UFC is Looking to Make its Way to The Santiago Bernabéu
The current president of the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), Dana White, mentioned on Saturday that he's considering the possibility of bringing the franchise to the Santiago Bernabéu soon because he likes the Spanish stadium.
"I like it," White said when asked about the Real Madrid stadium as an alternative for a new UFC event after the Spanish-Georgian fighter, Ilia Topuria, was proclaimed featherweight champion of the UFC this Saturday in Anaheim, California, USA.
"How many people does it hold?" asked the president of the most reputable mixed martial arts (MMA) franchise to the Spanish press covering the event.
Upon hearing that the capacity is around 80,000 seats, but could be reduced to about 35,000 for certain events, he asked, "Covered?"
The subsequent affirmative response led him to emphasize his interest in the Bernabéu, concluding, "If there's an arena available, we'll bring UFC to Spain."
These statements came minutes after Topuria became the featherweight champion, boosting his international profile and solidifying MMA in the Spanish scene.
"Topuria is an absolute star (...) He's great, he had a tremendous performance. If he keeps it up, he'll be very important (for UFC) in the future," White said.
Dubbed as 'The Matador', Topuria crowned himself today after snatching the featherweight belt from Australian Alexander Volkanovski thanks to a KO in the second round.
In the fight held at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Topuria remained strategic and composed in the first round until he managed to push his opponent against the cage in the second round and land a powerful right hand that knocked him out.
Topuria thus becomes the first Spanish representative to win a title in what is considered the most important franchise of mixed martial arts worldwide.