Getty Jorge Masvidal.
There’s been a slight change in plans but UFC 251 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi is still a full go for an absolutely packed card.
The prelims (6 p.m. ET start time) can be watched on ESPN or ESPN+, while the main PPV card (10 p.m. ET) can only be bought through ESPN+. Pricing of the PPV depends on whether or not you’re already an ESPN+ subscriber, so here’s a full rundown of your options:
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How to Buy UFC 251 If You Don’t Have ESPN+
You can get a special bundle deal that includes a one-year subscription to ESPN+ ($49.99 value) and UFC 251 ($64.99 value) for $84.98, which works out to about 26 percent savings:
Or, if you want to purchase them separately, you can first subscribe to a month of ESPN+ right here ($4.99 for ESPN+, or $12.99 for a bundle of ESPN+, Hulu and Disney+), and then follow the below directions for existing ESPN+ subscribers.
However, with the amount of UFC (and other sports) content on ESPN+, most MMA fans are probably going to keep ESPN+ long-term, meaning the value of the bundle is the better way to go if you don’t already have ESPN+.
How to Buy UFC 251 If You Already Have ESPN+
Current ESPN+ subscribers can purchase the UFC 251 PPV by itself for $64.99:
Or, if you only have a monthly subscription, you can still get the special bundle that includes a year of ESPN+ and the UFC 251 PPV. The only difference is that instead of starting a new ESPN+ subscription, you’ll just extend your current subscription by a year and get the UFC 251 PPV for a total of $84.98:
Where to Watch UFC 251
Once you’re signed up for ESPN+ and you’ve purchased the PPV, there are a number of different ways you can watch Usman vs Masvidal and the complete UFC 251 main card.
You can watch the fights on your computer via ESPN.com, or you can watch on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or other compatible streaming device via the ESPN app.
For all of those options, you’ll need to sign in with your ESPN+ account to watch both the prelims (ESPN+) and the main card (ESPN+ PPV).
UFC 251 Preview
UFC was forced to change their plans this week when No. 1 welterweight contender Gilbert Burns was forced out of the highly-hyped UFC 251 main event due to a positive COVID-19 tests. However, it didn’t take long to find a replacement, with Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal stepping in for the title fight.
“I’m happy more than anything because I get to break this guy’s face and get paid for it,” Masvidal told ESPN.
Masvidal took the fight on just six days notice, but is confident he can get the job done.
“If you’re asking me, are you in shape?” Masvidal said. “Maybe not to fight Ben Askren. I’m not in Ben Askren shape, because he’s a hell of a wrestler. Or even to fight a guy like Darren Till. But am I in shape for this bum I’m about to decapitate and baptize? Hell yeah.”
UFC President Dana White was happy to see Masvidal step in.
“If you look at the 20-year history [of UFC], this kind of stuff happens. When you get into negotiations for fights, these things happen. Gilbert Burns has been on a tear and was consistently fighting, and wanted to continue to fight and was the No. 1 contender, so Gilbert Burns made sense,” White told CBS Sports. “Obviously Masvidal has become a massive star over the last year and a half, and that’s the fight that the people want to see so when Burns fell out, we got in a room and figured Masvidal out.”
Burns is cheering for Usman to win to hopefully keep their collision course intact.
“I want Kamaru to win,” Burns told MMA Fighting. “First of all, because I kind of like the guy. He’s not anymore, but he used to be my training partner, so for sure I got Kamaru. And if Masvidal wins, the things are gonna get crazy. It’s going to be a circus in that division. He’s going to fight who else, I don’t know, I think he wants to fight Conor (McGregor) or maybe Nate Diaz. I don’t think the division is going to run correctly, with the number one, number two guys fighting for the title. He’s going to make it a mess, so that’s another reason I want Kamaru to win.”
But the bout between Usman and Masvidal isn’t the only one with a belt on the line on Saturday. Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway will be battling for the featherweight title, while Petr Yan and Jose Aldo are scrapping for bantamweight supremacy.
Main Card
Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal
Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway
Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo
Jessica Andrade vs. Rose Namajunas
Amanda Ribas vs. Paige VanZant
Undercard
Volkan Oezdemir vs. Jiri Prochazka
Elizeu Zaleski vs. Muslim Salikhov
Makwan Amirkhani vs. Danny Henry
Leonardo Santos vs. Roman Bogatov
Marcin Tybura vs. Alexander Romanov
Zhalgas Zhumagulov vs. Raulian Paiva
Karol Rosa vs. Vanessa Melo
Martin Day vs. Davey Grant
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How to Buy UFC 251: PPV Price & ESPN Plus Bundle Deal