A box-office UFC 257 is almost upon us. Having come out of retirement for a third time, Conor McGregor returns to the Octagon to face off with Dustin Poirier on a hotly-anticipated Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.

Follow Poirier vs McGregor live

McGregor earned first-round win when he met Poirier six years ago

Having reversed his June decision to walk away from UFC, McGregor faces his first fight in a year in Saturday’s lightweight bout with Poirier - a man he defeated in the first round when they met in a featherweight clash in September 2014, but who is now an altogether tough prospect.

"I've been highly impressed, I think the whole business has been highly impressed, after that loss many, many years ago, he rose up, became champion and has given so much back,” McGregor said of his opponent on Friday.

"I am honoured to share the Octagon with this man. I know we have this competitive fire, and it's still there, there's no denying that and it's going to be a good fireworks-filled bout but the respect is admirable for this man from me."

What time does the Poirier vs McGregor fight at UFC 257 start?

UFC 257 is being held on Sunday 24 January 2021 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, with the early preliminary card beginning at 04:00 local time. The preliminary card is then due to start at 05:00, before the main card - headlined by Poirier vs McGregor - gets going at 07:00.

In the United Kingdom and the United States, this translates into the following start times:

UK: 00:00/01:00/03:00 on Sunday 24 January

US (PT): 16:00/17:00/19:00 on Saturday 23 January

US (ET): 19:00/20:00/22:00 on Saturday 23 January

Find out what time UFC 257 starts where you are in the world.

Where can I watch Poirier vs McGregor?

The following TV channels and online platforms will be showing UFC 257:

Early preliminary card: ESPN+ (US), BT Sport (UK), UFC Fight Pass (worldwide)

Preliminary card: ESPN/ESPN+ (US), BT Sport (UK)

Main card: ESPN+ (US), BT Sport (UK)

Poirier vs McGregor: live with AS English

You'll also be able to follow live-text coverage of Poirier vs McGregor right here at AS English.

UFC 257: Full fight card

Early preliminary card:

Catchweight (150 lb): Movsar Evloev vs Nik Lentz

Flyweight: Amir Albazi vs Zhalgas Zhumagulov

Preliminary card:

Catchweight: (157 lb): Matt Frevola vs Arman Tsarukyan (called off)

Middleweight: Brad Tavares vs Antonio Carlos Junior

Women’s bantamweight: Julianna Peña vs Sara McMann

Light heavyweight: Khali Rountree Jr vs Marcin Prachnio

Main card:

Lightweight: Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor

Lightweight: Dan Hooker vs Michael Chandler

Women’s flyweight: Jessica Eye vs Joanne Calderwood

Women’s strawweight: Marina Rodríguez vs Amanda Ribas

Middleweight: Andrew Sánchez vs Makhmud Muradov