MMA Knockout

UFC 296 Results & Highlights: Edwards Outworks Covington

Two titles were on the line at the final UFC event of the year.

Drew Beaupré

UFC 296 Results & Highlights: Edwards Outworks Covington
UFC 296 Results & Highlights: Edwards Outworks Covington /

The UFC closed out its 2023 schedule with a stacked card when UFC 296 took place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

UFC 296 Bold Predictions & Preview: Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington

The headlining bout saw Leon Edwards defend his welterweight title for the second time when he took on former interim titleholder Colby Covington. It had been nearly two years since fans last saw Covington step into the Octagon, and the challenger had few moments of success over the course of five rounds against Edwards.

The night's co-main event was a flyweight title fight between Alexandre Pantoja and Brandon Royval. The pair previously met in a 2021 bout where Pantoja submitted Royval in the second round, and in their rematch “The Cannibal” bested the American once again to defend his flyweight belt for the first time.

The rest of the main card saw Shavkat Rakhmonov extend his unbeaten record and perfect finishing rate when he submitted two-time title challenger Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Former interim champion Tony Ferguson also suffered his seventh-straight loss at the hands of Paddy Pimblett, and Josh Emmett kicked off the main card with a brutal first-round knockout against Bryce Mitchell.

UFC Pros React to Colby Covington vs Leon Edwards Heated Press Conference

You can find highlights from the event below, as well as the full results for every fight.

Shamil Gaziev def. Martin Buday

Andre Fili def. Lucas Almeida

 Tagir Ulanbekov def. Cody Durden

Ariane Lipski def. Casey O'Neill

Cody Garbrandt def. Brian Kelleher

Josh Emmett def. Bryce Mitchell

Shavkat Rakhmonov def. Stephen Thompson

Alexandre Pantoja def. Brandon Royval

Leon Edwards def. Colby Covington

Main Card: (ESPN+ PPV, 10:00 p.m. ET)

• Main Event: Leon Edwards def. Colby Covington via Unanimous Decision (49-26x3) – For the UFC Welterweight Championship

• Co-Main Event: Alexandre Pantoja def. Brandon Royval via Unanimous Decision (50-45x2, 49-46) - For the UFC Flyweight Championship

• Shavkat Rakhmonov def. Stephen Thompson via Submission (Rear Naked Choke): R2, 4:56

• Paddy Pimblett def. Tony Ferguson via Unanimous Decision (30-27x3)

• Josh Emmett def. Bryce Mitchell via KO: R1, 1:57

Preliminary Card: (ESPN2/ESPN+, 8:00 p.m. ET)

• Alonzo Menifield def. Dustin Jacoby via Unanimous Decision (29-28x3)

• Irene Aldana def. Karol Rosa via Unanimous Decision (29-28x3)

• Cody Garbrandt def. Brian Kelleher via KO: R1, 3:42

• Ariane Lipski def. Casey O'Neill via Submission (Armbar): R2, 1:18

Early Preliminary Card: (UFC Fight Pass, 6:30 p.m. ET)

• Tagir Ulanbekov def. Cody Durden via Submission (Rear Naked Choke): R2, 4:25

• Andre Fili def. Lucas Almeida via TKO: R1, 3:32

• Shamil Gaziev def. Martin Buday via TKO: R2, 0:56

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