UFC 166 start time, fight card, TV info, media events and extended video preview

It’s fight week again for the UFC, and on Saturday, the organization returns to pay-per-view with UFC 166 and a blockbuster heavyweight headliner.

Here’s the essential information for the weekend show.

UFC 166 START TIME: UFC 166 takes place Saturday at Houston’s Toyota Center. The night kicks off with prelims on Facebook/YouTube at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT) before a move to FOX Sports 1 for additional prelims (8 p.m. ET). Then, the pay-per-view main card kicks off at 10 p.m. ET. The lineup includes 13 bouts in all.

UFC 166 BACKGROUND: UFC 166 features the rubber match between heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez (12-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) and former titleholder Junior dos Santos (16-2 MMA, 10-1 UFC), who are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA heavyweight rankings (and No. 7 and No. 14 in the pound-for-pound rankings). Dos Santos won the first meeting via 64-second knockout in 2011, and Velasquez posted a lopsided decision victory in the 2012 rematch. In UFC 166's co-headliner, Olympian and former Strikeforce tournament champion Daniel Cormier (12-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) fights at heavyweight for the final time when he takes on Roy Nelson (19-8 MMA, 6-4 UFC).

UFC 166 ON-SITE REPORTER: MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan (@MMAjunkieJohn) will be on site for UFC 166. Give him a follow for updates throughout fight week.

UFC 166 OPEN WORKOUTS ON WEDNESDAY: In lieu of a press conference, the UFC is hosting open workouts on Wednesday. The event, which takes place at Houston’s House of Blues (1204 Caroline St.), is free and open to the public. It begins at 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. CT local time). Attendees include dos Santos, Velasquez, Cormier, Nelson, Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez.

UFC 166 PULLOUT IN FRIDAY’S USA TODAY: Friday’s edition of USA TODAY includes a four-page pullout devoted entirely to UFC 166. Pick up a copy and check out a variety of content from the MMAjunkie.com editorial team.

UFC 166 WEIGH-INS FRIDAY: Friday’s UFC 166 fighter weigh-ins take place at Toyota Center. You can watch a live video stream or get text-only results beginning at 5 p.m. ET. We’ll also have a video replay and full photo gallery available afterward.

UFC 166 TAILGATE PARTY ON SATURDAY: Prior to UFC 166, a tailgate party takes place outside Toyota Center from 1:30-5:30 p.m. CT. It includes meet and greets and autograph sessions with UFC fighters, prize giveaways, a UFC merchandise tent, music and sponsor booths, in addition to food and beverage vendors.

UFC 166 ON SATURDAY: Join us at 6 p.m. ET for UFC 166 play-by-play and live results. You can also discuss UFC 166 in our discussion thread. Afterward, watch the post-UFC 166 press conference on MMAjunkie.com at approximately 1:30 a.m. ET.

The full UFC 166 card includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

• Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos – for heavyweight title
• Daniel Cormier vs. Roy Nelson
• Gilbert Melendez vs. Diego Sanchez
• Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Shawn Jordan
• John Dodson vs. Darrell Montague

PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX Sports 1, 8 p.m. ET)

• Tim Boetsch vs. C.B. Dollaway
• Hector Lombard vs. Nate Marquardt
• Jessica Eye vs. Sarah Kaufman
• K.J. Noons vs. George Sotiropoulos

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook, 6 p.m. ET)

• Adlan Amagov vs. T.J. Waldburger
• Tony Ferguson vs. Mike Rio
• Andre Fili vs. Jeremy Larsen
• Kyogi Horiguchi vs. Dustin Pague

For more on UFC 166, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.