Nunes returns to challenge Harrison as Gane defends heavyweight belt at UFC 334
Amanda Nunes comes out of retirement to face bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison, while Ciryl Gane makes his first heavyweight title defence, on a card headed to Madison Square Garden on 17 November.
UFC 334 arrives at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday with two title fights topping the bill, headlined by heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane's first defence against Josh Hokit, according to BBC Mixed Martial Arts and Yahoo Sports.
The co-main event brings former two-division champion Amanda Nunes back into the cage against bantamweight title-holder Kayla Harrison, a bout BBC Mixed Martial Arts reports was originally scheduled for January before Harrison's neck injury forced a postponement.
Gane's route to undisputed champion has been unconventional. He won the interim heavyweight title by beating Alex Pereira at the UFC's White House event in June, having earned that opportunity with a split-decision win over Alexander Volkov that Yahoo Sports described as among the worst high-profile judging decisions seen in some time.
The undisputed belt became available after Tom Aspinall, unable to recover from an eye injury he suffered against Gane in an October 2025 bout ruled a no-contest, vacated the title in September. Gane was promoted to undisputed champion as a result, according to BBC Mixed Martial Arts.
The Frenchman, 36, has now won 14 of his 17 professional fights with seven knockouts since debuting in 2018, though he has twice come up short in previous title fights, losing to Francis Ngannou in 2022 and Jon Jones in 2023.
Hokit, 28, sits fifth in the UFC's heavyweight rankings and is contesting a title shot after barely a year in the organisation. He debuted last November and has since gone 4-0, with his most recent win coming against Derrick Lewis in June after a win over Curtis Blaydes two months earlier earned him the short-notice opportunity at the White House card, per Yahoo Sports.
Hokit has drawn attention for adopting provocative personas in interviews, in a style BBC Mixed Martial Arts compares to Colby Covington, and has previously been accused of racially aggravating and misogynistic remarks, including comments directed at former First Lady Michelle Obama in June.
Nunes, widely regarded as the sport's greatest female fighter, returns to face Harrison for the bantamweight title in a rematch of sorts for the division's top spot, with Harrison having held the belt since before her injury layoff.
The rest of the main card features Caio Borralho against Yousri Belgaroui, Uros Medic facing Kevin Holland, and Bilal Hasan taking on Luis Gurule, rounding out what Yahoo Sports calls a stacked card after a year dominated by smaller APEX events.
The featured prelim bout sees Stephen Thompson fight what is billed as his retirement bout against Charles Radtke. The prelims also include Jim Miller against Terrance McKinney and Jared Gordon against Melqizael Costa.
Scotland's Chris Duncan is also in action on the preliminary card, with the 33-year-old lightweight facing American Drew Dober, according to BBC Mixed Martial Arts.
BBC Mixed Martial Arts reports the prelims are scheduled to begin at 00:00 GMT, with the main card following at 02:00 GMT and the Gane-Hokit headline fight expected to start at around 04:30 GMT on Sunday. The event streams exclusively on Paramount+, according to Yahoo Sports.