UFC Saudi Arabia: Robert Whittaker vs. Ikram Aliskrov fight card, channel guide, betting odds

The UFC takes the Octagon to Saudi Arabia for the first time ever when they host UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday, June 22. The card was supposed to be headlined by a middleweight fight between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev, but Chimaev fell ill and was forced to withdraw from the fight.

Now Ikram Aliskerov steps in on short notice to fight Whittaker in hopes of saving the card. Also on the lineup is a heavyweight match-up between Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov and a welterweight showdown between Kelvin Gastelum and Daniel Rodriguez.

There are several fighters on the card to pay attention to including Johnny Walker, Shara Magomedov, Jared Gordon, and Sedriques Dumas.

Fans should be excited to learn that the main card will air on ABC so we won't have to deal with the sometimes finicky ESPN+ platform. Also worth noting the early start time due to the time difference and the ABC broadcast.

UFC Saudi Arabia fight card

MAIN CARD | 3 p.m. PT | ABC & ESPN+

• Robert Whittaker (26-7-0) vs. Ikram Aliskerov (15-1-0)
• Sergei Pavlovich (18-2-0) vs. Alexander Volkov (37-10-0)
• Kelvin Gastelum (18-9-0) vs. Daniel Rodriguez (17-4-0)
• Muhammadjon Naimov (11-2-0) vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan (8-2-0)
• Johnny Walker (21-8-0) vs. Volkan Oezdemir (19-7-0)

PRELIM | 12 p.m. PT | ESPN +

• Shara Magomedov (12-0-0) vs. Joilton Santos Lutterbach (0-0-0)
• Nasrat Haqparast (16-5-0) vs. Jared Gordon (20-6-0)
• Rinat Fakhretdinov (21-1-1) vs. Nicolas Dalby (23-4-1)
• Kyung Ho Kang (19-10-0) vs. Muin Gafurov (18-6-0)
• Magomed Gadzhiyasulov (1-0-0) vs. Brendson Ribeiro (15-6-0)
• Sedriques Dumas (9-2-0) vs. Denis Tiuliulin (11-9-0)
• Xiao Long (2-1-0) vs. Chang Ho Lee (2-0-0)

UFC Saudi Arabia betting odds

The betting odds for the main event are pretty close right now. Whittaker is a -142 favorite over Aliskerov who is currently a +120 favorite. This is probably due to the short notice aspect of the fight plus Whittaker being a former champion. The biggest margin on the card is between Magomed Gadzhiyasulov and Brendson Ribeiro. Gadzhiyasulov is a big favorite at -355 and Ribeiro is a +280 underdog.