UFC 249 live stream: How to watch Ferguson vs. Gaethje online, start time

ufc 249 live stream online — (Image credit: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

The UFC 249 live stream is here as we watch the return of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The popular mixed martial arts promotion has been on a two-month-long hiatus due to the COVID-19 outbreak, but with a new venue and a stacked card headlined by Ferguson vs. Gaethje, it looks to be coming back in a big way (with some issues already).

The UFC 249 main event will see Tony Ferguson battle Justin Gaethje in a highly anticipated bout. Currently on a 12-fight winning streak, Ferguson will look to keep the momentum going with his signature high-impact style. Gaethje is a fan favorite and former World Series of Fighting lightweight champ, but a win on Saturday night could help him secure a spot among the UFC's elite.

UFC 249 Start Time, Location

UFC 249's main card is hours away at 10 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. Pacific | 3 a.m. GMT) today (Saturday, May 9). The event will be held at the Jacksonville Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Preliminary matches start soon at 6:30 p.m. Eastern.

Originally planned for Brooklyn, NY with Ferguson taking on Khabib Nurmagomedov in April, UFC 249 will now take place at the Jacksonville Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Other key bouts include a bantamweight showdown between champion Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz, as well as a heavyweight bout between Francis Ngannou and Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

Ready to catch this hotly anticipated UFC 249 live stream? Here's what you need to know about the big event.

Update: Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza has been pulled from UFC 249 after testing positive for coronavirus. The rest of the event is scheduled to run as planned. We've updated the fight card below to reflect this change.

Where to live stream UFC 249

UFC 249's main card is exclusive to ESPN Plus, ESPN's streaming service that is bundled with Disney Plus and Hulu, in a big deal for cord-cutters.

Once you've subscribed to ESPN Plus, you're going to need to spend a little more to get the UFC 249 PPV. It costs $65 on its own for existing subscribers, and new subscribers to ESPN Plus can bundle UFC 249 and an annual ESPN Plus subscription for $85 — savings of $40.

The UFC 249 prelims can be viewed on ESPN proper or the ESPN Plus app, while the early prelims are about to kick off at 6:30 p.m. are exclusive to UFC's Fight Pass service.

Where to live stream UFC 249 preliminary matches

If you want to watch the UFC 249 preliminary matches and don't have cable, you're not out of luck. ESPN is available on most major cable TV replacement services, including Sling TV, YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV.

UFC 249 fight card

Early Prelims (6:30 pm ET, UFC Fight Pass)
Vicente Luque vs. Niko Price
Bryce Mitchell vs. Charles Rosa
Ryan Spann vs. Sam Alvey

Prelims (8 pm ET, ESPN+/ESPN)
Anthony Pettis vs. Donald Cerrone
Aleksei Oleinik vs. Fabricio Werdum
Carla Esparaza vs. Michelle Waterson
Uriah Hall vs. Ronaldo Souza (CANCELLED)

Main Card (ESPN+, 10pm ET)
Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje
Hnery Cejudo (C) vs. Dominick Cruz
Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
Jeremy Stephens vs. Calvin Kattar
Greg Hardy vs. Yorgan de Castro

Mike Andronico is Senior Writer at CNNUnderscored. He was formerly Managing Editor at Tom's Guide, where he wrote extensively on gaming, as well as running the show on the news front. When not at work, you can usually catch him playing Street Fighter, devouring Twitch streams and trying to convince people that Hawkeye is the best Avenger.