Dana White: UFC to Do ‘Whatever It Takes’ to Make Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson Happen

“We have no choice now but to postpone these fights. So we’re postponing the next three events, but Tony Ferguson versus Khabib, April 18, is still on and that will still happen.”@danawhite joined @SportsCenter to address the postponement of upcoming UFC events. pic.twitter.com/FxKOAKnOEv

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 16, 2020

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson was already one of the most cursed bouts in UFC history — and that was before the outbreak of the coronavirus.

While the UFC was recently forced to cancel its next three events, Dana White insists that Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson will happen. The lightweight championship fight is scheduled for UFC 249 on April 18, although it’s highly unlikely that the Barclays Center in Brooklyn will host the event.

“We’re postponing the next three events, but Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib, April 18 is still on and that will still happen,” White said on SportsCenter. “We’re going to follow these guidelines to not have more than 10 people in a room and we’re hoping this all clears up by April.

“This fight’s going to happen,” he said. “No crowd. Whatever it takes. Probably not even going to be in the United States, but this fight’s going to happen.”

White revealed that the promotion was ready to move this weekend’s UFC Fight Night 171 event from London to Firelake Arena in Shawnee, Okla., before President Donald Trump issued a recommendation that no gatherings of 10 or more people should occur in the next 15 days. That made holding the card — even without fans — logistically impossible.

Still, White was unapologetic for holding out as long as he could while other leagues suspended play indefinitely.

“This is what we do,” White said. “We put fights on every weekend. The fighters want to fight. The fans want to see it. I’ve had nothing but positive feedback from the fans and the fighters. These guys all want to continue. So we will.”

The UFC has received plenty of scrutiny for its approach, but that doesn’t bother White, who added that he expects the three previous shows to eventually be rescheduled.

“Obviously, we’ve had some blowback from the media that covers us, but everybody’s going to have their opinions,” White said. “We’re going to continue on.

“These three fights are postponed, they will still happen and Khabib-Tony is on for the original date. We’re going to keep fighting.”