It’s Turki Alashikh’s combat sports world and we’re all just living it.
Saudi Arabia’s presence in boxing has led to the sport finally getting some of the big dream matches fans have long desired along with some more obscure ones never imagined (hi, Francis Ngannou). As 2024 progresses, so does Riyadh Season’s involvement.
Alashikh announced on Twitter today (Mon., July 22, 2024) that Riyadh Season has officially struck partnership deals with notable boxing promotions, Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions. The deals were both stated to help “elevate the sport” and will see Riyadh Season sponsor 12 Top Rank events, promoting beforehand and on fight night through 2025. Details weren’t revealed for the Golden Boy partnership but it was announced to begin with the upcoming Welterweight title event headlined by Serhii Bohachuk and Virgil Ortiz Jr. next month (Sat., Aug. 10, 2024).
Alashikh has primarily been focused on professional wrestling with his World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) deal and boxing in recent years. Riyadh Season additionally partnered with top mixed martial arts (MMA) leaders, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Professional Fighters League (PFL).
Riyadh Season will become the first sponsor to take branding ownership over a UFC event when the promotion hosts its second annual Noche UFC event, taking place inside The Sphere in Las Vegas in September 2024. While the event will officially be titled “Riyadh Season Noche UFC,” the partnership’s first event took place with a fight night in Saudi Arabia last month (June 22, 2024).
PFL’s first Saudi Arabia event took place in February 2024 and was themed champions vs. champions with the kickoff of utilization of the Bellator roster, which was acquired in late 2023. PFL is expected to return for another big event in the country in September 2024.