There are three ATP Tour events being played the week before the Monte Carlo Masters.
The U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships, Romanian Open, and Grand Prix Hassan II are all underway.
But several big-name players have chosen to compete in a non-ATP event this week instead…
Felix Auger-Aliassime and others prepare for the UTS event in Nimes
Since Patrick Mouratoglou helped found Ultimate Tennis Showdown in 2020, 15 events have been held around the world.
The 16th edition of UTS and the first of 2026, will take place in Nimes, France on Friday and Saturday.
Eight top players have made the trip to France, choosing to finish up their Monte Carlo preparations in the Arenes de Nimes.
2026 UTS Nimes line-up
- Felix Auger-Aliassime (ATP #7)
- Alexander Bublik (ATP #11)
- Casper Ruud (ATP #12)
- Karen Khachanov (ATP #15)
- Andrey Rublev (ATP #16)
- Ugo Humbert (ATP #34)
- Stefanos Tsitsipas (ATP #49)
- Grigor Dimitrov (ATP #93)
The likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev, former Masters 1000 champions, will compete this weekend.
2026 UTS Nimes quarter-finals
- Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Grigor Dimitrov
- Andrey Rublev vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
- Casper Ruud vs Karen Khachanov
- Alexander Bublik vs Ugo Humbert
There isn’t another men’s tournament going on this week offering match-ups this exciting.
If you’re a fan of clay-court tennis, you might want to tune in, but before you do so, you should know that UTS might be a bit different from what you’re used to.
Firstly, the courts are different, as there are no tramlines.
The matches also use a completely different scoring format, as explained on the UTS YouTube channel.
Rules of UTS
- Best of four quarters, each of which lasts for eight minutes
- Each player has one chance on their serve and two serve points each
- 15 seconds between each serve, no lets, and no warm ups
- If a player is three quarters to love up in the match, they win; if it’s two quarters each, they move to sudden death
- Two points in a row in sudden death wins you the match
- Coaching is allowed at any time
- One UTS ‘Bonus card’ is available for each player per quarter
- After an eight-minute quarter expires, the ‘quarter point’ decides who wins the quarter. e.g., if the score is 12-9, the leading player must only score one more point to win the quarter. If his opponent fights back to level without losing a single point, a deciding point is played.
It’s a divisive tournament format, but one that keeps attracting some of the best players in the world.
Since UTS came into existence six years ago, the likes of Alex de Minaur, Ben Shelton, Jack Draper, and Alexander Zverev have all competed.
Mouratoglou has, however, yet to convince Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, or Novak Djokovic to play.
Patrick Mouratoglou’s message before UTS Nimes
Best known for his work as Serena Williams’ coach, Mouratoglou has carved out a niche as one of the most controversial characters in tennis.
When he’s not giving his opinion on the state of affairs on the ATP and WTA Tours, the Frenchman is working on UTS.
In the lead-up to this year’s UTS Nimes event, Mouratoglou shared the following message on Instagram.
“Two thousand years ago, within these ancient walls, the sand drank the blood of gladiators beneath the roaring cheers of the Roman crowd,” he wrote.
“Next Friday and Saturday, that same sand will yield to ochre clay.
“Upon this sacred ground, some of the world’s finest tennis players will battle for the UTS trophy, witnessed by 12,500 spellbound spectators.”
A bit dramatic, yes… But the event is worth watching nevertheless.
