Las Vegas – UFC® returns to Barclays Center with one of the most anticipated title fights in UFC history, as undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov looks to defend his crown against No. 1 ranked contender Tony Ferguson. Also on the card, former strawweight champions rematch as Jessica Andrade and Rose Namajunas aim to secure another shot at the title.
UFC® 249: KHABIB vs. FERGUSON will take place Saturday, April 18 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. and will stream live nationally on Pay-Per-View, exclusively through ESPN+ in the U.S. at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT in both English and Spanish.
ESPN+ is the exclusive provider of all UFC Pay-Per-View events to fans in the U.S.
Fans will be able to purchase UFC® 249: KHABIB vs. FERGUSON online at ESPNPlus.com/PPV or on the ESPN App on mobile and connected-TV devices. ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App on all major mobile and connected TV devices and platforms, including Amazon Fire, Apple, Android, Chromecast, PS4, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, X Box One and more.
Preliminary fights will air nationally in English on ESPN2 and on ESPN Deportes (in Spanish) starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with the early prelims simulcast on UFC Fight Pass and ESPN+ at 6:15 p.m. ET/3:15 p.m. PT.
One of the most dominant athletes in UFC history, Nurmagomedov (28-0, fighting out of Dagestan, Russia) returns to the arena where he captured the then-vacant UFC lightweight championship. The No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Nurmagomedov holds victories over Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor and Rafael Dos Anjos. He now attempts to prove that he is the greatest lightweight of all-time by snapping the impressive winning streak of Ferguson.
A former interim lightweight champion, Ferguson (26-3, fighting out of Orange County, Calif.) aims to finally capture his first undisputed title. Currently on an incredible 12-fight winning streak, Ferguson has defeated the likes of Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis and Dos Anjos. He now aims to secure his greatest victory yet by becoming the first man to defeat Nurmagomedov.
The first Brazilian strawweight champion, Andrade (20-7, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) intends to replicate her spectacular knockout victory over Namajunas from 2019. The owner of the most knockouts in strawweight history, Andrade holds stoppage wins over Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Joanne Calderwood and Jessica Penne. She now seeks to get back to her winning ways and earn a shot at revenge against current champion Zhang Weili.
One of the biggest fan favorites on the roster, Namajunas (9-4, fighting out of Denver, Colo.) rose to fame by dethroning longtime strawweight queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Throughout her career, she has also delivered thrilling victories against Michelle Waterson, Paige VanZant, and Tecia Torres. She now aims to even the score with Andrade and secure the next shot at the 115-pound crown.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- Sijara Eubanks (5-4, fighting out of Toms River, N.J.) and Sarah Moras (6-6, fighting out of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada) clash in a battle of women’s bantamweights
- Khama Worthy (15-6, fighting out of Pittsburgh, Pa.) looks to replicate his incredible knockout debut against the undefeated Ottman Azaitar (12-0, fighting out of Rabat, Morocco)
- Gian Villante (17-11, fighting out of Bellmore, N.Y.) makes his UFC heavyweight debut against veteran Ben Rothwell (37-12, fighting out of Kenosha, Wisc.)
- Top middleweights battle as No. 10-ranked Uriah Hall (16-9, fighting out of Queens, N.Y.) welcomes back Jacare Souza (26-8, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
- No. 10-ranked heavyweight Shamil Adurakhimov (20-5, fighting out of Dagestan, Russia) will try to derail the hype train of undefeated Ciryl Gane (6-0, fighting out of Paris, France)
For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
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Tickets for UFC® 249: KHABIB vs. FERGUSON go on sale Friday, January 31 at 10 a.m. ET. Tickets are available for purchase online at ticketmaster.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person.
UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wednesday, January 29 at 10 a.m. ET via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, January 30 starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
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About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 318 million fans and 80 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to nearly one billion TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 65 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC was acquired in 2016 by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, along with strategic investors Silver Lake Partners and KKR. UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram: @UFC.
About Barclays Center
Since its opening on September 28, 2012 with the first of eight consecutive sold-out shows by JAY Z, Barclays Center has continued to host the world’s most renowned performers, including Barbra Streisand, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Madonna and Bruce Springsteen. The success of these events has made Barclays Center one of the most popular arenas in the world, ranked top ten nationally in 2018 for gross revenue and attendance by Billboard and Pollstar.
Barclays Center opened to extensive critical acclaim and was recognized with several major awards, including the 2012 Pollstar Award for Best New Major Concert Venue, 2013 Sports Business Awards Facility of the Year, Architizer A+ Building of the Year Award and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce Brooklyn Building Award for Economic Development.
A model for sustainable design and construction, Barclays Center has earned LEED© Silver Certification for New Construction from the U.S. Green Building Congress, becoming the first professional sports and entertainment venue in the New York metro area to achieve this status.
The arena offers 17,732 seats for basketball, 15,795 for hockey, and up to 19,000 seats for concerts, and has 101 luxury suites, and an array of bars, lounges and clubs including the 40/40 CLUB & Restaurant by American Express, and Qatar Airways Courtside Club.
About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the leading direct-to-consumer sports streaming service from Disney’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ grew quickly to 3.5 million subscribers in 18 months, offering fans thousands of live events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, as well as premium editorial content.
Programming on ESPN+ includes exclusive UFC and Top Rank boxing events, thousands of college sports events (including football and basketball) from more than a dozen sports at 20 conferences, hundreds of MLB and NHL games, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, Bundesliga – beginning in 2020, EFL Championship and Carabao Cup, Eredivisie), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, exclusive ESPN+ Original series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films.
Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) through the ESPN App, (on mobile and connected devices), ESPN.com or ESPNplus.com. It is also available as part of a bundle offer that gives subscribers access to Disney+, Hulu (ad-supported), and ESPN+ ¬— all for just $12.99/month.
About ESPN
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment enterprise features more than 50 assets – nine U.S. television networks, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN International, ESPN The Magazine and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.
