Referee, Judging Assignments Set For UFC 296

The upcoming UFC 296 pay-per-view (PPV) event will feature the welterweight title fight between reigning 170-pound champion Leon Edwards and two-time division title challenger Colby Covington. In the championship co-headliner, Alexandre Pantoja returns to defend his flyweight title against longtime 125-pound rival Brandon Royval.

The action gets underway on Dec. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Referee Herb Dean will be the third man inside the cage for the Edwards vs. Covington main event, with judges Derek Cleary, Sal D’Amato and Chris Lee scoring the action from cageside. Prior to that, Referee Marc Goddard will complement judges Eric Colon, Junichiro Kamijo and Ron McCarthy for the Pantoja vs. Royval scrap.

That’s according to a report from MMA Junkie.

“I feel like a win is a win, but I don’t think I need to but I want to knock him out,” Edwards told MMA Fighting. “I want to put that nail in his coffin. This is his fourth title shot. This one, he didn’t earn one bit. Sat out for two years, complained, moaned, blamed everybody else. It was everybody else’s fault but not his. Me cementing that last nail in his coffin would be a joy and I can’t wait to do it.”

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 296 fight card right RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches at 6 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining undercard balance on ESPN2/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 296: “Edwards vs. Covington” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 296 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.