Khabib vs Ferguson to be held with ‘ten people in a room’ as Dana White slams ‘wimpiest’ media calls to cancel UFC 249
DANA WHITE has insisted Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson will go ahead with "10 people in the room".
The UFC boss went on to blast the "wimpiest" critics who have called for the fight to be axed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
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As the deadly COVID-19 bug sweeps the globe with over 11,500 deaths worldwide, major sporting events have been cancelled or postponed.
The UFC were forced to backdate their next three Fight Night events, but are adamant Nurmagomedov vs Ferguson - set for April 18 - will still take place, but not likely in New York or even America.
The MMA promotion has received criticism for refusing to cancel the event, but promoter White insisted the right thing to do is allow the fighters to compete with the correct medical testing and make sure they are still paid.
He said on Instagram: "Go online and look at some of these people - and this isn’t a knock, this is just a fact - the weakest, wimpiest people on earth cover the biggest, baddest sport on earth.
White revealed he will follow the advice of President Donald Trump by having no more than 10 people present while Nurmagomedov defends his unbeaten record and lightweight belt against Ferguson.
He explained to ESPN: “We’re gonna follow these guidelines to not have more than 10 people in a room and we’re hoping that this all clears up by April.
“This fight’s going to happen, no crowd, whatever it takes. [It’s] probably not going to even be in the United States but this fight’s going to happen.”