With the UFC heading to Abu Dhabi this weekend, the promotion is busting out its biggest hitters for a star-studded event. UFC 242 takes place on Saturday, August 7 with a highly-anticipated title unification bout in Abu Dhabi. In the main event, undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov makes his return to action in nearly a year to take on interim titleholder Dustin Poirier.
Fellow lightweights Paul Felder and Edson Barboza go head-to-head in the co-main event of the night at The Arena, an outdoor venue that was specifically build to host the pay-per-view event.
A full look at the UFC 242 weigh-ins can be seen below.
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 2 p.m. ET)
- Champ Khabib Nurmagomedov (155) vs. interim champ Dustin Poirier (155) – for lightweight title
- Edson Barboza (155.5) vs. Paul Felder (155)
- Islam Makhachev (155) vs. Davi Ramos (156)
- Shamil Abdurakhimov (257) vs. Curtis Blaydes (251)
- Diego Ferreira (156) vs. Mairbek Taisumov (156)
PRELIMINARY CARD (FX, noon ET)
- Joanne Calderwood (126) vs. Andrea Lee (126)
- Lerone Murphy (146) vs. Zubaira Tukhugov (146)
- Liana Jojua (134.5) vs. Sarah Moras (138)*
- Ottman Azaitar (156) vs. Teemu Packalen (156)
PRELIMINARY CARD ESPN+, 10:15 a.m. ET)
- Belal Muhammad (170) vs. Takashi Sato (171)
- Muslim Salikhov (171) vs. Nordine Taleb (170)
- Omari Akhmedov (186) vs. Zak Cummings (185.5)
- Don Madge (155) vs. Fares Ziam (155)
* Moras missed women’s bantamweight limit by two pounds; fined 20 percent of purse.
Nurmagomedov had his most recent outing was his fourth-round submission win over McGregor at UFC 229 in Las Vegas where he retained his title on Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018.
With the win, Khabib advanced to 27-0 in his professional career. His 27 consecutive wins gives him the longest winning streak in all of mixed martial arts. Khabib first won the vacant lightweight championship on April 7, 2018, at UFC 223 when he scored a dominant decision win over Al Iaquinta in Brooklyn, New York. He became the first Russian to win a UFC title. The submission victory over McGregor was his first title defense.
The Dagestani champion became the first Russian and first Muslim to win a UFC championship thanks in large part to his training by his father, Abdulmanap. His father was a wrestler and trained in judo and sambo in the military before converting the ground floor of Nurmagomedov’s home into a gym. Khabib developed into two-time Combat Sambo World Champion before joining the UFC.
Poirier claimed the interim championship with an incredible effort against featherweight champion Max Holloway at UFC 236 in April 2019. He is currently on a five-fight winning streak which includes wins over former lightweight champions Eddie Alvarez and Anthony Pettis.