Nearly the entire sports world has come to a grinding halt amid the coronavirus outbreak. The UFC is holding out.
Despite orders and recommendations from all over the globe to limit large gatherings and avoid unnecessary contact, UFC president Dana White remains defiant, determined to keep running shows no matter where they have to take place. One venue that’s now out of the question is UFC’s home Apex facility in Las Vegas as the Nevada State Athletic Commission has suspended combat sports events.
“Obviously, things are changing by the hour,” White told ESPN. “[Saturday] morning, they announced new travel restrictions for the U.K., so [the March 21 event] can’t continue in London. But the fight will go on. We’re working on finding a new venue, likely in the United States, and I have my matchmakers literally working right now to put together the undercard.
“As of now, fights can’t happen at the Apex here in Las Vegas. So, we’re working to find new locations, but the fights will go on; they will continue. We’re not stopping.”
The UFC held a show Saturday in Brasilia, Brazil without fans. It had a huge scheduled event for April 18 at Barclays Center headlined by a lightweight title fight between champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson. New York has banned gatherings of more than 500 people, and Barclays Center and Madison Square Garden could be closed for months.
Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson is a fight that has been highly anticipated, a matchup which for various reasons has been called off four different times in recent years.
“That fight will happen. It will go on,” White said. “The fans are all freaking out about that, do not worry. Khabib versus Tony will happen.”