It all goes down later today (Sat., Oct. 21, 2023) at UFC 294 live on ESPN+ PPV from inside Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, as Islam Makhachev puts his Lightweight title on the line once again against reigning Featherweight kingpin, Alexander Volkanovski.
While Volkanovski is filling in for this injured Charles Oliveira (details here) on super short notice, this is a 155-pound matchup fight fans have been calling for. The first meeting between Makhachev and Volkanovski occurred at UFC 284 this past February. Makhachev won a super-close decision, but many fight fans believe Volkanovski did enough to cement his status as pound-for-pound best (watch highlights).
Luckily, fight fans will get an unexpected reboot between two of the most dominant fighters in the sport today this weekend on “Fight Island.” Add in a last-second Middleweight matchup between former UFC Welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman, and undefeated Chechen sensation, Khamzat Chimaev, and we’re quickly looking at one of the best cards of 2023.
While fight fans would usually have to log into their ESPN+ accounts to watch all of the action — including the early “Prelims” — UFC and ESPN MMA are peeling back the curtain just a little bit this time around. The promotion will be airing the “Prelims” undercard stream beginning at 10 a.m. ET LIVE and FREE on YouTube, which can also be seen in the above video player.
UFC 294’s “Prelims” undercard will feature the below matchups:
Tim Elliott vs. Muhammad Mokaev
Mohammad Yahya vs. Trevor Peek
Javid Basharat vs. Victor Henry
Abu Azaitar vs. Sedriques Dumas
Mike Breeden vs. Anshul Jubli
Nathaniel Wood vs. Muhammad Naimov
Victoria Dudakova vs. Jinh Yu Frey
Sharabutdin Magomedov vs. Bruno Silva
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 294 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches at 10 a.m. ET, followed by the UFC 294 PPV main card start time at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC 294: “Makhachev vs. Volkanovski 2” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the complete UFC 294 fight card and PPV lineup click here.