UFC 249: Ferguson vs Gaethje will stream exclusively on ESPN+ PPV this Saturday, May 9, at 10 p.m. ET, live from VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.
The event features two of the most exciting fighters in UFC as No. 1-ranked lightweight contender Tony Ferguson and No. 4-ranked Justin Gaethje square off for the interim lightweight title.
In the co-main, UFC bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo will put his title on the line against former two-time UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz. Live coverage on fight night begins at 6 p.m. ET, with the prelims on ESPN, ESPN Deportes (Spanish), and ESPN+ (English, Spanish).
UFC Live returns to ESPN on Friday, May 8 at 5:00 p.m., providing fans with exclusive insights and views on the biggest stories heading into UFC 249: Ferguson vs Gaethje.
A former interim lightweight champion, Ferguson (26-3) is currently tied with UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov for the longest winning streak (12) in UFC lightweight history.
Ferguson is coming off three consecutive finishes against top lightweights Donald Cerrone (June 2019), former UFC lightweight champion, Anthony Pettis (October 2018) and Kevin Lee (October 2017). Gaethje (21-2), one of UFC’s most explosive fighters, looks to continue his climb after three straight victories over Cerrone, James Vick and Edson Barboza.
In the co-main, 2008 Olympic gold medalist Cejudo (15-2) will look to solidify his reign in UFC’s lower weight classes when he faces Cruz (22-2).
The former WEC bantamweight champion and first-ever bantamweight champion in UFC history, Cruz steps inside the Octagon for the first time in 1,226 days — the only fighter with a longer layoff before heading straight into a UFC title challenge was former two-time UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, who had a layoff of 1449 days before capturing the UFC middleweight title with a win over UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping at UFC 217.
Cruz holds UFC championship victories over UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber, former two-time UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw and former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson.
In the build-up to UFC 249, ESPN, ESPN+ and UFC will be supporting the All-In Challenge to raise money for Covid-19 relief efforts by jointly promoting “The Ultimate UFC Experience.” “The Ultimate UFC Experience” features Dana White and Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry teaming up to present the most exclusive UFC experience to one lucky winner: the chance to pick any Las Vegas UFC pay-per-view event and have an all-expenses-paid trip that includes once-in-a-lifetime experiences as special guests of White and Berry.