UFC 303 will have Alex Pereira taking on Jiri Prochazka on the main card at UFC 303. The UFC International Fight Week was initially scheduled to host Conor McGregor's comeback bout against Michael Chandler but a toe injury resulted in the former pulling out of the card at the last moment. Well, wait up as Pereira vs Prochazka is not the only fight that is on the cards, Brian Ortega will be taking on Diego Lopes in a featherweight bout as Khalil Rountree Jr. had to say goodbye to UFC 303 due to drug testing restrictions while Jamahal Hill succumbed to injury.

Let’s take a look and explore all the official information available about this highly anticipated event.

UFC 303: Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka background

The reigning light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and the challenger, former champ Jiri Prochazka will make for an exciting fight on June 29 as both fighters are known for their intent and intensity. This would be the second time that Pereira will go against Prochazka as the pair previously fought at UFC 295. It was also a replacement fight as Jon Jones sustained an injury and his bout against Stipe Miocic had to be canceled.

The fight that took place in November last year ended with Pereira scoring a second-round TKO win over Prochazka. The champion would be eager to repeat his heroics but it might not be a smooth ride since he had less than a month to prepare. Both Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira last fought at UFC 300 against Aleksandar Rakić and Jamahal Hill respectively. The recovery time for the two fighters has been less than three months.

UFC 303: Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka full card

According to information on the UFC’s official website, the UFC 303 card features 12 total fights, with Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka and Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes as headliners, respectively.

Here’s a list of all the bouts from the card. It must be noted that the fights may be changed ahead of their clashes:

Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka

Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes

Anthony Smith vs Roman Dolidze

Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson

Ian Machado Garry vs. Michael Page

Joe Pyfer vs. Marc-Andre Barriault

Cub Swanson vs. Andre Fili

Charles Jourdain vs. Jean Silva

Payton Talbott vs. Yanis Ghemmouri

Michelle Waterson-Gomez vs. Gillian Robertson

Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday

Rei Tsuruya vs. Carlos Hernandez

Ricky Simon vs. Vinicius Oliveira

Co-main event of UFC 303: Pereira vs Prochazka - Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes

In the co-main event of UFC 303, Jamahal Hill was all set to make a comeback after his thrashing defeat against Alex Pereira back in UFC 300. Jamahal Hill was supposed to fight Khalil Rountree at the UFC 303 event but Rountree tested positive for a banned substance, DHEA ahead of his bout and was routed out by the promotion from his fight. This resulted in Carlos Ulberg taking up the fight. However, Jamahal Hill had to pull out just days before the clash after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon.

In a disappointing turn of events, Carlos Ulberg, who was given an alternate partner in the form of Anthony Smith, also had to withdraw from UFC 303 after suffering from a disclosed injury. After a series of unforeseen circumstances, the UFC finally came up with Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes as the co-main event.

Two-time featherweight title challenger Ortega will be defending his #3 ranking in the featherweight division on Saturday. 'T-City' is riding on a stunning win over Yair Rodriguez at UFC Mexico City earlier this year. However, it might not be an easy bout for Brian Ortega. Despite being relatively new in the promotion, Diego Lopes is on a three-match winning streak.

Main event of UFC 303: Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka

The main event of the night would be between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka. The clash would mark the second time that the pair will take on each other, with their fight battle coming at UFC 295 in November last year. Pereira had the upper hand in the bout as he scored a victory via KO/TKO. The 36-year-old will have his eyes set on repeating history as like the last time, he will be aiming to trust his game plan and go all out against Prochazka.

Meanwhile, Jiri Prochazka will also be a better fighter as he is coming into UFC 303 following a victory against Aleksandar Rakić at UFC 300. Speaking to The MMA Hour, the fighter reflected on his plans saying, “I will win the fight. I will win the fight, and I believe in that, and I will do that. That’s all. I will not step into a fight where I don’t believe in that, in myself. I already accept that I will do everything, and right now is the great chance to show that.”

While Prochazka is confident of victory, Alex Pereira believes that the former has not changed much since their last outing. “I was just watching his last fight yesterday, and obviously you can’t compare because it’s a different fight, but I don’t think he was able to change that much since our last fight. If there’s one thing I could maybe change, it’s my takedown defense,” claimed the 36-year-old as per TheMacLife.

UFC 303: Pereira vs Prochazka Fighters’ Record, Stats, Previous Fights

Alex Pereira

10-2-0

3-fight winning streak

Current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and a former UFC Middleweight Champion

8 KO/TKO victories under the promotion

Previous fight: Jamahal Hill UFC 300, won by KO/TKO in round 1.

