UFC Saudi Arabia live blog: Sergei Pavlovich vs. Alexander Volkov

This is the live blog for Sergei Pavlovich vs. Alexander Volkov, the heavyweight co-main event for Saturday’s UFC Saudi Arabia fight card in Riyadh – the UFC’s first-ever trip to Saudi Arabia.

One of the division’s scariest knockout artists, Pavlovich looks to get back on track after his first loss in five years. After losing his first octagon fight to Alistair Overeem in November 2018, Pavlovich earned his first championship opportunity after six consecutive first-round knockout victories over the likes of Derrick Lewis, Curtis Blaydes and Tai Tuivasa. The 32-year-old faced Tom Aspinall for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 295 last November and was stopped in the first round.

Volkov enters the fight on a three-fight win streak and looks to put himself in prime position to earn his first shot at UFC gold. In his most recent outing, Volkov stopped Tuivasa with a rare Ezekiel choke at UFC 293 last September.

Watch the live blog of the UFC Saudi Arabia co-main event below.