UFC Fight Night 71 start time, TV schedule, who is fighting tonight at 'Mir vs. Duffee'

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to cable television later tonight (Weds., July 15, 2015) for the UFC Fight Night 71: "Mir vs. Duffee" mixed martial arts (MMA) event on FOX Sports 1, which takes place inside Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, California.

For UFC Fight Night 71 results and LIVE play-by-play click here.

Before we gear up for tonight's televised fight card, which is part of the promotion's insane summer schedule of combat sports, let's take a closer look at all the major details for the FOX Sports 1 event, including how, when, and where to watch, as well as the key storylines behind "Mir vs. Duffee."

Who: Frank Mir vs. Todd Duffee
What: UFC Fight Night 71
When: Weds., July 15, 2015, beginning at 10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1
Where: Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, California
Live UFC Fight Night 71 results: Play-by-play coverage stream right here

Why It Matters: The main event featuring Frank Mir vs. Todd Duffee is going to reveal a lot about the future of both heavyweights. Mir is barely hanging on to his spot in the top 10, while the streaking Duffee could announce himself as a contender with a big finish in "The Golden State." The heavyweight division is consistently want of contenders, giving the victor a quick and easy route to the title "mix."

What's Hot: Ronda Rousey is expected to steamroll Bethe Correia at the upcoming UFC 190 event in August, and to date, "Rowdy" has yet to face an opponent with world-class hands. That could change if Holly Holm continues her unbeaten streak and planishes the venerable Marion Reneau in San Diego. "The Preacher's Daughter" has the size and skill to make things interesting at 135 pounds, now all she needs is the win.

What's Not: A lot of fight fans are burned out after last weekend's epic UFC doubleheader and Wednesday night fight cards are difficult to commit to, particularly on the east coast. With a start time of 10 p.m. ET, very few fans -- with actual jobs or outside commitments -- will want to stay up until 1 a.m. ET trying to catch the main event, and FOX Sports 1 cards have a tendency to beat you over the head with commercial breaks. Imagine if every fight goes to a decision? Ugh.

How to Watch: While the UFC Fight Night 71 main card doesn't start until 10 p.m. ET, fight fans with a subscription to UFC Fight Pass can tune into the opening "Prelims" at 7 p.m. ET, streamed live on the promotion's online digital network, before switching over to the FOX Sports 1 "Prelims" at 8 p.m. ET. Not sure when and where to tune in? See below for a detailed breakdown of viewing options.

UFC Fight Night 71 UFC Fight Pass "Prelims" (inter)national programming options (7 p.m. ET):

Online Airings:

Brazil and Latin America -- Blocked
All other countries -- Fight Pass on UFC.tv

Cable/Satellite Airings:

Central/South America
Brazil -- Combate
Mexico -- UFC Network
Argentina -- UFC Network
Bolivia -- UFC Network
Chile -- UFC Network
Colombia -- UFC Network
Ecuador -- UFC Network
Panama -- UFC Network
Paraguay -- UFC Network
Peru -- UFC Network
Dominican Republic -- UFC Network
Venezuela -- UFC Network

UFC Fight Night 71 FOX Sports 1 "Prelims" (inter)national programming options (8 p.m. ET):

Online Airings:

UK, Australia, Brazil, Latin America, Barbados, Dominica, Haiti, Jamaica, Caribbean, and Algeria - Blocked 
All Other Countries - Fight Pass on UFC.tv

Cable/Satellite Airings:

North America
US - FOX Sports 1 (Channel Finder)
US - FOX Deportes
Canada - Fight Network

Central/South America
Brazil - Combate
Mexico - UFC Network
Argentina - UFC Network
Bolivia - UFC Network
Chile - UFC Network
Colombia - UFC Network
Ecuador - UFC Network
Panama - UFC Network
Paraguay - UFC Network
Peru - UFC Network
Rep. Dominicana - UFC Network
Venezuela - UFC Network

