Madrid took the lead in the race to welcome the UFC to Spain in 2025 after the Barcelona City Hall refused to promote a fight from the top mixed martial arts promoter, according to ‘RAC1’.
#TuDiras | 🇺🇸 #BackToBack amb @albert_pedrol
‼️RAC1: Barcelona says NO to Ilia Topuria’s mixed martial arts. The UFC said the city could face one of several events. However, the municipal council did NOT want to talk about promoting this esport.
– EsportsRAC1 (@EsportsRAC1) October 29, 2024
Despite the rise of MMA and the emergence of a world-class figure like Ilia Topuria, featherweight champion of the American company, Barcelona prefers not to give space or loudspeaker to the discipline.
Although UFC CEO Dana White said the name of Barcelona on the table Asked during the Battle of Abu Dhabi about the company’s arrival in our country next year, council sources now indicate that there was no negotiation or contact between the parties on this possibility.
In fact, an ideal and well-equipped venue to host a Battle of Topuria on Catalan lands would undoubtedly have been the Sant Jordi Palace. However, this installation depends on the municipal services of Barcelona, which in turn must obtain approval from the city hall itself.
Topuria’s long-time dream is to fill the stadium to capacity Santiago Bernabéubut the legal problems and the various complaints which overwhelm the place have for the moment removed this possibility. The other option on the table is the Wizink Center, although there appears to be an “overbooking” of concerts and other shows that makes the final decision difficult.
The triumph of the Hispano-Argentinian at the UFC 308 event with which Topuria defended his world championship belt against the American Max Holloway once again revived the news of the arrival, for the first time in history, of a competitive event in Spain.
