Where Are The Rest Of The UFC Fight Announcements?
Or If The UFC Is Planning More Events It Needs To Get Busy
Welcome to the latest C’mon Now newsletter. This is the place where I’ll share my thoughts on all the goings-on in MMA. Those thoughts could range from media criticism to advice for folks looking to get into MMA writing to why certain fighters or managers are not good for the sport.
Today I wonder what’s going to happen after UFC 249.
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UFC president Dana White claims UFC 249, which is scheduled to take place somewhere in Florida on May 9, will be the first of many fight cards to come for the UFC. That may very well be the case, but the question for White is, who will fight on the slew of events that White has said will follow UFC 249?
If the UFC plans to hold an event on May 16, it sure would be nice if the promotion let the fighters know they’ll be competing in less than a month’s time. As of now, the UFC has not announced a single fight for that event or any of the other events that could take place at a TBA location or “Fight Island.” If I’m a UFC fighter who might get tapped to compete on one of those cards, I would be very concerned about the lack of information.
A month worth of training time is often not enough under the best circumstances and we all know that what we’re dealing with right now are less than ideal circumstances. Maybe the assumption is that fighters won’t be able to train properly right now so a short notice announcement is no big deal, but the fact remains that fighters will have to cut weight and at least get their cardio up to snuff. Doing that kind of work at home will be difficult, especially if fighters usually use a meal service like the one the UFC PI provides.
If the UFC’s sole focus is on UFC 249, it’s doing a disservice to all the fighters it might call for the events that will follow. If the promotion is not starting to work on the cards from March 16 on it is showing the fighters they are just an afterthought, a cog in the machine, athletes who are so strapped for cash that they’ll take fights against their own best interests.
The UFC is not handling the coronavirus pandemic in any way that could be defined as good.
