Following a well-publicized ownership transition in 2016, the UFC began formulating a plan to venture into previously untapped markets. In December of the same year, new owner Ari Emanuel and longtime UFC president Dana White flew to Moscow, where they met with deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko in an attempt to set the wheels in motion for a potential UFC event in Russia.
The high-ranking government official was shown a presentation that highlighted the economic benefits of hosting a UFC event in Russia. Mutko later told R-Sport that "he met with the UFC owners” who informed him that they “do not have a single partner or a title fight in Russia.