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UFC Abu Dhabi presser
By Zach Arnold | January 27, 2010
No surprises regarding the announcement — BJ Penn vs. Frankie Edgar and Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort. Plus, Matt Hughes vs. Renzo Gracie at 170 pounds.
It’ll be interesting to see how this open-air event takes place as far as the set-up. Remember, it was only last week where there was grandiose talk of a coliseum-like feel with fans “on top of each other.” MMA Unlimited notes that the venue is Concert Arena, Ferrari World, Yas Island where a lot of, well, concerts (like Aerosmith and Rihanna) have taken place. Information and graphics on Yas Island here.
Given the fact that both Penn and Silva are on the card, the PPV buyrate should be really good.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
EARTHQUAAAAAAAAAKE!
I love when they put BJ and Anderson on the same card, makes the event a must-buy. How many fighters in mma can I say that about? I shall construct a list:
BJ Penn
Anderson
GSP
Fedor
teh Brock
Machida
Rampage
I love watching Aldo, but it would be very hard to swallow paying for the WEC given how long they have given away their product on TV. This surprises me, but I think Mir would be the fighter next on the list of “must see TV”.
i wonder what happens if it rains. last year at the same time there was a MotoGP race that had to be postponed one day due to very heavy rain.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/7996183.stm
They didn’t postpone King of the Cage 7 due to rain.
Forget about rain.
What if a plague of locusts descends on Abu Dhabi?
That is quite the spot to hold the UFC. On a man-made island, that giant color-changing hotel, Ferrari World, etc. The Formula One race held there in November was a great spectacle, I’d expect more of the same.
I can think of three KOTC cards at Soboba that were run in the rain. Of course, those are some of the worst MMA shows ever too.
I’m kind of disappointed that they’re putting these big names on this card. It’s going to be on at a ridiculous time live, and the other option is watching tape delay and most likely knowing the results if you don’t lock yourself in a closet without a phone all day.
Save the big names for big venues: Montreal, Vegas, New York
Don’t waste them on a show in the middle east.
What makes you think they will release the results?
Big names are needed as this is a HUGE card for them attempting to establish UFC worldwide. I am sure the new 10% owners of the company would want as much as that is where they are from.
What makes you think they will release the results?
LOL. Do you think they’re going to have a choice?
They don’t need to release the results. The numerous fans there will leak it out.
Tim are you fucking kidding me!? The F1 race at Abu Dhabi sucked. Boring. All it was famous for was the fact that they race at sunset into the night at a circuit build for chavs. Sure it looked good but it didn’t provide good racing until the very end where Jenson Button and Mark Webber battled it out.
Anyways, I hope they can configure the concert hall properly…
“What makes you think they will release the results?”
LOL
Do you honestly think they are going to have a media blackout for this event? SOMEBODY is going to be there covering it live, and even if there is no press there, someone in attendance will be twittering and texting results. Hell, if Ken Pavia has fighters on the card, we know that he will be texting while working their corner.
I didn’t claim that the racing was good, because it wasn’t, rather that the event itself was a nice spectacle.
I admit, the idea that the UFC would try to lock out the media while breaking into a new market is pretty funny. Maybe they’ll give it a shot! LOL
50 bonus points to the fighter who comes out to “Arab Money” by Busta Rhymes.
I’m not positive, but I think this will show here on a Saturday night, and the event will take place Sunday in Abu Dabhi.
Can anyone confirm?
@ Rob: That’s what they’re doing with the Australia show, it’s starting at about 4pm Sunday afternoon
Abu Dhabi is about 11-12 hours ahead of Vegas, so it’d have to be very early Sunday morning.
Still, with Penn and Silva on the card, this could be a big money PPV…you’d think they’d do everything possible to get it on live in the US.