Manchester will host UFC 304 on July 27 in the first sporting event to be held at the Co-op Live Arena which will be the largest indoor venue in the UK.
The arena is set to open this month and is likely to feature a card including interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall and welterweight king Leon Edwards when the UFC visits the 23,500-capacity setting.
“We have two champions from the UK and fans have been dying for a UFC PPV event,” promotion president Dana White said, describing himself as “so excited”.
“So here we come to the largest indoor arena in the UK. See you soon, England.”
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Aspinall, who comes from nearby Salford, had suggested earlier this month that the event would take place at the £365 million arena.
The 31-year-old would be the most likely candidate to headline, potentially facing Curtis Blaydes – the fighter he lost to in cruel fashion when he suffered a serious knee injury within seconds of the start of their fight in London in July 2022.
Birmingham’s Edwards would also be a popular choice, having twice appeared on previous Manchester cards.
Edwards secured a second successive win over Kamaru Usman in the headline bout of the sell-out UFC 286 at the O2 Arena in March 2023.
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UFC Manchester tickets, prices
Tickets will go on sale from 10am BST on June 7 via Ticketmaster, the UFC said. Members of the promotion’s Fight Club will have early access on June 5 at 9am BST, and fans who register their interest will be invited to a pre-sale on June 6 at 10am BST.
The average cost of tickets for UFC 268 was reported to be £225.50. There was debate among many unimpressed fans that prices may have been responsible for relatively slow sales for the subsequent UFC event in London, when Aspinall beat Marcin Tybura in July 2023.
Featherweight Nathaniel Wood is rumoured to be lined up for the Manchester event, and Liverpudlian lightweight Paddy Pimblett is also keen to be involved.
Businessman White will oversee the UFC’s 700th event this year, with the first officially taking place in Denver in November 1993.
Almost 500 have been held in the US. Brazil, Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Japan are among a wide range of other countries the promotion has visited.
