Tonight on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., the UFC will put on a one-of-a-kind event. UFC Freedom 250 is headlined by two title fights: Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje for the Undisputed Lightweight Championship, while Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane go toe-to-toe for the Interim Heavyweight title. The fights are expected to begin at 9:00 p.m. ET, after being delayed an hour due to weather concerns.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Topuria is a -500 favorite with Gaethje being the underdog at +380. In the co-main event, Pereira is -115 with Gane being -105 to win this bout.
1:17 a.m. ET: Justin Gaethje’s post-fight interview
After defeating Ilia Topuria, Joe Rogan interviews the new UFC Undisputed Lightweight Champion, Justin Gaethje.
1:09 a.m. ET: Justin Gaethje defeats Ilia Topuria to win the Undisputed Lightweight title
After the fourth round, Ilia Topuria was unable to see, which ended the fight. Justin Gaethje is finally the Undisputed Lightweight Champion after two previous attempts. Gaethje hands Topuria his first career MMA loss. This was the first UFC card in the promotion’s history in which every fight ended by knockout.
Following the third round, the doctor checked Topuria’s eye, but he let him continue. Both fighters traded big punches in the fourth round. Topuria’s eyes kept swelling up a ton. Topuria gained control in the final minute of the fourth round.
Before the fight, Gaethje was a +360 underdog and was +5000 to win by fifth-round KO/TKO/DQ on DraftKings Sportsbook.
12:58 a.m. ET: Topuria vs. Gaethje – Round 3
Gaethje hurt Topuria in the third round and tried a submission but couldn’t complete it. Topuria was bleeding a ton from his face and had never been previously hurt like this in his career.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Gaethje is a -250 favorite right now with Topuria as a +190 underdog.
10-9 Gaethje, 29-28 Topuria
12:52 a.m. ET: Topuria vs. Gaethje – Round 2
Topuria had a good start to the second round, but Gaethje kept responding. In the second, Topuria unloaded massive body punches, severely hurting Gaethje and eventually controlling him on the ground.
10-9, 20-18 Topuria
12:46 a.m. ET: Topuria vs. Gaethje – Round 1
Topuria showed his confidence and patience from the start of this fight. Topuria landed a few big punches in the first two minutes. Gaethje also connected with a bunch of big strikes, causing Topuria to bleed from his nose. Both fighters traded huge punches in the first round.
10-9 Topuria
12:33 a.m. ET: Ilia Topuria has arrived!
Ilia Topuria is making his way to the Octagon for a Lightweight title fight with Justin Gaethje.
12:30 a.m. ET: Justin Gaethje makes his ring walk
Justin Gaethje is here ahead of his Main Event showdown with Ilia Topuria.
12:06 a.m. ET: Ciryl Gane defeats Alex Pereira by second-round knockout
Ciryl Gane is now a two-time UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion after scoring a second-round knockout against Alex Pereira. Gane knocked down Pereira, but the former two-division champion got back to his feet. A few seconds later, Gane pressured him, leading to the finish. Gane will likely have a rematch with Tom Aspinall next for the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Gane was +330 to win by KO/TKO/DQ and +1400 to win by second-round knockout.
12:02 a.m. ET: Pereira vs. Gane – Round 1
Alex Pereira comes out with a high kick, and then both fighters trade leg kicks. Gane and Pereira were feeling each other out throughout the first round. During this round, Gane landed multiple big punches on Pereira.
Gane came out with confidence and has been efficient. Pereira landed a big punch at the end of the round, but it was too late to win the first.
10-9 Gane
11:52 p.m. ET: Alex Pereira is here!
Former UFC Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira has arrived for his Interim Heavyweight title fight with Ciryl Gane.
11:43 p.m. ET: Conor McGregor and Max Holloway trade words
After Sean O’Malley’s victory, the UFC aired part of an interview that Joe Rogan did with Conor McGregor and Max Holloway. McGregor and Holloway are slated to face each other for the second time on July 11.
