While, as part of their strategy, they settled for a less-than-marquee showdown to headline their inaugural event under the Paramount+ deal, Dana White and his team may not have anticipated the new challenges that followed. UFC 324 kicked off at the T-Mobile Arena, with the main event featuring Paddy Pimblett against Justin Gaethje. The card reached its final stretch, with former champion Sean O’Malley facing Song Yadong in the co-main event.

To reach this penultimate phase, however, UFC 324 appears to have deviated from its usual routine of quick turnarounds from the preliminary fights onward. Inadvertent delays reportedly caused a glitch that saw the very first bouts start roughly 30 minutes behind schedule. The UFC’s top executive had to intervene and acknowledge the issue. Given that it was the first show in a new venture, officials said fans should rest assured better execution is coming in future events.

After Paramount+ stumbles, UFC assures fans better shows ahead

“Just a debut show—lots to get in #UFC324,” wrote Zach Candito, UFC’s EVP. “Don’t expect the new norm to be 30 minutes after the hour.” Candito explained that they were experimenting or trying something different for the debut episode, adding that next week’s show will start earlier – about 10 minutes sooner than this one.

“All is well. All is well :),” he concluded. Candito appeared to be trying to salvage the situation before it slipped out of hand. The half-hour delay had already gained traction on social media earlier. “30 minutes from the start of the broadcast to get to the first fight. Why? Whose idea was this? #UFC324,” wrote sports-betting analyst Adam Martin.

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The rough start was likely just first-show growing pains, and Candito and the rest of the UFC team probably do not expect it to become a regular problem. As social media zeroed in on the delay, speculation quickly turned to possible causes. Some viewers felt the Paramount+ introduction segment was fine, but the commentary desk or studio portion came off as chaotic or poorly handled.

Others suggested the production team may have forgotten to account for commercial breaks, contributing to awkward pacing. Still, the delay appeared to stem from issues well before what unfolded inside T-Mobile Arena.

The UFC’s first event of the year was originally scheduled to feature 13 fights.

UFC 324’s problems extended beyond the cage

The card had already taken a hit when the planned co-main event between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes was canceled after the champion withdrew because of injury. Late cancellations of two preliminary fights added to the turmoil before showtime. First, the bantamweight matchup between Cameron Smotherman and Ricky Turcios was called off moments after weigh-ins when Smotherman collapsed after hitting the scale.

Later, the promotion canceled the lightweight matchup between Michael Johnson and Alexander Hernandez for undisclosed reasons.

Those late changes likely disrupted the night’s pacing, especially given the UFC’s tightly structured broadcast format. Typically, they budget about 30 minutes per televised fight. It factors in fighter walkouts, up to 17 minutes of action if the bout goes the distance, including round breaks, and a post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. With earlier bouts removed, UFC likely pushed the broadcast back to 5:30 p.m.

After scrapping the Hernandez fight, the promotion opted to stick with the revised start time rather than shift again. To fill the gap, host Kate Scott warmed up viewers with a desk segment featuring former champions Michael Bisping, Dominick Cruz, and Chris Weidman, along with a guest appearance from rock star Travis Barker.

In the end, the opener did not begin until more than an hour after its scheduled start, but Ty Miller and Adam Fugitt delivered the goods. Miller survived early trouble, dropped his veteran opponent multiple times, and sealed an emphatic stoppage in the final second of the opening round.