UFC 223: Khabib vs. Nurmagomedov will see the UFC Lightweight Championship and UFC Women’s Strawweight Championships on the line. In the main event, Khabib Nurmagomedov will face Al Iaquinta for the vacant lightweight strap. In the co-main event, Rose Namajunas will defend her title in a rematch against Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
Saturday’s card has been besieged by issues, with the main event changing several times, but the show will go on, and with two belts on the line, it’s worth tuning in. The card begins at 8 p.m. ET with the Fox Sports 1 preliminary bouts, which can be streamed via fuboTV and Fox Sports GO. The pay-per-view main card begins at 10 p.m. ET and can be purchased from the UFC directly at UFC.TV or their YouTube channel.
Jędrzejczyk was 14-0, with five consecutive title defenses when she was shocked by a first-round TKO at the hands of Namajunas in November 2017. Their rematch is hotly anticipated, and probably the best fight on the card, regardless of the shenanigans with the main event.
Only Nurmagomedov is eligible to win the lightweight belt due to Iaquinta weighing in over the limit. Iaquinta is an impressive fighter at 13-3-1 and coming off a knockout win over Diego Sanchez, but he’s a heavy underdog to Nurmagomedov after stepping in with about a day’s notice.
Nurmagomedov was originally scheduled to face Tony Ferguson, but for the fourth time, the fight was scrapped due to injury. Ferguson was then replaced by Max Holloway, who was eventually declared medically unfit to compete by the Nevada State Athletic Commission during his short-notice weight cut. Holloway was going to be replaced by Anthony Pettis, and then Paul Felder, but the former came in over the weight limit and the latter was vetoed by the same commission due to him not being in the top 15 of the UFC fighter rankings for the division.
That’s despite those rankings barely mattering to anybody. Iaquinta also weighed in over the 155-pound limit, but the fight will go on. Dana White says that Iaquinta would be the “recognized” champion if he wins on Saturday, despite the belt remaining technically vacant in the case of his win.
Aside from the main event, which was side-tracked for a number of reason, Pettis will also not be on the card at all due to his opponent, Michael Chiesa, sustaining injuries from glass shards when Conor McGregor attacked the red corner UFC bus that Nurmagomedov was in. The prevailing theory is that McGregor was making an ill-advised attempt to backup his friend and teammate, Artem Lobov, who had a small confrontation with Nurmagomedov in a hotel previously.
Lobov, for his involvement in the incident, was pulled from the card and will not face Alex Caceres, who is also off the card. Another bout between Ray Borg and Brandon Moreno was scrapped due to Moreno taking glass shards in his eye as a result of the incident. McGregor was arrested, charged with three counts of assault and one count of criminal mischief, and his next hearing is set for June 14.
Below, you can find all the streaming and viewing information you need as well as the full official UFC 223 fight card.
All Times Eastern
How to watch UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta
Date: Saturday, April 7
Time: Prelims at 8 p.m.; main card at 10 p.m.
Location: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
TV: FS1, Pay-per-view
Online Streaming: fuboTV, UFC.TV, UFC YouTube, Fox Sports GO
UFC 223 Full Fight Card
PPV Main Card (10 p.m.)
Lightweight: Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Al Iaquinta
Women’s Strawweight: Rose Namajunas vs. Joanna Jędrzejczyk
Featherweight: Renato Moicano vs. Calvin Kattar
Featherweight: Zabit Magomedsharipov vs. Kyle Bochniak
Lightweight: Joe Lauzon vs. Chris Gruetzemacher
FS1 Preliminary Card (8 p.m.)
Women’s Strawweight: Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Felice Herrig
Lightweight: Evan Dunham vs. Olivier Aubin-Mercier
Women’s Flyweight: Bec Rawlings vs. Ashlee Evans-Smith
Light Heavyweight: Devin Clark vs. Mike Rodriguez