UFC 249 has been cancelled after broadcaster ESPN and parent company Disney overruled on the sport's defiant push to keep fighting during the coronavirus pandemic.
UFC president Dana White said a decision had come from "the highest level" at Disney on Thursday for the sport to cease through the Covid-19 crisis.
Originally, UFC 249 was due to take place in Brooklyn with a lightweight title fight between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov on April 18.
As the pandemic hit, the bout was re-scheduled for California, before a determined White was forced to search for another location, saying it would take place "somewhere on Earth".
This was despite the fact Nurmagomedov had to withdraw since he was not allowed to travel, with Justin Gaethje brought in as his replacement.
However, on Thursday White was finally forced to abandon the plan. “I was ready to go on Saturday, but Disney and ESPN asked me to step down,” White told the Associated Press. “I love and respect my partnership with them so I postponed the event.”
In an interview with ESPN, the event's pay-per-view host, he said: "I told you this whole thing has been a battle since day one.
"Today we got a call from the highest level you can go at Disney and the highest level at ESPN ... and the powers that be there asked me to stand down and not do this event next Saturday."
White also revealed the ultimately scheduled host for the event, saying the Tachi Palace Casino Resort, located on Native American land some 200 miles north-west of Los Angeles, "had our back this whole time".
"Let me tell you this, when the world gets back to normal the California event will be at Tachi Palace," he said.
"I'm doing a fight there, I'm bringing them a big fight and I appreciate them standing with me in this thing."
White added he wanted all his contracted fighters "to feel safe". “Take time with your families and enjoy this time. Don’t worry about the financial part of this. You’re going to get the fights on your contract, and I’m going to make things right with the people who were willing to step up and fight next weekend. I’m going to take care of as many people as I possibly can.”
White also told the company’s employees: “Nobody is getting laid off at the UFC. Everybody is good.”
Lowest Test scores
26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955
30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020
38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019
42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946
42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
MATCH INFO
Newcastle United 2 (Willems 25', Shelvey 88')
Manchester City 2 (Sterling 22', De Bruyne 82')
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE SQUAD
Khalid Essa, Ali Khaseif, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Adel Al Hosani, Bandar Al Ahbabi, Mohammad Barghash, Salem Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Hassan Al Mahrami, Walid Abbas, Mahmoud Khamis, Yousef Jaber, Majed Sorour, Majed Hassan, Ali Salmeen, Abdullah Ramadan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Khalil Al Hammadi, Fabio De Lima, Khalfan Mubarak, Tahnoon Al Zaabi, Ali Saleh, Caio Canedo, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue, Zayed Al Ameri
The Orwell Prize for Political Writing
Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include:
- Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
- Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
- Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
- Follow Me, Akhi: The Online World of British Muslims by Hussein Kesvani
- Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS by Azadeh Moaveni
