The UFC Riyadh card has been announced with Israel Adesanya and one-eyed Shara Magomedov expected to feature.

Dana White’s promotion returns to Saudi Arabia on February 1 at the ANB Arena.

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Adesanya will face Nassourdine Imavov in the main event, looking for the second wind of his career after two consecutive defeats.

In September 2023, he lost his middleweight championship belt to Sean Strickland by unanimous decision.

The Stylebender took nearly a year off before his return against Dricus Du Plessis in another title fight, but was submitted in the fourth round.

Imavov is currently on a three-fight winning streak against ranked opponents and will look to put pressure on Adesanya in stand-up.

This will be Adesanya’s first non-title fight since beating legend Anderson Silva in 2019.

The co-main event will see the one-eyed Magomedov take on Michael Page.

Shara, the hacker, went viral last month after her double knockout against Armen Petrosyan.

The Russian may not have the right eye, but the undefeated fighter will be an ultimate test for Page.

“Venom” joined the CFU in 2023 after ten years of fighting in Bellator, and is 1-1 in the promotion following a unanimous decision loss to Ian Garry and a unanimous decision victory over Kevin Holland.

It will be an entertaining spectacle as Magomedov has won performance bonuses in his last three fights and won’t be afraid to put it all on the line.

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The same goes for Page, who is well known for his Poke ball celebration following his flying knee knockout against Evangelista Santos in 2016.

This blow fractured his opponent’s skull.

Khamzat Chimaev vs. Robert Whittaker headlined the UFC’s first trip to Saudi Arabia in June.

Speaking about the experience, White said: “Yes, it was amazing. Obviously our first time in the kingdom and my first time here. It was a great experience. We’re looking forward to the next one.”

White worked closely with the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia, Turki Al-Sheikh, who is also responsible for organizing major boxing events such as Tyson Fury against Alexander Ousyk in May.

“First of all, I thank Dana, I’m shocked,” Al-Sheikh said after UFC 308.

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“I know the UFC has a lot of fans, but you see, this is changing my mind now.

“12,000 fans until 1 a.m…. Now I ask Dana, for the next card we want 30,000.”