let the fight go on. Mix was on top in the third and he had a lot of control time in this fight. However, the judges scored the fight for Wiklacz, forcing another loss for former Bellator fighters.  

8:35 p.m. ET: Former Bellator champion Patchy Mix and Jakub Wiklacz look to continue the fun next. 

8:25 p.m. ET: Edmen Shahbazyan landed flurries in the first fight of the prelims, beating Andre Munoz via knockout in the first round. It happened right before the end of the round. 

8:05 p.m. ET: The prelims have started. Soriano won via unanimous decision.

7:45 p.m. ET: The last fight of the early prelims will see Punahele Soriano vs. Nikolay Veretennikov. Soriano won via unanimous decision.

7:38 p.m. ET: Following a back and forth fi ght that saw a few close calls, including various submission attempts, Santos defeated Chiasson.

7:15 p.m. ET: Farid Basharat defeated Chris Gutierrez as the night continues on. Macy Chiasson vs. Yana Santos is next. 

6:52 p.m. ET: Chris Gutierrez vs. Farid Basharat is next. 

6:42 p.m. ET: Vanderford continues the run of former Bellator fighters struggling in the UFC with a loss. 

6:30 p.m. ET: Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Austin Vanderford is next. 

6:25 p.m. ET: Hardy won via unanimous decision. 

6 p.m. ET: Veronica Hardy vs. Brogan Walker opens the early prelims. 

Hello everyone, and welcome to The Sporting News' live coverage of UFC 320!

UFC 320 results

Main Card

  • Alex Pereira def. Magomed Ankalaev (c) via TKO for the UFC light heavyweight title (1:20 into round one)
  • Merab Dvalishvili (c) def. Cory Sandhagen via unanimous decision for the UFC bantamweight title (49-45, 49-45, 49-46)
  • Jiri Prochazka def. Khalil Rountree Jr. via KO (3:04 into round three)
  • Youssef Zalal def. Josh Emmett via armbar (1:38 into round one)
  • Joe Pyfer def. Abus Magomedov via rear-naked choke (1:44 into round two)

Prelims

  • Ateba Gautier def. Treston Vines via TKO (1:41 into round one)
  • Daniel Santos def. Yoo Joo-sang via TKO (0:21 into round two) 
  • Jakub Wiklacz def. Patchy Mix via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
  • Edmen Shahbazyan def. Andre Munoz via KO (4:58 into round one)

Early Prelims

  • Punahele Soriano def. Nikolay Veretennikov via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)
  • Yana Santos def. Macy Chiasson via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)
  • Farid Basharat def. Chris Gutierrez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
  • Ramiz Brahimaj def. Austin Vanderford via submission (2:24 into round two)
  • Veronica Hardy def. Brogan Walker via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Daniel Yanofsky

Daniel Yanofsky is the Combat Sports Editor for The Sporting News since late 2021. Prior to working for TSN, Daniel provided insight on combat sports for Fightful, FIGHT SPORTS, and Wrestling Inc. A proud Ithaca College alum, when he isn’t working on his golf game, Daniel is advocating for three-minute rounds in women's boxing.

You can follow him on Twitter via @DanYanofsky.