Islam Makhachev easily defeated Thiago Moises on Saturday in Las Vegas, winning by submission in Round 4 of their main event at UFC Fight Night.
The lightweight bout was stopped at 2:38 after Makhachev put Moises in a rear naked choke. Makhachev dominated his first appearance in a main event. To that point, Makhachev had 148 total strikes to Moises’ 18. Makhachev had 61 signature strikes to just 13 for Moises.
It was the first submission loss of Moises’ career.
Makhachev, 29, called out former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos after the fight.
“Why all these guys run?” Makhachev said. “Nobody want to take this fight. … You can run, but you can’t hide. I am here.”
Makhachev improved to 20-1 while Moises fell to 15-5.
Miesha Tate won by TKO over Marion Reneau in the co-main event. The former champ battered Reneau with elbows and the fight was stopped at 1:53 of the third round.
Tate improved to 19-7 while Reneau officially retired from the sport afterward. She announced ahead of time this fight would be her last.
Other winners Saturday night included Mateusz Gamrot (submission), Rodolfo Vieira (submission) and Billy Quarantillo (TKO).
–Field Level Media