UFC 249 PPV pre-orders are live: no crowds, but a packed fight card awaits

Update: well, what an event UFC 249 turned out to be! Not to worry if you missed it and the fights since as more UFC bouts are on their way. Find out everything you need to know about the next UFC PPV live stream on ESPN event! Or how about a UFC 255 live stream?

Original story follows:

It looked like it was never going to happen, but UFC 249 will finally be going ahead on Saturday. Dana White hasn't quite got Fight Island ready yet, but he has found a Florida venue to host one of the only sporting events in the world this weekend. If you want to watch Tony Ferguson Vs Justin Gaethje live, we've got the most up-to-date details right here.

UFC 249 will take place behind closed doors in an empty arena, but you'll be able to watch from home via ESPN PPV as per usual. And with team-based sports still looking like being a while off yet, UFC might be the only live sport we see in the States for a while. It's much the same in Europe, although Italian and German soccer teams are making plans to resume their seasons soon, albeit behind closed doors.

Coronavirus really has played havoc with the UFC 249 fight card. Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson was the original bout we were all excited to see, but Khabib isn't able to make it due to being on lockdown in Russia. Much of the original card has changed actually, but in other areas, we think it's actually improved, with some bigger names keen to come out and make their mark on what could be one of the most-watched UFC events since Conor McGregor's comeback bout in January saw him give Donald Cerrone the hot shoulder.

Tony Ferguson is still on the card, and will take on Justin Gaethje for an interim UFC Lightweight Championship. That means the winner will eventually take on the current (absent) champion, Khabib for a full-on title unification bout. That's not the only belt on the line though as Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz are clashing for the UFC Bantamweight belt title on the main card too.

Check out the poster we've added at the bottom of this article for the full rundown of the UFC 249 card.

Pre-order your UFC 249 PPV in advance

UFC 249 on ESPN pay-per-view
Unlike the smaller numbered UFC Fight Night events, the main UFC numbered ones are an ESPN PPV affair rather than just showing on the very cheap ESPN+ service. So what are your buying options?

Using the link above you can simply sign up for the UFC 249 PPV on its own for $64.99. Or pay $84.98 and you get the PPV and a year-long subscription to ESPN+ which will cover you for UFC Fight Night events, saving you about $30 over buying separately. If you're already an ESPN+ member, you'll be able to buy the PPV with that link too.

Another money-saving alternative we'd consider is the excellent value Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN+ bundle, where you get all three services for just $12.99 a month - that will save you $60 a year compared to buying them separately. If you go this route, then you can pay for the UFC 249 PPV event separately on top.

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If you're outside of the US, check out our global guide everything you need to know to arrange your UFC 249 live stream.

UFC 249 card - who's fighting who for what?

Hopefully, this is the absolute final UFC 249 card. We've seen a slight combination of the then-planned UFC 250 event with this one to make up for the lack of Khabib. It's clear that Dana White and co wanted to beef up (there's a lot of heavyweight action on this card) to bring UFC back to our screens in style.

We're expecting a few more UFC events this month too. The Fight Night series is set to resume with UFC Fight Night 173 currently set for May 14. A standard ESPN+ subscription at $4.99 per month, or a Disney Plus bundle with Hulu and ESPN+ will cover you for that too.

While you're waiting for the sporting world to fully resume, we've been getting a nostalgic fix via streaming The Last Dance Michael Jordan documentary online.