UFC Indefinitely Postpones Events Through April 11 Due to Coronavirus Outbreak

The UFC reportedly postponed its next three events out of concern about the coronavirus.

According to Michael Carroll of UFCStats.com, UFC President Dana White sent an email to the company's employees saying Saturday's card in London with Tyron Woodley vs. Leon Edwards as the headliner, as well as the ones on March 28 and April 11 in Las Vegas, were all postponed indefinitely.

Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik was the headliner for the first fight in Las Vegas, while Alistair Overeem vs. Walt Harris was the headliner for the second.

This is a change of course for White, who previously appeared on ESPN's SportsCenter and said it would take "a total shutdown of the country" for the UFC to stop its scheduled fights (h/t Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie)

"Unless there's a total shutdown of the country where people can't leave their houses and things like that, these fights will happen," White said. "We're gonna move on. These guys will compete. We will find venues, and we will figure this thing out. I mean, the only thing that's gonna stop us is a complete government shutdown where everyone is confined to their homes."

There were no fans in attendance for UFC on ESPN+ 28 in Brasilia, Brazil, this past Saturday.

Alas, developments with the coronavirus have led to a number of postponements and cancellations across the sports world, with the UFC fights being some of the latest. As of Monday, CNN noted the coronavirus has led to the deaths of more than 6,500 people across the globe.

The postponement of fights through April 11 is all the more notable because it does not include the highly anticipated showdown between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson. 

That is scheduled for April 18 and was supposed to occur at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. However, Carroll noted it is no longer expected to take place in that venue.