Road to UFC season 2 opening round set for China and Shanghai Performance Institute
- State-of-the-art UFC training facility will host opening round of four tournaments for Asian MMA prospects next month
- Rosters for brackets confirmed, with UFC Asia chief Kevin Chang hoping to provide a ‘clear path’ for talent in the region
The Road to UFC is back – and so is the promotion’s presence in China.
The opening round of season 2 of the tournament for MMA prospects in Asia will be held over May 27-28 at the UFC Shanghai Performance Institute, a statement said on Tuesday, with the rosters for each tournament bracket also confirmed.
While not an official UFC main roster event, Road to UFC will still mark the first show produced by the Las Vegas-based outfit to be held in China since 2019’s Fight Night in Shenzhen. That night, Zhang Weili became an overnight superstar in her home country when she was crowned UFC strawweight champion.
“When we launched Road to UFC last year, we could not have anticipated the tremendous impact it had on building our local talent and fan base in Asia,” Kevin Chang, UFC senior vice-president and head of Asia, said.
“It has surpassed our expectations in all aspects, including followers, engagement, viewership and reach, but most importantly it delivered seven exciting new prospects to UFC.