Pacific Rim
Australia - FOX Sports Australia
New Zealand - Sky Sports
American Samoa - FOX South East Asia
Brunei - FOX South East Asia
Cambodia - FOX South East Asia
China - FOX South East Asia
Cook Islands - FOX South East Asia
Fiji - FOX South East Asia
French Polynesia - FOX South East Asia
Futuna Island - FOX South East Asia
Hong Kong - FOX South East Asia
Indonesia - FOX South East Asia
Kiribati Islands - FOX South East Asia
Laos - FOX South East Asia
Macau - FOX South East Asia
Malaysia - FOX South East Asia
Micronesia - FOX South East Asia
Mynamar - FOX South East Asia
Nauru - FOX South East Asia
New Caledonia - FOX South East Asia
Niue - FOX South East Asia
N. Mariana Islands - FOX South East Asia
Papau New Guinea - FOX South East Asia
Pitcairn Islands - FOX South East Asia
Palau - FOX South East Asia
Singapore - FOX South East Asia
Solomon Islands - FOX South East Asia
South Pacific Islands - FOX South East Asia
Tahiti - FOX South East Asia
Thailand - FOX South East Asia
Tokelau - FOX South East Asia
Tonga - FOX South East Asia
Tuvalu - FOX South East Asia
Vanuatu - FOX South East Asia
Vietnam - FOX South East Asia
Wallis Islands - FOX South East Asia
Western Samao - FOX South East Asia

Europe/Middle East/Africa
U.K. / Ireland - BT Sport 1
Algeria - Abu Dhabi Sports
Armenia - Setanta Sports
Azerbaijan - Setanta Sports
Bahrain - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Belarus - Setanta Sports
Chad - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Comoros Islands - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Djibouti - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Egypt - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Georgia - Setanta Sports
Iraq - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Jordan - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Kazakhstan - Setanta Sports
Kuwait - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Kyrgyzstan - Setanta Sports
Lebanon - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Moldova - Setanta Sports
Mauritania - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Morocco - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Oman - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Palestine - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Qatar - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Saudi Arabia - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Tajikistan - Setanta Sports
Turkmenistan - Setanta Sports
Tunisia - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
U.A.E. - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Uzbekistan - Setanta Sports
Yemen - Abu Dhabi Sports 6

UFC Fight Night 71 FOX Sports 1 Main Card (inter)national programming options (10 p.m. ET):

Online Airings:

US, UK, Brazil, Australia, Sweden, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Middle East, Pakistan, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Barbados, Dominica, Haiti, Jamaica, Caribbean, Tunisia, Chad, Djibouti, Mauritania, Morocco, and India - Blocked 
Latin America - UFC.tv
All Other Countries - Fight Pass on UFC.tv

Cable/Satelite Airings:

North America
US - FOX Sports 1 (Channel Finder)
US - FOX Deportes
Canada - TSN 2

Central/South America
Brazil - Combate
Mexico - UFC Network
Argentina - UFC Network
Chile - UFC Network
Colombia - UFC Network
Ecuador - UFC Network
Panama - UFC Network
Paraguay - UFC Network
Peru - UFC Network
Rep. Dominicana - UFC Network
Venezuela - UFC Network

Pacific Rim
Australia - FOX Sports Australia
New Zealand - Sky Sport
American Samoa - FOX South East Asia
Brunei - FOX South East Asia
Cambodia - FOX South East Asia
Cambodia - Hang Meas(Delayed)
China - FOX South East Asia
Cook Islands - FOX South East Asia
Fiji - FOX South East Asia
French Polynesia - FOX South East Asia
Futuna Island - FOX South East Asia
Hong Kong - FOX South East Asia
India - Sony SIX SD & HD
Indonesia - FOX South East Asia
Japan - FOX Sports Japan
Kiribati Islands - FOX South East Asia
Laos - FOX South East Asia
Macau - FOX South East Asia
Malaysia - FOX South East Asia
Micronesia - FOX South East Asia
Mongolia - Sansar HD
Mynamar - FOX South East Asia
Nauru - FOX South East Asia
New Caledonia - FOX South East Asia
Niue - FOX South East Asia
N. Mariana Islands - FOX South East Asia
Papau New Guinea - FOX South East Asia
Philippines - Balls & ABS CBN Sports and Action
Pitcairn Islands - FOX South East Asia
Palau - FOX South East Asia
Singapore - FOX South East Asia
Solomon Islands - FOX South East Asia
South Korea - Superaction SPOTV Plus
South Pacific Islands - FOX South East Asia
Tahiti - FOX South East Asia
Taiwan - FOX Sports Taiwan(Delayed)
Thailand - FOX South East Asia
Tokelau - FOX South East Asia
Tonga - FOX South East Asia
Tuvalu - FOX South East Asia
Vanuatu - FOX South East Asia
Vietnam - FOX South East Asia
Wallis Islands - FOX South East Asia
Western Samao - FOX South East Asia

