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About UFC 296: Edwards vs Covington
UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington
UFC 296: Edwards vs Covington was a mixed martial arts event organized and produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 16, 2023, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, United States. The main card for the night took place at around 10 pm ET. Moreover, UFC 296 was the last MMA event produced by the UFC for the year 2023.
The main event for the evening was a championship bout between the reigning welterweight champion, Leon Edwards, and the former interim welterweight champion, Colby Covington. Edwards is coming off a majority decision win against the former champion Kamaru Usman in his last title defense matchup on March 18, 2023. Meanwhile, Covington has not been active since a unanimous decision win over Jorge Masvidal on March 5, 2022, and is set to make his return for the welterweight gold. Moreover, the No.2 ranked welterweight contender, Belal Muhammad, is set to be the backup fighter for the main event.
The co-main event for the evening was also a championship bout between the current flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja and the No.2 ranked contender of the same division, Brandon Royval. Both fighters have previously fought in August 2021, where Pantoja had a second-round rear naked choke submission win over Royval.
One of the other exciting match-ups for the evening is a welterweight bout between the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov and Stephen Thompson. Rakhmonov is coming off a submission win over Geoff Neal in his last fight on March 4, 2023. Meanwhile, Thompson had a TKO win over Kevin Holland in his last fight on December 3, 2022.
A lightweight bout between Tony Fergusson and Paddy Pimblett has also been added to the event's main card. Both fighters are yet to be ranked in the lightweight division of the promotion.
The main card opener for the night is another welterweight bout between Vincente Luque and Ian Machado Garry. Luque is coming off a decision win over Rafael dos Anjos in his last fight, whereas Garry is still undefeated in his professional career.
UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington Main Card
Weight class
Fight
Method
Round
Result
Welterweight
Leon Edwards (c) vs. Colby Covington
Decision
R5(5:00)
eon Edwards def. Colby Covington
Flyweight
Alexandre Pantoja (c) vs. Brandon Royval
Decision
R5(5:00)
Alexandre Pantoja def. Brandon Royval
Welterweight
Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Stephen Thompson
Submission
R2(4:56)
Shavkat Rakhmonov def. Stephen Thompson
Lightweight
Tony Ferguson vs. Paddy Pimblett
Decision
R3(5:00)
Paddy Pimblett def. Tony Ferguson
Featherweight
Josh Emmett vs. Bryce Mitchell
KO/TKO
R1(1:57)
Josh Emmett def. Bryce Mitchell
UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington Preliminary Card
Weight class
Fight
Method
Round
Result
Light heavyweight
Alonzo Menifield vs. Dustin Jacoby
Decision
R3(5:00)
Alonzo Menifield def. Dustin Jacoby
Women's Bantamweight
Irene Aldana vs. Karol Rosa
Decision
R3(5:00)
Irene Aldana def. Karol Rosa
Bantamweight
Cody Garbrandt vs. Brian Kelleher
KO/TKO
R1(3:42)
Cody Garbrandt def. Brian Kelleher
Women's Flyweight
Casey O'Neill vs. Ariane Lipski
Submission
R2(1:18)
Ariane Lipski def. Casey O'Neill
UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington Early Preliminary Card
Weight class
Fight
Method
Round
Result
Flyweight
Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Cody Durden
Submission
R2(4:25)
Tagir Ulanbekov def. Cody Durden
Featherweight
Andre Fili vs. Lucas Almeida
KO/TKO
R1(3:32)
Andre Fili def. Lucas Almeida
Heavyweight
Martin Buday vs. Shamil Gaziev
KO/TKO
R2(0:56)
Shamil Gaziev def. Martin Buday
*Last updated on December 18, 2023.
FAQs
A. UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington will take place on December 16, 2023.
A. The main card for UFC 296 is scheduled at 10 pm ET on Saturday, December 16, 2023.
A. Leon Edwards boasts a record of 22 wins, 3 losses, and 1 no-contest in professional MMA.
A. Colby Covington is currently the No.3 ranked contender in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
A. The co-main event for the evening is also a championship bout between the current flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja and the No.2 ranked contender of the same division, Brandon Royval.
