Everything you need to know about UFC Fight Island

What is UFC Fight Island

Fight Island was the brainchild of UFC founder Dana White, who created several events on a private island in Abu Dhabi in 2020. This was done so that the UFC could continue with its schedule, despite the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic at the time. The idea was that fighters and their teams would be flown into the island and could compete without breaching health and safety protocols.

Because of this, there were no fans present and fights could go on without the worry of spreading the virus. With this said, there were strict safety measures in place, such as tests and isolation during a fighter’s stay on Fight Island. So, if you want to learn more about Fight Island then read on.

Is Fight Island an actual island?

As it happens, Fight Island is genuinely an island. Its official name is Yas Island, and is a man-made island in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). In this part of the world, there are quite a few islands that are man made. Aside from its UFC ties, Yas Island also has several beaches, a water park, and is famous for its Ferrari World, which is a Ferrari themed park.

In short, the island is mostly a tourist hotspot. Like many areas of Abu Dhabi though, it is still under development so much of the island remains under construction. As you can imagine, this made for a great temporary location to host numerous UFC fights.

Can you go to Fight Island?

Throughout 2020, Fight Island wasn’t available to the public due to Covid restrictions. However, since then it has remained open and has also been used in 2021. At the start of 2021, Dana White claimed that Fight Island “Isn’t going anywhere” and had confirmed it would be used in future. With this said, it seems that Fight Island will genuinely be used as a permanent fixture for the future at least. As Covid restrictions ease, this means that UFC and MMA fans will be able to visit Fight Island.

For those wondering, the Fight Island octagon is located in open air, but the UFC have erected a makeshift roof in the past. This means that they could easily put seats and make it into a venue. Whilst this wouldn’t be the biggest capacity crowd for a UFC event, it would still be doable.

Did Dana White buy Fight Island?

Contrary to some rumors, Dana White did not buy Fight Island. The island is owned by Aldar Properties, who are an Abu Dhabi development group that created the island. Financially, it would have cost the UFC a lot of money to buy a literal island, so it didn’t make sense for Dana White to try and buy it.

Instead, the UFC rented part of the land where they hosted their events. Imagine the UFC trying to buy Madison Square Garden. Obviously, this wouldn’t be worth it – as opposed to renting the place out for a night. This is the same logic for renting a space on Fight Island.

Who won on Fight Island?

The first ever UFC Fight Island event took place in 2020 which was UFC 251. This was the first UFC event for months and marked a return to MMA for many fighting fans. At the start of the pandemic, Dana White vowed to bring fans the UFC and Fight Island was a creative way to bring MMA back to the masses.

Perhaps the biggest winner of a Fight Island event was Khabib Nurmogomedov who defeated Justin Gaethje. This was an iconic fight for the Lightweight title which Khabib successfully retained. He did so by submitted Gaethje by triangle choke. After the fight, he broke down in tears in the octagon due to the death of his father months before. The Dagestani then made a shock announcement that this would be his last ever MMA fight as he was retiring with a perfect 29-0 record.

Who got kicked out of Fight island?

Morrocan fighter Ottman Azaitar was temporarily released from the UFC after breaching Covid safety measures whilst staying on the Fight Island. At one point, he broke his bubble and Dana White reacted by releasing him. However, within a few days the decision was reversed. Ottman and his brother both have criminal offenses for assaults during their earlier days. Regardless, for some reason Dana White decided to keep Azaitar in his organization.

Why did UFC leave Fight Island?

After the world started opening up after the Covid lockdowns began to end, the need for Fight Island declined. As mentioned earlier, Fight Island is still scheduled for use in the UFC for future events. In this sense, it has been a success in creating a home whilst the Covid pandemic was on. However, this was only ever a temporary measure.

Before and after the pandemic, the UFC would often tour the world showing main events in various continents which it always planned to return to. Arguably, without Fight Island, the UFC would have lost a lot of revenue due to staying dormant for a year or so. Because of this, Fight Island was a real necessity at the time but since lockdowns ended, its need just wasn’t as important anymore.

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