When Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal step inside the Octagon on Saturday for the main event of UFC 272, there will be no championship on the line. The winner is not likely to even position himself for a shot at a belt. These factors make the fight unusual for a pay-per-view headliner.
But there will be heavy personal stakes hovering over the bout like a storm cloud, as Covington and Masvidal are former training partners and friends who have become bitter enemies with a score to settle.
The action at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas begins at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. Those early prelims are followed by more prelims on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. The pay-per-view on ESPN+, which fans can purchase here, starts at 10 p.m.
Covington (16-3) is coming off a loss to welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in November. Two fights earlier, Covington also lost a title bout to Usman. Prior to those losses, he had won seven in a row. Covington is No. 2 in ESPN's rankings at 170 pounds.
The 10th-ranked Masvidal (35-15) also has twice challenged Usman -- in his two most recent fights. Last April, the champ knocked him out in the second round, and nine months earlier, Usman won a unanimous decision. Prior to the two losses in title bouts, Masvidal had won three in a row.
Neither Covington nor Masvidal has lost to someone not named Kamaru Usman since 2017. And now neither can stand the thought of succumbing to the most bitter rival imaginable. That makes for a must-see matchup.
How to watch the fights
Watch the PPV and all other fights on ESPN+: Get ESPN+ here.
Watch the prelims on ESPN and ESPN+ and early prelims on ESPN+. Download the ESPN App | WatchESPN | TV schedule
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Purchased the fight on your phone and want to stream on your TV? Find out how here.
There's also FightCenter, which offers live updates for every UFC card.
Saturday's UFC 272 fight card
ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET
Welterweight: Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal
Lightweight: Rafael dos Anjos vs. Renato Moicano
Men's featherweight: Edson Barboza vs. Bryce Mitchell
Welterweight: Kevin Holland vs. Alex Oliveira
Heavyweight: Serghei Spivac vs. Greg Hardy
ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET
Lightweight: Jalin Turner vs. Jamie Mullarkey
Strawweight: Marina Rodriguez vs. Yan Xiaonan
Light heavyweight: Nicolae Negumereanu vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
Women's flyweight: Maryna Moroz vs. Mariya Agapova
ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET
Men's featherweight: Brian Kelleher vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
Men's flyweight: Tim Elliott vs. Tagir Ulanbekov
Lightweight: Devonte Smith vs. Ludovit Klein
Light heavyweight: Michal Oleksiejczuk vs. Dustin Jacoby
How the experts see the grudge match going
"While the fight has been built up as a rivalry, this has Colby Covington winning by decision written all over it," Ian Parker, ESPN MMA betting expert, wrote in assessing the main event. "Covington hasn't lost to anyone not named Kamaru Usman in the welterweight division since 2015. His pressure, volume and pace will be too much for Masvidal over the course of five rounds. Masvidal has struggled with pressure fighters and wrestlers in the past, and I see this fight going no differently than Masvidal's first fight with Usman at UFC 251."
For more from betting experts Parker and Reed Kuhn, and breakdowns by top MMA coaches, check out the UFC 272 expert picks on Thursday.
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