11:23 p.m. ET: Sean O’Malley defeats Aiemann Zahabi by second-round knockout
Sean O’Malley beat Aiemann Zahabi with an impressive knockout in the second round. The former Bantamweight Champion is now 20-3 with 14 career finishes. This is O’Malley’s second straight win, his longest winning streak since March 2024.
O’Malley displayed his accuracy, landing multiple combinations on Zahabi. Zahabi continued to land leg kicks but didn’t connect on many significant strikes.
11:17 p.m. ET: O’Malley vs. Zahabi – Round 1
O’Malley was the aggressor from the start of this fight, as Zahabi couldn’t get anything going. The former champion looked confident, picking apart Zahabi. Zahabi found success with a ton of leg kicks in the first round. O’Malley made it a priority to unload body shots.
10-9 O’Malley
10:50 p.m. ET: Josh Hokit defeats Derrick Lewis by second-round knockout
Josh Hokit’s undefeated record grows to 10-0 with nine finishes after knocking out Derrick Lewis in the second round. Hokit is 4-0 in the UFC over the previous 10 months. There has been a knockout in each of the first four fights on this card.
In the second round, Lewis landed a few strikes, but Hokit continued to move forward. Hokit landed multiple big combinations that hurt Lewis.
10:43 p.m. ET: Hokit vs. Lewis – Round 1
Hokit is a better athlete than Lewis and showed that from the start of the fight. Lewis was very passive in the first two minutes of the first round. Hokit scored takedowns and then unloaded punches on Lewis. At the end of the round, Hokit tried an armbar but was unable to secure the submission.
10-9 Hokit
10:10 p.m. ET: Mauricio Ruffy defeats Michael Chandler by first-round knockout
Mauricio Ruffy scored a first-round knockout against Michael Chandler. Ruffy is now 14-2 with 13 knockouts and is currently on a two-fight winning streak.
Chandler was pressuring Ruffy early in this contest. Ruffy was patient but landed a few good punches. Ruffy cornered Chandler against the Octagon and then hurt Chandler.
9:55 p.m. ET: Tyson Fury makes an appearance
Former WBC boxing Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury was interviewed by Jon Anik and teased some news with Dana White.
9:50 p.m. ET: United States origin story
After the second fight on tonight’s card, an origin story for the United States aired on the Paramount+ broadcast.
9:31 p.m. ET: Bo Nickal defeats Kyle Daukaus by first-round knockout
Bo Nickal picks up the victory against Kyle Daukaus by first-round knockout. Nickal moves to 9-1 with eight finishes in his MMA career. This loss ends Daukaus’ previous six-fight winning streak.
Less than a minute into the first round, Nickal scored his first takedown. Nickal landed some ground-and-pound punches on Daukaus on the ground. With under two minutes left, Nickal connected on multiple elbows.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Nickal was +380 to win by first-round knockout before the contest.
9:05 p.m. ET: Diego Lopes defeats Steve Garcia by second-round knockout
Diego Lopes came out more aggressive in the second round and scored a knockout over Steve Garcia. This is Lopes’ first win since September 2025, and he is now 28-8 with 24 career finishes.
Before the fight on DraftKings Sportsbook, Garcia was +800 to win by a second-round knockout.
8:59 p.m. ET: Lopes vs. Garcia – Round 1
Garcia was having a ton of success against Lopes with punches and kicks to start the fight. Lopes kept finding himself with his back towards the cage. In the first round, Lopes was passive and couldn’t find his rhythm.
10-9 Garcia
8:33 p.m. ET: President Trump and Dana White make their entrance
To kick off UFC Freedom 250, President Donald Trump made his entrance alongside UFC President and CEO Dana White.
Fight Card
UFC Undisputed Lightweight Championship: Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje
UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship: Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane
Bantamweight Bout: Sean O’Malley vs. Aiemann Zahabi
Heavyweight Bout: Josh Hokit vs. Derrick Lewis
Lightweight Bout: Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler
Middleweight Bout: Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus
Featherweight Bout: Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia
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