We are live with the UFC 266 live stream, and tonight's main card revolves around a match we should have seen by now. Unfortunately it was delayed by (you guessed it) Covid-19. Defending UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski was supposed to put his title on the line back in March at UFC 260, but he tested positive, and so we waited.
The UFC 266 main card is set to start today (Sept. 25), at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT / 3 a.m. BST.
Volkanovski vs. Ortega ring-walks should happen at around midnight ET / 9 p.m. PT / 5 a.m. GMT — but they could always go on earlier.
We're in the main preliminaries, which began at 8 p.m. ET, after the 6 p.m. early matches finished.
The event is going to be live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The champ is undefeated, at 9 wins and 0 losses, in the UFC, but hasn't fought in over a year. He took a split decision over Max Holloway at UFC 251. Volkanovski wasn't always a featherweight, though, as he went from 214 pounds as a prop forward in rugby in 2011 to a 185-pound middleweight/super-middleweight when he debuted in various MMA organizations in 2012. He took his last loss in May 2013, when Corey Nelson beat him via TKO at Australian Fighting Championship 5.
Ortega's only got one loss in his entire career, back in 2018 when Max Holloway (yes, him again) beat him via TKO in a doctor stoppage. Ortega's only got one tie in his 15–1 (1) record, which came from Mike De La Torre on UFC On Fox in 2014.
To keep the heat on the match, Volkanovski and Ortega coached opposing teams during this summer's season of The Ultimate Fighter. Right below them on the card, Nick Diaz, who hasn't earned a win in a decade (and hasn't fought in seven years) is taking on Robbie Lawler.
The other co-main event features Valentina Shevchenko and Lauren Murphy fighting for the former's flyweight title.
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Here's everything you need to know about UFC 266 live streams, including the recent changes to the main card and prelims.
How to live stream UFC 266 in the US
You're gonna need ESPN Plus to watch UFC 266 live streams, because you're not gonna go without the main card, which starts at 10 p.m. ET, are you? And the main prelim fights are on both ESPN and ESPN Plus, so those who haven't subscribed to the latter yet can get a taste of it all for themselves, before forking the cash over.
The former is available on most cable packages, as well as two of the best streaming services: including Sling TV and FuboTV.
UFC 266 Early Prelim fights start at 6 p.m. ET on UFC FightPass, which is $9.99 per month. Then, the higher-up set of prelim fights that start at 8 p.m. ET, on ESPNEWS and ESPN+.
How to watch UFC 266 in the UK
UFC 266 is another late night affair for fight night fans in the UK — you'll likely watch Volkanovski vs Ortega begin at around 5 a.m. BST if you're tuning in live, as the means the main card starts at 3 a.m. BST. It's live on BT Sport Box Office, where it costs £19.95. Prelims are on UFC Fight Pass.
Just a heads up, though, it's not available via a web browser, but through apps on Now TV devices, PlayStations, Xbox, Apple TV and some Smart TVs.
How to watch UFC 266 live streams in Canada
Our neighbors in the great white north will watch the early prelims on UFC Fight Pass, while the prelims are on TSN and RDS. UFC 266's main card is available on various providers, including BELL and Rogers.
UFC 266 fight card and results
We've got early results, including Team Diaz's first loss (Sano getting obliterated by Semelsberger in round 1).
Early prelims (6 p.m. ET) on UFC Fight Pass
- (Featherweight) Jonathan Pearce def. Omar Antonio Morales Ferrer via submission in round 2
- (Welterweight) Matthew Semelsberger def. Martin Sano Jr. via knockout in round 1
- (Lightweight) Jalin Turner def. Uroš Medićin via submission in round 1
- (Middleweight) Nick Maximov def. Cody Brundage via unanimous decision
Prelims (8 p.m. ET) on ESPNEWS and ESPN Plus
- (Women's Flyweight) Taila Santos (#12) def. Roxanne Modafferi (#9) via unanimous decision
- Marlon Moraes (#6) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (#11) (Bantamweight)
- Dan Hooker (#8) vs. Nasrat Haqparast (Lightweight)
- Shamil Abdurakhimov (#7) vs. Chris Daukaus (#10) (Heavyweight)
Main Card (10 p.m. ET on ESPN Plus):
- Alexander Volkanovski (c) vs. Brian Ortega (#2) (Featherweight)
- Valentina Shevchenko (c) vs. Lauren Murphy (#3) (Women’s Flyweight)
- Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler (#15) (Middleweight)
- Curtis Blaydes (#4) vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik (#6) (Heavyweight)
- Jéssica Andrade (#1) vs. Cynthia Calvillo (#5) (Women’s Flyweight)
