BREAKING: UFC 249 Cancelled by Dana White

The fans were very close to get a thrilling fight card as Dana White was ready to go ahead with UFC 249 despite the pandemic crisis. The stage was set for an epic battle as Tony Ferguson was scheduled to take on Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC 249. However, Dana White has been forced to cancel the events for now by the top Disney/ESPN executives.

Recently, ESPN’s Bret Okamoto announced on twitter that Dana White has finally called it off.

UFC 249 has been the center of controversies for many reasons. While all the major sports leagues in the world decided to halt the sporting action due to COVID-19 crisis, UFC’s Dana White was persistent to continue putting fight for the fans. However, after many hiccups along the way UFC events have been postponed indefinitely.

There were a ton of speculations regarding how the California state government, which has been very strict with its regulations for COVID-19, would react to UFC holding events at tribal lands. Unfortunately, the Government showed no support despite White assuring all the precautions ahead of UFC 249.

Earlier, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released a statement on UFC 249 and said:

“I’m concerned by reports that Ultimate Fighting Championship plans to hold a pay-per-view event 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.
“I understand this event is scheduled to take place on tribal land and therefore is not subject to state law. However, 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.”

UFC 249 was supposed to take place on April 18 in New York. The main event was supposed to be between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov. However, Khabib was out of the title fight and was replaced by Justin Gaethje later on. The MMA fans were hopeful that Dana White will pull this off. However, the fans will have to wait for an indefinite period to get some octagon action.