On Saturday, Oct. 24, the UFC will host UFC 254: Khabib vs. Gaethje from Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The event once again features no fans in attendance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the night’s main event, undefeated lightweight titleholder Khabib Nurmagomedov clashes with interim champion Justin Gaethje in a title unification bout. Nurmagomedov was last in action at UFC 242, also in Abu Dhabi. The Dagestan native scored a third-round submission win over Dustin Poirier to extend his record to 28-0. Gaethje, meanwhile, earned the biggest win of his career in May, dominating former No. 1 contender Tony Fergurson en route to a fifth-round stoppage. The Colorado product captured interim gold in the process, setting up the bout with Nurmagomedov.
The event kicks off with two fights streaming on ESPN+ at 11 a.m. ET. Four additional prelims air on both ESPN 2 and ESPN+ at 12 p.m. ET. The six-fight main card follows live on ESPN+ pay-per-view at 2 p.m. ET.
The fighters hit the scales on Friday, Oct. 23.
Robert Whittaker (186) vs. Jared Cannonier (185)
Alexander Volkov (265) vs. Walt Harris (254)
Jacob Malkoun (186) vs. Phil Hawes (186)
Lauren Murphy (126) vs. Liliya Shakirova (126)
Magomed Ankalaev (205) vs. Ion Cutelaba (205.5)
Nathaniel Wood (140) vs. Casey Kenney (140)
Alex Oliveira (173)* vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov (171)
Da Un Jung (206) vs. Sam Alvey (206)
Joel Alvarez (159.5)# vs. Alexander Yakovlev (155.5)
Sergey Morozov (139.5) – for Kenney vs. Wood
Isi Fitikefu (203.5) – for Ankalaev vs. Cutelaba
* – Oliveira missed the welterweight limit of 171 pounds and will forfeit 20 percent of his fight purse
# – Alvarez missed the lightweight limit of 156 pounds and will forfeit 30 percent of his fight purse