The UFC will kick off 2021 with a bang after Dana White announced they will begin the year with three events in the space of a week on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi.
On 16 January, this UFC Fight Night event will be headlined by former champion Max Holloway and Calvin Katter, an intriguing featherweight contest with title implications.
There will then be a midweek show on 20 January and that fight card sees the UK’s title hope Leon Edwards pitted against the surging Khamzat Chimaev in the main event. The pair were due to fight this past weekend, but Edwards was forced to pull out of the bout due to testing positive for COVID-19.
Then, on 23 January inside the Flash Forum on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island, Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier will have their long-awaited rematch in the lightweight division at UFC 257.
This January trip signals the UFC’s third stint on Fight Island since the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the promotion’s – and the world’s – plans.
Due to its location and facilities, White has been mightily impressed by Abu Dhabi since introducing Fight Island as a fight bubble concept earlier this year. The UFC President has even hinted at Abu Dhabi becoming the future fight capital of the world, surpassing Las Vegas.
“If you look at our roster of champions, they’re from all over the world. So the biggest, baddest fights over the next God knows how long are going to be here in Abu Dhabi,” White said in the summer. “That’s why I’m saying Abu Dhabi is going to be looked at as the new fight capital of the world. It used to be Las Vegas. It definitely isn’t Las Vegas right now.”
At the time of writing, this is how each of the Fight Island triple-header cards are currently shaping up:
UFC Fight Night, January 16, 2021
- Max Holloway vs. Calvin Kattar
- Sara McMann vs. Julianna Pena
- Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Muslim Salikhov
- Mike Grundy vs. Nik Lentz
- Brian Kelleher vs. Ricky Simon
- Jacob Kilburn vs. Austin Lingo
- Tim Elliott vs. Jordan Espinosa
- Carlos Felipe vs. Justin Tafa
- Punahele Soriano vs. Dusko Todorovic
- Anthony Hernandez vs. Rodolfo Vieira
- Bethe Correia vs. Wu Yanan
- Christian Aguilera vs. Warlley Alves
- Omari Akhmedov vs. Tom Breese
- Ramazan Emeev vs. David Zawada
UFC Fight Night, January 20, 2021
- Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev
- Viviane Araujo vs. Roxanne Modafferi
- Tyson Nam vs. Matt Schnell
- Francisco Figueredo vs. Jerome Rivera
UFC 257, January 23, 2021
- Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor
- Andre Muniz vs. Andrew Sanchez
- Joanne Calderwood vs. Jessica Eye
- Marcin Prachnio vs. Khalil Rountree
- Amanda Ribas vs. Marina Rodriguez
- Antonio Carlos Junior vs. Brad Tavares
- Ottman Azaitar vs. Matt Frevola
- Shane Burgos vs. Hakeem Dawodu
- Nasrat Haqparast vs. Arman Tsarukyan
