It marks the first time in ten months that fans will be able to attend a UFC event.
The UFC will allow some fans to attend their upcoming Fight Island cards, which take place later this month.
It marks the first time since March of last year that fans will be able to attend a UFC event. After UFC 248, the promotion made the decision to hold all their events behind closed doors due to the worldwide outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism announced the news on Thursday.
“[Abu Dhabi] is to host the third instalment of UFC Fight Island on Yas Island from 16 to 24 January, welcoming a limited number of spectators to the new Etihad Arena,” the media office tweeted.
“The triple header will see three mega-fights, utilizing Abu Dhabi’s proven ‘safe zone’ concept to protect the health and safety of all delegates, spectators, crew and media,” the subsequent tweet wrote.
Starting with UFC Fight Island 7: Holloway vs. Kattar on Jan. 16th, the promotion will host three events in the space of a week. All of the cards will be held at the Etihad Arena, with the concluding event being UFC 257: Poirier vs. McGregor 2 on Jan 23.
The guest capacity for Etihad Arena in 18,000 although it’s currently unclear how many fans will be permitted to attend the event. There are also details yet on the screening guidelines and other general pandemic-related protocols for fans.