Leon Edwards will defend his welterweight championship against third-time title challenger Colby Covington in the main event of UFC 296 on Saturday in Las Vegas.
The co-main event at T-Mobile Arena is also a title fight, with Alexandre Pantoja making the first defense of his flyweight belt against Brandon Royval.
The main card will be on ESPN+ pay-per-view starting at 10 p.m. ET, with prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+ at 8 p.m. and early prelims on ESPN+ at 6:30 p.m.
Edwards (21-3, 1 NC) is unbeaten in his last 12 fights. The No. 4 fighter in ESPN's pound-for-pound rankings, Edwards last fought in March, beating former champ Kamaru Usman by majority decision.
Covington (17-3), who twice unsuccessfully challenged Usman for the title, has not fought since beating Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision in March 2022.
Pantoja (26-5) beat Brandon Moreno by split decision in July to win the title. He is No. 1 in the ESPN men's flyweight rankings. The seventh-ranked Royval (15-6) has won three in a row since a submission loss to Pantoja in 2021.
What are the storylines behind the top fights at UFC 296? How are experts breaking them down? What do the fighters have to say? Here is the fight card, how to watch it and a collection of all of the UFC 296 essentials.
UFC 296 fight card
ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET
Welterweight: Leon Edwards (c) vs. Colby Covington
Men's flyweight: Alexandre Pantoja (c) vs. Brandon Royval
Welterweight: Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Stephen Thompson
Lightweight: Tony Ferguson vs. Paddy Pimblett
Men's featherweight: Josh Emmett vs. Bryce Mitchell
ESPN2/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET
Light heavyweight: Alonzo Menifield vs. Dustin Jacoby
Women's bantamweight: Irene Aldana vs. Karol Rosa
Men's bantamweight: Cody Garbrandt vs. Brian Kelleher
Women's flyweight: Casey O'Neill vs. Ariane Lipski
ESPN+, 6:30 p.m.
Men's flyweight: Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Cody Durden
Men's featherweight: Andre Fili vs. Lucas Almeida
Heavyweight: Martin Buday vs. Shamil Gaziev
(c) = defending champion
How to watch the fights
Watch the PPV and all other fights on ESPN+: Get ESPN+ here.
Watch the prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+. Download the ESPN App | WatchESPN | TV schedule
Don't have ESPN2? Get instant access.
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.
UFC 296 storylines: Can Covington finally win a title vs. Edwards?
The most impactful storyline at UFC 296 will shine a spotlight on what's right in front of our eyes, sparkling with the promise of ascendance. Behold those golden championship belts -- two of them! -- that will be up for grabs on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, as luminous as the neon lights outside on the Las Vegas Strip.
But there are storylines up and down this fight card -- from redemption to resilience to refocusing.
UFC title matchup projections: What does our model say about Edwards-Covington?
Reec Kuhn on what the numbers mean: An incumbent champ showing up less favorably could be a fight night 'dog, depending on market movements. With two wins over former champ Kamaru Usman, Edwards has twice done something Covington could not, despite two tries himself. But Edwards will face a considerable volume disadvantage, as Covington typically outpaces him by more than 2-to-1 on the feet. Add in the challenger's wrestling credentials, and suddenly, the current champion could face uphill rounds on multiple levels.
Alexandre Pantoja bests Brandon Moreno again to win UFC flyweight title
Fans of the UFC's flyweight division have been absolutely spoiled with one classic title fight after another in recent years. The UFC 290 meeting between Brandon Moreno and Alexandre Pantoja was no exception.
After five hard-fought rounds, Pantoja claimed Moreno's 125-pound championship, as he narrowly edged the defending champion via split decision in the co-main event inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Rising star Ian Garry booked against Vicente Luque at UFC 296
Up-and-comer Ian Garry will face exciting veteran Vicente Luque at UFC 296 on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas, UFC president Dana White announced on social media.
Both fighters have been teammates at Kill Cliff FC in Florida, and each is trying to get into the welterweight title conversation.