SALT LAKE CITY — One year ago, Stephen Thompson went through an entire week of pre-fight training, photo shoots and media — including questions about whether or not the UFC fighter on the other side of 40 would hang up the gloves soon — only to have his bout at UFC in Salt Lake City canceled after his opponent, Michel Pereira, failed to make weight at the official weigh-in Friday.

When the promotion announced a return to Salt Lake City for a third consecutive pay-per-view event, the mixed martial artist known as “Wonderboy” knew he had to be a part of it.

After receiving all the DMs and the personal messages from fans eager to watch him succeed — and a few who wanted to see “the nicest guy in UFC” fail — Thompson made it happen.

He’ll fight Joaquin Buckley in a welterweight bout as part of the preliminary card to Saturday’s UFC 307 at the Delta Center (4:30 p.m. MDT, ESPN+ PPV).

“I owed them one, because I didn’t get to fight last time,” Thompson said.

“Obviously, I want to win the fight, but I also want to put on a good show,” he added. “Hopefully me and Joaquin will put that on this Saturday.”

UFC 307 will mark the promotion’s fourth visit to Salt Lake City and third straight pay-per-view event that has drawn dozens of spectacular moments for fans of combat sports in the Utah capitol.

It’s a chance for MMA to solidify its presence on the Wasatch Front, where thousands of fans flock to local and regional promotions weekly.

The event boasts 12 total bouts with two title fights for the first time in the promotion’s limited history in Salt Lake City.

Alex Pereira, whose current four-match win streak started last year with a split-decision win over Jan Blachowicz in Salt Lake City, will defend his light heavyweight title for a third time against Khalil Rountree Jr.

Likewise, Raquel Pennington (16-8, fighting out of Colorado Springs, Colorado) will defend the women’s bantamweight title against challenger Julianna Pena (10-5, fighting out of Spokane, Washington) in the first bout in Utah for the “Venezuelan Vixen” since a unanimous-decision loss to Utah Valley University graduate DeAnna Bennett at a Showdown Fights event at the UCCU Center in Orem.

It will also feature a local son of Utah when 39-year-old Ogden native Court McGee (21-13, fighting out of Orem) will face Tim Means (33-16-1, fighting out of Albuquerque, New Mexico) as he looks to snap his three-match losing skid in front of a home crowd.

Three years ago, Utah Sports Commission CEO Jeff Robbins stood in front of a group of mostly national media and tried to convince them that MMA would find a home in the Wasatch mountains.

On Wednesday, that wasn’t the case.

“Now you’re back,” he told many of those same reporters, “and it’s great to be back.”

The promotion has already set records, including a $6.5 million gate that set an arena record a year ago for UFC 291. It’s also grown fans from fighters outside the Beehive State, including UFC president Dana White.

Count Saturday’s UFC 307 fighters among them.

Rountree (13-5-0, fighting out of Las Vegas) embarked on a training camp in Park City earlier than normal to adapt to the altitude and spend some extra time in the mountains.

He and several other fighters visited a Utah Hockey Club preseason game at the Delta Center, but other than that, he said his first time “coming down” was for Wednesday’s media day and check-in in Salt Lake City.

“Salt Lake City and Park City are in my top-10 favorite places in the world right now. This place is beautiful,” Rountree said. “We had a fun time at the Utah Hockey Club game; great crowd, and a great team. They came out strong for an exhibition game. The fans are so supportive.

“Amazing coffee shops, great food,” he added. “I love to ski, so seeing all the ski slopes in Park City and what’s out there — I’m a fan. I’ll be back.”

For his opponent, Utah holds a unique position in his career arc.

Pereira (11-2, fighting out of Bethel, Connecticut) was coming off a second-round knockout loss to Israel Adesanya before his split-decision win over Blachowicz.

That earned him a shot at Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 in November, and his win by a left hook-to-hammerfist and elbows took the light heavyweight title that he’s defended twice since.

After bouncing between weight classes, Pereira is now viewed as “the final boss” in Rountree’s bid for a title.

“I think it’s kind of cool,” Rountree said. “That’s definitely a fun way to look at it, especially from the fan standpoint, if they see Alex as the final boss. And I get to go and take my shot at the final boss.”

Indeed, the UFC in Utah has come a long way since an ill-fated Fight Night in August 2016 that drew just $481,033, with an attendance of 6,689 fans — what most involved considered to be a failure.

The promotion — and its Utah fan base — is in a much different place eight years later, with iconic moments like Leon Edwards’ “kick heard round the world” to upset Kamaru Usman, and Justin Gaethje’s back flip off the cage after a second-round knockout of No. 2-ranked lightweight fighter Dustin Poirier in front of a sold-out crowd at UFC 291.

“When you start looking at some of the magical moments (at UFC in Salt Lake City), clearly there’s something here,” said Robbins of the Utah Sports Commission. “We feel it’s a fit for the community; the community supports it. And it fits this sports portfolio that we’ve created.

“UFC has become a major global property,” he added. “I certainly think the UFC has become a fit for Utah.”