Jiri Prochazka

30-4-1

1 fight winning streak

Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion

26 KO/TKO victories under the promotion

Previous fight: Aleksandar Rakić UFC 300, won via KO/TKO in round 2

Brian Ortega

16-3-0

1 fight winning streak

3 knockout victories under the promotion

#3 in UFC featherweight rankings

Previous fight: Yair Rodriguez UFC Fight Night: Moreno vs. Royval 2, won via submission

Diego Lopes

24-6-0

10 knockout victories under the promotion

Three-fight winning streak.

#14 in UFC featherweight rankings

Previous fight: Sodiq Yusuff UFC 300, won via KO/TKO in round 1

Location, Venue, Date, Time of UFC 303: Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka

UFC 303 is set to take place at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas United States, on June 29th. The prelims will start at 5:30 AM PM ET and the main card begins at 7:30 PM ET on Saturday.

 Why is Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler not happening at UFC 303?

Despite UFC 303 being the highest gate in the promotion history and fans being hyped up to see their favorite fighter make a comeback to the octagon after three years, Dana White & Co. were forced to cancel the much-awaited Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler bout. And the Irishman is to be blamed for the same as days before the event, he injured his toe and was thus forced to withdraw from the fight. This was the first time in his UFC career that McGregor pulled out from a scheduled fight.

Taking to his official Instagram handle, the 35-year-old confirmed his absence and his injury, stating, "Very tough to be ruled out of my scheduled return bout. I picked up an injury prior to the press conference that required more time to heal than was available to me. The decision to postpone the fight was not made lightly, but one made in consultation with my doctors, the UFC, and my team. My fans and opponent deserve me at my best for this fight and we will get there! Thank you for the messages of support, I am in good spirits and confident I’ll be back!"

UFC 303 Fight cancellations

Both the main and co-main events of UFC 303 were hit by injuries as Dana White had to bring in replacements at the last moment. On the main card at UFC 303, Michael Chandler was all set to fight against Conor McGregor after a wait of three years. However, following a toe injury, McGregor pulled out from the scheduled bout and the main card will now see Alex Pereira going against Jiri Prochazka for the second time.

Meanwhile, in the co-main card, Jamahal Hill was to make his comeback against Carlos Ulberg following a knockout loss to Alex Pereira at UFC 300. However, days before the event, Hill took to his Instagram to share the injuries that forced him to pull out from the UFC International Fight Week.

“Two tears in my meniscus, sprained my ACL, a Baker Cyst that leaked fluid in the back of my knee and a infusion in some joints! There were actually three of these. This is only making me hungrier. Be back soon!” Hill wrote in a post on his official Instagram handle.

UFC 303’s Press Conference is canceled!

One of the most controversial things that happened at the event was the cancellation of the UFC 303 press conference. It was supposed to happen on June 3rd in Dublin, McGregor's homeland. However, just a day ahead of the press conference, UFC's social media handler took off and announced that the press conference was canceled without any explanation. This gave rise to new rumors, MMA community event stated that McGregor might have canceled his fight as he was not ready.

Owing to rising concerns amongst his fans, McGregor had to come forward to add a statement. The former dual-weight champion took to X and wrote, "In consultation with the UFC, todays press conference was cancelled due to a series of obstacles outside of our control. I apologize to my Irish fans, and fans around the world, for the inconvenience and appreciate all your passion and support. I can’t wait to put on the greatest all-time show in the Octagon."

However, as mentioned above, not only the press conference but the main card of UFC 303: Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler also stands canceled because of the injury sustained by the former dual champion.

Weigh-Ins, Pre-Fight, and Post-Fight Press Conference

The weigh-ins for the event are scheduled to happen on June 28th on Friday and the post-fight press conference will commence after the clash on June 29th.

Past UFC events in T-Mobile Arena

UFC has been having its premium events in the T-Mobile Arena. UFC 300 is the most recent event that happened at the glorious stadium. If we were to exclude UFC 300, then UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington, UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2, and UFC 285: Jones vs. Gane would be the most prestigious events that happened at the stadium.

It’s also interesting to note that T-Mobile Arena had hosted some of the most well-known bangers for McGregor. UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3, UFC 246: McGregor vs. Cowboy, UFC 229: Khabib vs. McGregor happened in T-Mobile Arena as well.

The commentary team of UFC 303 - Will Joe Rogan be there?

 Joe Rogan has not missed any event at the T-Mobile Arena and continuing the tradition, he will again be present during UFC 303 to offer his services as the color commentator. Joining him would be the likes of Jon Anik and Daniel Cormier as color commentator and play-by-play commentator at UFC 303.

Where to Watch? UFC 303: Pereira vs Prochazka Tickets

Fan͏s can watch the m͏ain card live on ESPN+ Pay-Per-View, with the preliminaries and early preliminaries available on E͏SPN2 and ESPN+. Ticket prices fo͏r th͏i͏s event, as͏ ͏listed on Tick͏etMaster, ran͏ge fro͏m aroun͏d $423 to ov͏e͏r $23,500.