COVID-19 has pretty much ended live sports across most on the world. The lone holdout after the cancellations had been the UFC, which held a fight card in Brazil with no audience almost two weeks ago. Following that they have postponed three events. As of right now UFC 249, which will feature the most anticipated lightweight title fight in UFC history, is still tentatively a go.
As reported by SBD, there’s a 50/50 chance that UFC 249 will proceed. If it does happen, Khabib is the odds-on favorite. His odds are listed around -300, while Tony Ferguson’s odds are listed around +230.
You have to figure if there is any way Dana White can proceed with this fight card, he will. Imagine all of those sports-starved fans who lost March Madness, Opening Day, and numerous other events who will be itching for anything to pass the time until we return to normal proceedings! It would be huge for the UFC to be able to pull off this event, but they must be careful, because with the situation the way it is now, it could very well blow up in their face.
April 18 is the date for UFC 249, so there are still three weeks to figure this out, but you have to figure a decision will have to be made in the next week. The card was originally scheduled for the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The matchup is huge with unbeaten Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov set to headline that card, putting his belt on the line against former interim champion Tony Ferguson. Khabib is one of the most popular stars in the UFC and Tony Ferguson is no slouch either. Ferguson has been a late bloomer, winning his past 13 bouts. He’s widely viewed as a live dog in this battle for lightweight supremacy. Let’s just hope we are in much better shape in a week or so and the fight can go-ahead because we all need it.