Europe/Middle East/Africa
U.K. / Ireland - BT Sport 1
Croatia - Fight Channel
Denmark - Canal 8 Sport
France - RTL9(Sunday)
Norway - CMore
Portugal - SportTV
Sweden - TV4 (CMore)
Algeria - Abu Dhabi Sports
Armenia - Setanta Sports
Azerbaijan - Setanta Sports
Bahrain - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Belarus - Setanta Sports
Chad - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Comoros Islands - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Djibouti - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Egypt - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Georgia - Setanta Sports
Iraq - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Israel - Sport 5
Italy - FOX Sports Italy
Jordan - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Kazakhstan - Setanta Sports
Kuwait - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Kyrgyzstan - Setanta Sports
Lebanon - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Moldova - Setanta Sports
Mauritania - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Morocco - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Oman - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Palestine - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Qatar - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
San Marino - FOX Sports Italy
Saudi Arabia - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Tajikistan - Setanta Sports
Tunisia - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Turkmenistan - Setanta Sports
U.A.E. - Abu Dhabi Sports 6
Uzbekistan - Setanta Sports
Vatican City - FOX Sports Italy
Yemen - Abu Dhabi Sports 6

Handheld Devices:
iPhone: App Store
Android: Google Play
Blackberry: App World

More details on the UFC Fight Night 71 fight card, who is fighting who, as well as how to keep yourself updated all night long, below:

Main Event:

265 lbs.: Frank Mir vs. Todd Duffee

UFC on FOX Sports 1 Main Card (10 p.m. ET):

155 lbs.: Tony Ferguson vs. Josh Thomson
135 lbs.: Holly Holm vs. Marion Reneau
135 lbs.: Manny Gamburyan vs. Scott Jorgensen
155 lbs.: Kevin Lee vs. James Moontasri
170 lbs.: Matt Dwyer vs. Alan Jouban

UFC on FOX Sports 1 "Prelims" (8 p.m. ET):

145 lbs.: Yaotzin Meza vs. Sam Sicilia
135 lbs.: Jessica Andrade vs. Sarah Moras
135 lbs.: Masanori Kanehara vs. Rani Yahya
170 lbs.: Igor Araujo vs. Sean Strickland

UFC on Fight Pass "Prelims" (7 p.m. ET):

185 lbs.: Ildemar Alcantara vs. Kevin Casey
170 lbs.: Andrew Craig vs. Lyman Good

Original Card vs Actual Card:

Like most UFC cards these days, UFC Fight Night 71 underwent some pretty hefty changes. First and foremost, headliner Frank Mir was expecting to fight Brock Lesnar this summer in Madison Square Garden, and was pretty shocked to learn that instead, how would be relegated to cable television against a 265-pound up-and-comer.

Not long after that, former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez was pulled from the "Mir vs. Duffee" fight card after failing a drug test, which led to his original opponent, 155-pound slugger Al Iaquinta, getting pulled right along with him. There simply wasn't enough time to scrounge up a suitable replacement.

And let's not forget about the change in event numbers, which came after the promotion was forced to reshuffle a few of its marquee match ups in July.

Now that we're (finally) here, let's sit back and enjoy the fights!

Remember that MMAmania.com will provide LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Fight Night 71 fight RIGHT HERE, starting with the Fight Pass "Prelims" matches online, which are scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET, right on through the FOX Sports 1 "Prelims" bouts at 8 p.m. ET, before moving on to the main card, which is slated to start at 10 p.m. ET.

Enjoy the fights!