UFC 303 was supposed to mark Conor McGregor’s return to the Octagon, but his highly anticipated fight against Michael Chandler was canceled (for now) because McGregor sustained an injury prior to the fight.
But to its credit, the UFC moved quickly to replace the main event and salvage a pay-per-view card that had suffered some other setbacks. And the new main event should provide plenty of excitement for combat sports fans: Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka will face off again, with the light heavyweight title that Pereira won last November against former champion Prochazka on the line.
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The first preliminary rounds begin at 6:00 p.m. ET on Saturday. The prelims are then scheduled to begin around 8:00 p.m. ET, with the pay-per-view card starting around 10:00 p.m. ET.
Early prelims and fights for UFC 303 will air on ESPN and can be streamed on ESPN+. The pay-per-view card can be purchased through ESPN+.
Where is UFC 303?
The UFC returns to its usual venue for 303 – the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC 303 fight card
Main map
- Alex Pereira (Champion) vs. Jiri Prochazka (Light Heavyweight)
- Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes (Lightweight)
- Anthony Smith vs Roman Dolidze (Light Heavyweight)
- Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson (Women’s Bantamweight)
- Ian Machado Garry vs. Michael Page (Welterweight)
Front Page
- Joe Pyfer vs Marc-Andre Barriault (middleweight)
- Cub Swanson vs Andre Fili (Featherweight)
- Charles Jourdain vs Jean Silva (featherweight)
- Payton Talbott vs Yanis Ghemmouri (Bantamweight)
Early preliminary rounds
- Michelle Waterson-Gomez vs. Gillian Robertson (strawweight, women)
- Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday (Heavyweight)
- Rei Tsuruya vs Carlos Hernandez
- Ricky Simon vs Vinicius Oliveira
Why the fight against Conor McGregor is not on the UFC 303 card
Speculation that the McGregor-Chandler fight could be in jeopardy began when the UFC suddenly canceled a June 3 press conference scheduled to take place in Dublin. Ten days later, UFC President Dana White announced that the fight was no longer on the 303 card due to an injury that sidelined McGregor, which has since been revealed to be a broken toe.
McGregor last fought in July 2021, when he lost by doctor’s stoppage after breaking his leg in a fight against Dustin Poirier.
Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka: The story of the tape
| Alex Pereira | Comparisons | Jiri Prochazka |
| 10-2-0 | Record | 30-4-1 |
| Brazil | country | Czech Republic |
| 6-4 | Height | 6-3 |
| 220 | Weight | 218 |
| 79 inches | To reach | 80 inches |
| 44 inches | Leg reach | 45 inches |
Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka first fight
Alex Pereira defeated Jiri Prochazka by second-round TKO in a fight for the then vacant light heavyweight title at UFC 295 in November.
Championship history of Alex Pereira
Before claiming the light heavyweight title, Pereira – a standout kickboxer – was a middleweight champion. He defeated Israel Adesanya by TKO at UFC 281 in December 2022 to win that belt, but Adesanya took revenge in the rematch at UFC 287 in April 2023 by knocking out Pereira and regaining the title.
Pereira moved up to light heavyweight following the loss. Since winning the belt in November, he has successfully defended his title once, knocking out Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 in April.
Jiri Prochazka Championship History
Jiri Prochazka defeated Glover Teixeira by submission at UFC 275 in June 2022 to win the light heavyweight title. However, he was never able to properly defend himself and had to relinquish the title due to injury. His next time in the Octagon was his loss to Pereira in November 2023.
