A UFC 128 event planned for March may not take place in Abu Dhabi, after all.
UFC president Dana White today said the March 12 event may not take place in the United Arab Emirates city, which hosted UFC 112 in 2009, as originally planned.
White, though, confirmed with MMAjunkie.com that the organization plans to host a May show, expected to be UFC Fight Night 25, as part of its debut in Scotland.
Although White didn't confirm details, a source told MMAjunkie.com the event is expected to take place at the 4,000-seat Braehead Arena in the city of Renfrewshire. The U.K. country never has hosted a UFC event.
Although tentatively expected to be a UFC Fight Night event, officials ultimately could give the non-pay-per-view international shows a new event-series designation. The UFC Fight Night series, which launched in 2005 following the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter," airs on Spike TV from domestic venues.
Like the UFC on Versus series, which began in 2009, the international non-PPV shows may get their own name, though. After all, White and other officials recently have promised to host non-PPV events in countries around the globe. May's event in Scotland could kick off the series.
UFC 128, meanwhile, tentatively is expected to feature bouts of light-heavyweight champ Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Tito Ortiz. However, even with the initial reports of the show, officials cautioned that the show might not take place in Abu Dhabi.
"We're still working on it," White said. "It just depends on our schedule and what we do. The guys in Abu Dhabi want a fight, so we'll see what happens.
"(But) you can't go there in the summer."
The UFC's first Abu Dhabi show took place outdoors at Concert Arena at the Ferrari World theme park on Yas Island. However, the temporary venue no longer exists, and officials haven't nailed down a replacement site.
Source: http://mmajunkie.com/news/21694/ufc-128 ... in-may.mma
And: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UFC_Fight_Night_25