With the sporting world on collective pause, UFC President Dana White is resorting to off-kilter venues to hold upcoming prize fights, including private islands and a California casino on tribal lands.
White announced on Tuesday that he was planning to hold the upcoming UFC 249 between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje on April 18 at the Tachi Palace Casino Resort in Lemoore, California.
“I locked up this venue for two months,” White told ESPN. “I’m going to continue to pump fights out.”
Because the casino sits on tribal lands, the UFC is not required to abide by restrictions placed on combat sports by the California State Athletic Commission that run through May. The Tachi casino closed temporarily on March 20, and White said the fight would be held without fans present as a precaution during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Anyone who shows up to this event and who is a part of it will be safer than anyone who is sitting at home in their house,” White said. “They’re going to have access to the best medical attention, the best doctors, the best treatment that they can possibly get.”
On Monday, White confirmed he had secured a “private island,” where he plans to hold weekly fights after the April 18 lightweight championship, which had been planned for the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. UFC 249, the 249th fight in the Mixed Martial Arts series, originally featured Russian lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov before he canceled at the last minute because of coronavirus restrictions.
One possible sticking point for the fight is ring doctors who could be difficult to obtain after a directive from the Association of Ringside Physicians urged the suspension of all combat sports.
