While other sports were cancelling their tournaments, games and matches, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) seemed not to know when to put down its dukes. Until the beginning of April, UFC 249 fight between Justin Gaethje, replacing Khabib Nurmagomedov, as Tony Ferguson’s opponent. was set to take place in a super secret location on a super secret date.
According to an article in ESPN, the UFC went to great lengths to see this plan through.
“A private jet, a fighter moving into his gym full-time to continue training, and a plan to send COVID-19 tests to fighters and their corner people were among the many behind-the-scenes efforts by UFC officials and staff, athlete managers, coaches and fighters themselves to make UFC 249 happen,” ESPN wrote. “It’s a story of perseverance, disappointment and caution.”
Unfortunately for the UFC and its fighters, this plan would not come to pass. Not even 10 days before the fighters were set to go head to head, the UFC 249 fight was postponed until at least May. The UFC president Dana White said that the UFC needed to “stand down.”
More information about the dates and times of the UFC 249 fight will be available in the coming weeks. Perhaps the UFC and White should be grateful they had some common sense knocked into them.