In an abrupt about-face at the behest of broadcast partner ESPN, the UFC has postponed UFC 249 and all future scheduled shows due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
As recently as Wednesday, UFC president Dana White had insisted UFC 249 would go on as scheduled April 18.
But on Thursday, White said “today we got a call from the highest level you can go in Disney and the highest level of ESPN.”
“ESPN has been very very good to us and the powers that be there asked me to stand down and not do this event [April 18],” he added in a social media video posted by ESPN MMA.
ESPN and the UFC are in the midst of a five-year, $1.5-billion US deal signed in 2018. Disney is ESPN’s parent company.
“While the organization was fully prepared to proceed with UFC 249, ESPN has requested the postponement of the event and subsequent bouts until further notice in light of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the UFC said in a statement. “UFC looks forward to resuming the full live events schedule as soon as possible.”
Thursday’s turnaround came the same day that California Sen. Dianne Feinstein urged the mixed martial arts organization not to go ahead with the high-profile show reportedly scheduled on tribal land near Fresno.
The UFC has been forced to cancel several events recently because of bans on pubic gatherings due to COVID-19. Its last show was a televised card March 14 in Brazil without spectators.
But White had held firm about staging UFC 249, which was originally to feature a high-profile matchup between lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and No. 1 contender Tony Ferguson.
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He repeated that Wednesday in an ESPN interview while acknowledging that staging UFC 249 has been “the hardest thing I’ve ever done without a doubt … but it’s going to happen April 18.”
The UFC, which had been one of the last sporting organizations yet to go into lockdown, had not confirmed that UFC 249 would take place at California’s Tachi Palace Casino Resort. White was coy on the topic Wednesday when quizzed by ESPN, saying “ESPN is where it is, that’s all you need to know.”
But he admitted Thursday that UFC 249 would have taken place at Tachi Palace, adding that the fighters slated to compete — including Canadian Sarah Moras — would still get paid. And he promised the UFC will be the first sport back.
The April 18 card was originally scheduled for Brooklyn, N.Y.
Moras, a bantamweight from Kelowna, B.C., who now fights out of Las Vegas, said via social media that she had just completed her last sparring session when she got to her phone and found out the show was off. She had trained for the fight in her living room and garage because of restrictions on gatherings.
Concerns over California isolation laws
In confirming the show was going ahead Monday, White tweeted it would take place “somewhere on EARTH!!!!” The UFC said there will be no spectators on hand fight night and White added that everyone on the card wanted to fight.
Feinstein said she is concerned by reports that the pay-per-view event is being held in California “in defiance of the state’s shelter-in-place order.”
“This event would involve dozens of individuals flying to California and driving to a casino for a purpose no one can honestly claim is essential,” she said in a statement.
While acknowledging the event is outside state law because it is on tribal land, Feinstein said the show should not go on.
“At best this event ties up medical resources and sends a message that shelter-in-place orders can be flouted. At worst, participants and support staff could carry the virus back to their home communities and increase its spread.
“I call on Ultimate Fighting Championship and the Tachi-Yokut Tribe to reconsider this event and delay it until a later date. We have to be responsible and mindful of all local, state and federal public health guidelines. Going ahead with this event is not the right move.”
Justin Gaethje, ranked fourth among 155-pound contenders, stepped in for Nurmagomedov due to travel restrictions keeping the champion in his native Russia. Nurmagomedov had been training in California but returned home when the UFC had tentative plans to stage the event in the United Arab Emirates.
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson have been officially booked to fight five times since December 2015 with a variety of injuries prompting delays.
‘Fight island is real’
The UFC was been forced to postpone cards originally slated for March 21 in London, March 28 in Columbus, Ohio, and April 11 in Portland. The UFC initially planned to shift them to the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas behind closed doors due to local authorities’ restrictions on crowds.
But it was forced to look elsewhere after restrictions tightened.
White previously told TMZ he is looking to stage shows on a private island, flying in the fighters and support staff on private planes. He told ESPN this week he hopes to nail that down soon, saying he will run out of talent if he can only use American fighters.
“Fight island is real,” he told ESPN on Thursday.
The Association of Ringside Physicians has also called for all combat sporting events to be postponed until further notice.
“Any combat sport taking place during this global pandemic places the athletes, officials, and anyone else involved in the event under unnecessary risk of infection and transmission of COVID-19,” it said in a statement from its board.
“In addition, combat sports athletes often require medical attention after a bout, and we do not wish to see any additional strain on an already overwhelmed medical system.”
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
