As expected, the UFC is all set to return to Abu Dhabi to kick off its 2021 schedule, as “Fight Island” gets set to play host to three events in the space of eight days.
On Tuesday, UFC president Dana White posted a fight poster to his Instagram story confirming that Yas Island will be the location for the UFC’s two Fight Night events on Jan. 16 and 20, as well as UFC 257 on Jan 23.
The triple-header fight week kicks off with a UFC Fight Night card headlined by former featherweight champion Max Holloway (21-6 MMA, 17-6 UFC) meeting Calvin Kattar (22-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC), while the UFC Fight Night event on Jan. 20 now has a confirmed headliner in Leon Edwards (18-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) vs. Khamzat Chimaev (9-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC).
Edwards and Chimaev originally were booked to face off at UFC Fight Night 183 this past weekend, but the matchup was pushed back after Edwards tested positive for COVID-19. Now the two welterweights will do battle on a Wednesday night on “Fight Island.”
The week will round off in style with the UFC’s first pay-per-view of the year, as former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier (26-6 MMA, 18-5 UFC) welcomes former two-division champ Conor McGregor (22-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) back to the octagon in the main event of UFC 257.
Below are up-to-date lineups for all three events happening on “Fight Island.”
UFC Fight Night on Jan. 16
- 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 on Jan. 20
- Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev
- Viviane Araujo vs. Roxanne Modafferi
- Tyson Nam vs. Matt Schnell
- Francisco Figueredo vs. Jerome Rivera
UFC 257 on Jan. 23
- 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
Dana White confirms UFC’s January return to ‘Fight Island,’ including Edwards vs. Chimaev