The northern English city, best known in a sporting sense for its football clubs Manchester City and Manchester United, played host to the first ever WTF Grand Prix here in 2013, with many of the formats pioneered then - including the choice of music used between bouts - being replicated at various other major events.

Action will take place at the Manchester Regional Arena, opposite the Etihad Stadium-home to Manchester City and home to the increasingly successful British team.

But after no fighters from Russia won gold at May's World Championships in Chelyabinsk, and Turkey drew a golden blank at last month's Grand Prix in Samsun, the British will be looking to overcome a host nation hoodoo to reach the top of the podium.

A strong home squad is led by reigning under 57 kilograms Olympic champion Jade Jones, who, since a narrow quarter-final defeat at the World Championships, has looked virtually unbeatable with victories in Samsun and at June's European Games in Baku.

In a three-day event littered with the sport's biggest stars, she will be up against the likes of Spanish arch-nemesis Eva Calvo Gomez, Japanese world champion Mayu Hamada and Iran's Kimia Alizadeh Zenoorin, who beat her in Chelyabinsk, on the final day on Sunday (October 18).

Another leading home contender will be over 68kg world champion Bianca Walkden, who on Saturday (October 17) will take on a field including Serbia's top seed, London 2012 winner Milica Mandic and United States' Jackie Galloway, who beat the Briton in the final in Samsun.

Olympic bronze medallist Lutalo Muhammad and world silver medallist Damon Samsun will lock horns in a domestic dual in the under 80kg division, while their former team-mate Aaron Cook, now competing for Moldova, will also be present.

But all eyes will be on the dominant Iranian world champion Mahdi Khodabakhshi, who has proved virtually unbeatable this year.

Jones and Mandic are two of nine Olympic champions present in an event in which only the four male and four female divisions to be showcased at next year's Games in Rio are to be contested.

The top 31 athletes per Olympic weight category were invited based on their WTF ranking as of September 1, 2015, while one athlete from the host country per weight division was additionally selected.

Tomorrow will see competition in the women's under 67kg and men's under 68kg and over 80kg categories.

In the absence of any of the leading host nation stars, the biggest battle on day one should come in the second of those contests, where Turkey's flamboyant Olympic and world champion Servet Tazegul will take on bitter Russian rival and Samsun Grand Prix winner Alexey Denisenko.

Extra spice will be provided by the presence of under 63 world champion Jaouad Achab, the Belgian who will compete under the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) flag as his nation remains suspended from the governing body.

Action will commence at 9am tomorrow before finals begin at 7pm. 

Related stories
September 2015: London 2012 gold medallist Jones eagerly anticipating home WTF Grand Prix
September 2015: Olympic champion Jones strikes gold as World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series 2 comes to a close
September 2015: Portugal's Braganca thwarts strong German opponent to take gold at World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series 2
September 2015: Russia, America and South Korea all win gold on opening day of World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series 2