Dana White and the UFC have signed a groundbreaking agreement with HE Turki Alalshikh, Saudi Arabia’s chairman of the General Entertainment Authority or GEA! The news comes ahead of the promotion’s first foray into Saudi Arabia with the upcoming card on June 22 that features Robert Whittaker taking on Khamzat Chimaev as the main event for the show.

In a press release shared online, it was revealed that the UFC and Riyadh Season will continue their association further in 2024-25. The agreement also involves a sponsorship deal for UFC 306 and as such, the UFC boss took to social media to share his thoughts on the massive news with his followers.

Dana White and UFC ink landmark deal with Riyadh Season for 2024-2025

According to a post on X by HE Turki Alalshikh, “A strategic agreement has been signed between Riyadh Season and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), including the sponsorship of the UFC event in Las Vegas, the UFC event in Riyadh, and Power Slap competitions.”

The update was accompanied by a picture of Dana White signing the deal accompanied by Alalshikh. In the press release the GEA chairman stated, “This agreement is a continuation of Riyadh Season’s aims to host and partner with prominent and international events of mass interest.”

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‘Riyadh Season’ is an annual sports and entertainment extravaganza that attracts interest and sponsorships from many massive companies in the Saudi Arabia region. As such, the new deal involves Riyadh Season being the sponsor for the UFC and Dana White’s first-ever event to be held at ‘The Sphere’ in Las Vegas, UFC 306 on September 14.

This led to the UFC boss sharing an image of the signing on his Instagram story with the caption, “Not a bad day in NYC!”. Moreover, in a statement made to ESPN, HE Turki Alalshikh also revealed that UFC 306 will prominently display ‘Riyadh Season’ across the branding and merchandise for the event: “My favorite is boxing, but we will try to make Riyadh one of the biggest cities around the world in MMA.”

As Dana White’s vision unfolds, the melding of sports and spectacle promises to redefine Riyadh as a powerhouse in the realm of combat sports. However, things weren’t exactly smooth sailing as a few months ago, the UFC boss had to shut down rumors of the promotion’s Saudi Arabia debut being in jeopardy!

White reveals the real issues behind UFC’s Saudi Arabia debut delay 

Earlier this year, it was reported by Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that the UFC’s foray into Saudi Arabia was originally scheduled for March 2. Regardless, the date had to be pushed back due to the Saudi authority’s displeasure with the fights being offered on the card.

This in turn caused Dana White to make a statement clarifying the situation. In a statement made to Aaron Bronsteter, the UFC head honcho revealed, “We never even proposed a card to them. We didn’t tell Saudi Arabia about one fight, so that’s all bulls***. It was all bulls***. We never even proposed a card to them.”

Instead, White confessed that the date change was due to some fights over the card not aligning with the chosen date. Despite this, the UFC boss also affirmed that the forthcoming Saudi Arabia event would not be upgraded to a pay-per-view status and would instead remain a ‘Fight Night’ card, without any championship bouts.

In conclusion, despite the initial setbacks, signing the agreement marks a new era in the UFC’s journey towards bringing exciting fights to new regions and soaring to new heights! What are your thoughts on the UFC and Dana White’s partnership with ‘Riyadh Season’? Share them with us in the comments below!