UFC 326 doesn’t have a divisional title on the line, but it does bring with it a card full of potential bangers.
Call this an experiment of what UFC fans are willing to accept at a numbered event in the Paramount+ era. With PPV fees now gone for the vast majority of fight fans (sorry, Canada), does every numbered card need a title fight or two? In years gone by, the UFC would have non-title fights headlining some of their biggest events. In the modern era, however, it became a sort of accepted fact that a PPV card needed a title to legitimize it, with arguably Conor McGregor (in his fights with Nate Diaz and Cowboy Cerrone) being the main exception.
UFC 326 does have a title, the BMF title, and it’s not the first time that has headlined an event. But there is no co-main event that even comes close to filling in as a headliner if Max Holloway vs. Charles Oliveira falls through. Of course, the same can be said for UFC 318, where Holloway defended his BMF belt opposite Dustin Poirier. That card, however, doubled as Poirier’s retirement fight; neither “Blessed” nor “Do Bronxs” are likely to retire this weekend win or lose.
Unlike 2025, however, no one outside an unlucky few is stuck paying upwards of $50 for UFC 326. There’s an argument to be made that the UFC can and should go back to putting just plain fun fights atop certain events (Jon Jones vs. Alex Pereira, with Tom Aspinall out due to injury, also comes to mind).
Regardless, UFC 326 arrives in Las Vegas this Saturday, and on Thursday, the top stars assembled for the pre-fight press conference, which you can catch in the live stream above. It all goes down starting at 8PM ET, 5PM PT.
