Blake Daniels, March 30, 2020

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The entire sports world has been shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic and there is no definite timetable when our favorite pastimes will be back. Well perhaps except the UFC.

If you are a UFC fan, you probably know by now that the promotion canceled its three events after UFC Fight Night Brasilia. And you also know that they have always insisted that UFC 249 on April 18, 2020, will happen. With that date barely three weeks away and the coronavirus outbreak still plaguing the entire world, let’s take a look at some updates regarding UFC 249:

• Last week, UFC President Dana White said that a location for UFC 249 was already 99.9% set. UFC 249 was originally scheduled to take place at the Barclays Center in New York but after the virus outbreak, White has been forced to change the venue and modify the event. Because of the restrictions of gatherings in the United States ( and in many places around the world for that matter), the UFC was forced to change UFC 249 to a no-audience event, just like UFC Brasilia a couple of weeks ago. But even if the UFC had modified UFC 249, it still needed a place to host the event. There were rumors that it could be held in Florida, UAE, Russia, and Saudi Arabia among others. White didn’t say where but confirmed last week that a venue was already set.
• UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov wrapped up his training camp and returned to Russia last week. His return to his native country sparked rumors that UFC 249 could be held in Russia. However, with the pandemic striking the country hard in the last couple of days, Russia has announced that it would be imposing a travel lockdown on cross-border travel. The lockdown will effect March 30 and that could mean that Khabib could get trapped in Russia, leaving the UFC 249 main event in limbo.
• On March 27th, White spoke to former boxing great Mike Tyson and revealed his frustrations about the U.S. government’s lockdown which has forced him to change the venue again. Despite the difficulty, White reaffirmed to Iron Mike his desire to proceed with the event. White added that he now has four or five locations in mind and that he is doing everything to build a fight card given the circumstances

As of Sunday, March 29, 2020, UFC 249 is still a GO if you ask Dana White. But there are many logistical issues surrounding the event. How one earth is White going to get a venue to be approved in the United States given the surge of COVID-19 cases in the country and the strict emergency measures being applied in the different states? If it’s in Russia, how can Tony Ferguson, his team, and the UFC staff even get to Russia after the country closes its borders on Monday? If it’s going to be in the Middle East, how is Khabib going to leave Russia given the lockdown?

Things do look shaky and right now, there is some reason to doubt Dana White’s assurances. But what if he really has something under his sleeves? Sure, Russia will be closing its borders but in every lockdown, there are exceptions. Knowing Khabib’s connections there, he might have a way out. Nurmagomedov also knows people in high places in the U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia and there might be a way to book a fight there too. Ferguson wants this fight as bad as Khabib and Dana, so until we received an official memo saying otherwise, this thing is still going ahead. And that means the entire card, not just the main event.

Looking at the sportsbooks, the odds for the entire fight card are still up. Per the online betting site BetOnline as of 03/30/20:

• Khabib Nurmagomedov (-305) vs Tony Ferguson (+255)
• Calvin Kattar (-240) vs Jeremy Stephens (+205)
• Ronaldo Souza (-135) vs Uriah Hall +115
• Jessica Andrade (+170) vs Rose Namajunas (-200)
• Sijara Eubanks (-300) vs Sarah Moras (+250)
• Lyman Good (+125) vs Belal Muhammad (-145)
• Khama Worthy (+137) vs Ottman Azaitar (-157)
• Karl Roberson (-105) vs Makhmud Muradov (-115)
• Islam Makhachev (-450) vs Alexander Hernandez (+350)
• Ion Cutelaba (+205) vs Magomed Ankalaev (-240)
• Hunter Azure (+185) vs Umar Nurmagomedov (-220)
• Ben Rothwell (-190) vs Gian Villante (+165)

Andrade vs Namajunas

If you ask me, I’m not sure if all these fights happen because these are a total of 24 fighters and if you include their cornermen, it’s going to be more than 50 people involved in the event, if it’s held in one venue. While it was a possibility before that UFC 249 would be held in separate venues to circumvent the restrictions on gatherings, that may no longer be the case now with White even having a hard time to find one venue.

I think not all these fights are going to happen but if there are matchups here that deserve to be in the fight card, I think Jessica Andrade vs Rose Namajunas should be one of them. The rematch of the women’s strawweight title fight at UFC 237 in May 2019 is one of the anticipated matchups in the women’s side of things. Andrade knocked out Namajunas but it was due to a slam, which is a rare occurrence in MMA.

This is going to be an exciting matchup because Namajunas was when she was knocked out cold after getting slammed. Meanwhile, Andrade is looking to get her title back after she was knocked out by Zhang in her first title defense.

Both Namajunas and Andrade continue with their camps despite the uncertainty of events. Thug Rose and Andrade continue to train at home and have been living with their training partners since their respective home cities have declared lockdowns/quarantines. Dana White has been mum on this fight but if there is at least one other fight that will push through, this is the one.

Sports Needs the UFC

The UFC’s detractors have been calling it stubborn for trying to do an event while the whole world is scampering to stay healthy and alive amidst the current pandemic. However, with all the negativity surrounding the COVID-19 infections and casualties, the world needs the UFC to keep sports alive and uplift the morale of everyone. Of course, they need to do it following the recommended safety and health protocols.

You can call Dana White crazy for trying to do business in the most troubled times. But he’s actually doing us good more than bad. I don’t think he will risk everything for just this one event. I think Dana is a smart and shrewd businessman. You can talk about his flaws but he still looks after his employees’ safety. His obsession with UFC 249 isn’t about defying authorities. It’s about giving the world something to cheer about during these very trying times. Let’s keep our fingers crossed on this one. Keep it here as we will give you the latest updates as the events unfold.