In a week filled with blockbuster UFC fight announcements by Dana White, the biggest win for fans had nothing to do with a stacked fight card. But for many fans, it was the clock that caught their attention.

The UFC is undergoing changes for the spectators and the viewers. With the UFC preparing to move from ESPN to Paramount/CBS in January 2026, the promotion is already adjusting how it wants fans to experience its biggest nights UFC 324, started with a new 9 p.m. ET premiere.

Dana White announced this shift through an Instagram Live, and this earlier kickoff is likely to be the rule for all numbered events unless a card takes place overseas. The timing change is consistent with the recent matchmaking decisions.

The promotion first attempted the 9 pm start time trial at UFC 129 in early 2011, but the permanent increase was reversed to 10 pm before the end of the year.

The timing adjustment turned out to be a, more than any single pairing, a commentary on the UFC’s overall direction. As the organization it starts to usher in gradually its a new era of broadcasting, a very small modification is already showing the mega reorganization in the future, which is about to happen.

Nevertheless, after this monumental change in UFC programming, UFC is no longer in control of the scheduling. Thus, not only will pay-per-view be gone by 2026, but the UFC shows will also be starting and finishing at an earlier time.

UFC 324 pay-per-view is a stacked card with Paddy Pimblett taking on Justin Gaethje, and the co-main fight is a blockbuster between Kayla Harrison and the returning Amanda Nunes. UFC 325 will be headlined by Alexander Volkanovski versus Diego Lopes.

A few fans poked fun at the fact that the change in timing was the actual victory of the week, suggesting that the schedule adjustment was more favorable than the matchups themselves.

The reaction was so strong that it became a permanent joke on social media, where the time change announcement attracted more applause than the revealing of the fights. It was a sort of commentary on the unpredictability of UFC matchmaking that has been the case lately.

Fans love the announcement; But for all the wrong reasons

As soon as Dana White made public the new start-time update, social media became nothing but sheer comedy. Sarcasm poured into every nook of social media. With the fans behaving as if the timing change had actually been the most significant one that the UFC had been hinting at all. The matchmaking mess had already created a buzz among the people, but this announcement changed the mood of the internet completely.

Fans immediately jumped in with jokes, including one who claimed, “Yeah, good, I’ve already fallen asleep watching Islam [Makhachev], Khamzat [Chimaev], Shavkat [Rakhmonov], and [Erin]Blanchfield,” playing on how late cards run or how they continue for all the rounds! Even though Blanchfield actually finished Cortez with a rear-naked choke at the end of Round 2.

Another wrote, “UFC PPVs set to begin at 9pm ET is low key my favourite news item from everything just announced.” MMA journalist Ben Fowlkes shared a similar vibe, and the pattern kept going with another fan saying, “Honestly the best thing the UFC has announced so far is that the main cards of these events will start an hour earlier. Rejoice, my brothers and sisters of the eastern time zone.” Analyst Mike Bohn echoed that energy, calling it, “Best news of it all.” One more added, “They must have figured that is the best time to capture the most amount of people. Has to be a numbers thing…” capturing the belief that this shift is part of a bigger strategy.

The reactions made it clear that this change was more needed by the fans than they had perhaps realized. If the UFC wanted a universally loved update, the clock might have delivered what the matchups couldn’t. What are your thoughts on the time change?