The UFC will be heading to the middle east in June according to the chairman of general authority for entertainment of Saudi Arabia. The event was to be held on March 2nd.
Ariel Helwani reported that the event was being postponed due in part to Saudi Arabia pushing back on the fight card. At the UFC 297 post-fight press conference Dana White pushed back on the report stating that he was the one that asked that the card be pushed back noting that fighters that they wanted on the card would not be ready.
Regardless of what you believe, there were initial reports of fights being made for the March card but never confirmed by the UFC. So, there’s truth to the report and White’s comments.
Payout Perspective:
The UFC is hoping to score a deal with Saudi Arabia for perennial cards in the country. It is reported that they are receiving a $20 million site fee, so the UFC wants to make a good first impression with Saudi Arabia and the Middle East region. We will see who the UFC has in mind to headline the Saudi Arabia card. The June date does come close to the annual UFC International Fight Week so the company has to save some of its key fighters for that date as well.
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