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Tag: UFC Azerbaijan

  • Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree Rebooked To Headline UFC’s Debut In Azerbaijan

    Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree Rebooked To Headline UFC’s Debut In Azerbaijan

    The UFC is set to venture into brand-new territory this summer with its promotional debut in Azerbaijan.

    On Friday, the UFC announced a collaboration with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan and the Baku City Circuit Operations Company to bring a Fight Night event to the Baku Crystal Hall on June 21.

    The upcoming event will be headlined by a high-stakes clash between top-ranked light heavyweight contenders Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree.

    The pair were originally slated to meet in the main event of UFC Kansas City on April 26, but the bout was scrapped last week after Hill withdrew due to an undisclosed injury.

    “Sweet Dreams” last stepped into the Octagon at UFC 311 this past January, where he was stopped by former champion Jiří Procházka via a third-round knockout. That defeat came on the heels of another setback at UFC 300 in April 2024, where Hill’s bid to reclaim the 205-pound crown ended in a first-round finish at the hands of Alex Pereira.

    Meanwhile, Rountree Jr. is also looking to rebound from a knockout loss at UFC 307 last October, where he challenged “Poatan” for the light heavyweight title. Prior to that bout, “The War Horse” was riding a five-fight winning streak.

    Hill and Rountree Jr. were initially slated to square off at UFC 303 in June 2024, but the matchup was called off after “The War Horse” tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid DHEA, resulting in a 4.5-month suspension.

    UFC Baku will see the long-awaited return of former RIZIN double champ Kyoji Horiguchi, nearly nine years after his last UFC appearance. “The Typhoon” is set to face No. 10-ranked flyweight contender Tagir Ulanbekov.

    The Azerbaijan event now features the following confirmed fights:

    • Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree: light heavyweight
    • Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Tagir Ulanbekov: flyweight
    • Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev: heavyweight
    • Ismail Naurdiev vs. JunYong Park: middleweight
    • Hamdy Abdelwahab vs. Mohammed Usman: heavyweight
    • Irina Alekseeva vs. Klaudia Sygula: women’s bantamweight
    • Daria Zhelezniakova vs. Melissa Mullins: women’s bantamweight

  • UFC Targeting Debut Event In New Country This Summer

    The UFC appears to be planning its first trip to a new country in the coming months.

    According to Ariel Helwani, the promotion is “close to finalizing” an event in the Republic of Azerbaijan, set for June 2025. This move aligns with the UFC’s ongoing efforts to expand its presence in Europe and Asia, with several major events scheduled throughout the year.

    Helwani shared the news in a video posted on X.

    “Some breaking news, if you guys want some. … According to sources, the UFC is close to finalizing a debut event in the Republic of Azerbaijan in June later this year,” Helwani said. “Now you may be thinking to yourself, wow, Azerbaijan, that is pretty random. Well, I do want to remind you that there are over 10 million people who reside in the Republic of Azerbaijan. It is technically located in Asia but is bordered by four countries: Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Iran.

    “Now, I do want to stress this — there were a lot of reports that the UFC was going to Qatar in May. Then they seemingly called an audible, and now that event, I think, is happening at the Apex, which is quite the shift,” Helwani continued. “So, I do want to say that things are very fluid right now, but there’s a lot of money being thrown around. Mark Shapiro, the head man over at TKO, mentioned in that conference call we’ve talked about a few times that they were going to move a few Apex events to international locations, right? This would certainly fit as one of them. A date that I’ve seen thrown around is June 21. So, let’s see.”

    Meanwhile, the UFC’s next event is scheduled for an overseas location, as The O2 in London hosts the Octagon on March 22. The main event will feature former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards taking on Sean Brady. Originally, Edwards was slated to fight Jack Della Maddalena, but the Australian was reallocated to a title bout against current champ Belal Muhammad at UFC 315, leading to Brady stepping in as Edwards’ opponent.

    The co-main event will see former light heavyweight titleholder Jan Błachowicz against Carlos Ulberg.

    UFC Executive Dave Shaw recently announced plans to reduce the number of events at the UFC Apex facility in 2025, shifting focus toward more international locations, particularly in Europe. This strategic move aims to bring more live-action events to European fans.

    With the UFC’s European schedule for 2025 taking shape, additional event announcements are expected.