Road to UFC

For the 2015 reality competition series, see Road to UFC: Japan.

Road to UFC is a recurring mixed martial arts (MMA) event series in which top Asian MMA prospects compete to win contracts with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Overview

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Structured into "seasons" and "episodes," it features a number of fighter weight divisions—each for which fighters compete in a "win-and-advance" tournament format.[1] Each event in the series, or "episode," features one bout for each division tournament, and one non-tournament bout.[2][3][4] The opening quarterfinal round is typically held hosting four events over a two-day span, with two episodes for each day. The semifinal round is held a few months later. Each season culminates with the tournament finals, which take place during preliminary card of a UFC Fight Night event. The tournament winner for each division is awarded a UFC contract.

The "Road to UFC" branding was previously used in 2015 for Road to UFC: Japan, a similar Japan-based tournament awarding a UFC contract, but formatted as a reality competition, and marketed as an Asian-centric analog to The Ultimate Fighter.[2] Despite the reuse of the "Road to UFC" brand, similar Asian MMA focus, and season/episode nomenclature, the UFC has not characterized the newer event series as inclusive of the earlier 2015 reality competition, and has described the 2022 tournament cycle as the "inaugural tournament," referring to it as "Season 1".[5]

Seasons

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Name Start Date End Date Venue Location Ref.
Season 3 May 18, 2024 UFC Performance Institute Shanghai Shanghai, China [6]
UFC Apex Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Season 3 May 27, 2023 June 22, 2024 UFC Performance Institute Shanghai Shanghai, China [7]
Singapore Indoor Stadium Kallang, Singapore
UFC Apex Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Kingdom Arena Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Season 1 June 8, 2022 February 4, 2023 Singapore Indoor Stadium Kallang, Singapore [8]
Etihad Arena Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
UFC Apex Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.

Tournament winners

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Name Finale Division Winner Runner-up
Road to UFC Season 1 Feb 4, 2023 Lightweight India Anshul Jubli Indonesia Jeka Saragih
Featherweight South Korea Lee Jeong-yeong China Yi Zha
Bantamweight Japan Rinya Nakamura Japan Toshiomi Kazama
Flyweight South Korea Park Hyun-sung South Korea Choi Seung-guk
Road to UFC Season 2 Feb 4, 2024 Lightweight China Rong Zhu Japan Shin Haraguchi
Featherweight China Yi Zha China Li Kai Wen
Flyweight Japan Rei Tsuruya China Ji Niushiyue
Jun 22, 2024 Bantamweight South Korea Lee Chang-ho China Xiao Long

References

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  1. ^ See single-elimination tournament.
  2. ^ a b Pettry, Jay (22 April 2022). "UFC Launching 'Road to UFC' Tourney in Singapore, Featuring 4 Brackets in June". Sherdog. Retrieved 2022-05-03.
  3. ^ "ROAD TO UFC Opening Round Bouts Announced | Taiwan News | 2022-05-23 10:00:00". Taiwan News. 2022-05-23. Retrieved 2022-05-23.
  4. ^ Tabuena, Anton (2022-05-23). "Road to UFC: Four Asian tournament brackets, non-tournament bouts finalized". Bloody Elbow. Retrieved 2022-05-23.
  5. ^ "Road To UFC Returns For Season 2 With Opening Round On May 27 & 28 | UFC". www.ufc.com. 2023-02-27. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  6. ^ Anderson, Jay (23 April 2024). "Road to UFC Season 3 Tournament Announced, Women's Strawweight Added". Cageside Press. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Road To UFC Season 2 Kicked Off With Intense Quarterfinals". International Business Times. 2023-05-28. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  8. ^ Cox, Susan (2022-04-22). "The UFC officially announce the "Road to the UFC" Tournament in Singapore leading up to UFC 275". | BJPenn.com. Retrieved 2022-04-25.
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