00:00PFL returning to Jeddah in June, what does this say about Saudi Arabia's growing role in global MMA?
00:08And of course, what can all the fans expect?
00:10Thank you for having me today.
00:14I think Saudi Arabia has shown over the past few years that it's a capital of combat sports,
00:18whether it's boxing, whether it's MMA.
00:20And MMA over the past three years, I want to say, has really grown
00:22and has become central to the sports scene of Saudi Arabia.
00:27Yeah, and I think what's outstanding for the fans is you have local heroes like Hatton al-Safe.
00:33We now have seven Saudi fighters, male and female.
00:37Just a few years back, there was only two, I think, that were really competing at the regional and the
00:41global level.
00:42So the fans are there, the fighters are there, and I think ultimately the appetite for it is there.
00:49Why do you think that has become so popular in this region?
00:52Because you talk about MMA and how much it's grown, but what is the inspiration behind it?
00:57I think part of it is also the way MMA is structured.
01:00On a global basis, MMA appeals very much to the 18 to 32 years old.
01:04And obviously, in this part of the world, there's a lot of young people, you know, comparatively in the population.
01:09I think there's also an overall appetite in this sport when, you know, when they come from karate
01:16or they come from jiu-jitsu, which is taught in school, where you have a whole culture around it.
01:20And then ultimately, I think they need to have, they have role models.
01:23And when you look at Khabib, what he's done, you know, in the past, he's Muslim, he's inspired a lot
01:28of kids.
01:29He has his foundation, he has his, you know, his schools where a lot of kids are training.
01:33And I think he's become a role model for them.
01:35And now you have the next generation.
01:37And Hatan al-Seif specifically, you know, being a female, the first ever for Saudi we have in the UAE,
01:43Zamzam al-Hamadi, also first Emirati fighter to enter the cage.
01:46Those are moments and those are new role models that are suddenly appealing to a whole new population.
01:53And when we do an event in Saudi with Hatan, we know we can expect more than 20% of
01:58the ticket holders to be female,
01:59which is unheard of in the sports of MMA.
02:02So it's showing that it's a sport for everyone, that it's accessible and that even women and families enjoy it.
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