Home Football Kevin De Bruyne switches the Etihad for the Octagon as he sits front row at UFC 294, saying he ‘can’t wait to witness the games’ in Abu Dhabi… while the Manchester City star continues his injury comeback

Kevin De Bruyne switches the Etihad for the Octagon as he sits front row at UFC 294, saying he ‘can’t wait to witness the games’ in Abu Dhabi… while the Manchester City star continues his injury comeback

Football — 10/26/2023

Kevin De Bruyne was in attendance at UFC 294 as he continues to recuperate from a hamstring injury, sitting front row.

Manchester City’s talisman has been out since August after being pulled off after only 22 minutes of the club’s Premier League opener against Burnley.

While his players returned to winning ways against Brighton at the Etihad, their skipper was more than 3,500 miles away in Abu Dhabi, witnessing an entirely different type of action.

Kevin De Bruyne sat cageside for the UFC 284 pay-per-view in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night

Kevin De Bruyne sat cage side for the UFC 284 pay-per-view in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night

The Man City captain was pictured alongside club chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the event De Bruyne is still recovering from a hamstring injury sustained on the opening day of the season

The Man City captain was pictured alongside club chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the event

During the occasion, De Bruyne sat in the front row alongside City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak to watch Islam Makhachev defend his UFC Lightweight World Championship against reigning featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski.

The 32-year-old shared his delight at being cage-side for the fights in a video posted to the UFC’s social media channels.

‘Hello, Kevin here. I’m in Abu Dhabi for the UFC fights and can’t wait to see the games. Enjoy.’ He stated.

 

 

The Belgian international was treated to an array of great talent at the Etihad Arena in Emirati, on a card that had seen substantial changes due to injuries as fight night approached.

After Paulo Costa was forced to withdraw from his co-main event fight with emerging challenger Khamzat Chimaev due to a staph illness, former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman was called upon to face the undefeated star.

Despite having little time to prepare for his weight class debut, Usman fought admirably against the undefeated Chimaev, with both fighters having their moments in a back-and-forth battle that lasted over 15 minutes before Chimaev won on the judges’ scorecards.

After coming close to defeating Makhachev in February, Volkanovski attempted to become a two-weight world champion once more in a main event featuring a last-minute substitution.

The defending champion, on the other hand, left no doubt about the outcome, landing a stunning head kick in the opening round to make the second defense of his lightweight belt.