The Ultimate Fighting Championship is having to consider new fixtures for UFC 249, with some fighters slated for the Pay-Per-View being unwilling to compete amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic. It prompted multiple other opponents to throw their name into the ring, which includes Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. He indicated that fighting at UFC 249 was possible by expressing interest. This would be a considerably short period since his last fight, which was UFC 246 against Conor McGregor. The Cowboy lost his bout against McGregor in forty seconds during the 1st round, with Conor the Irishman knocking his opponent out. After this considerable loss, fighting analysts have begun speculating if Cerrone should retire his professional MMA career.

Donald Cerrone doesn’t seem willing to retire from fighting yet. However, he retracted the statements made through Instagram after being informed by PR Representatives. He noted that his UFC Return wouldn’t occur until July 2020, with Cerrone having a young family to consider. The UFC Record Leader is aching to compete against the roster again. Even if Dana White wanted Cerrone to fight at UFC 249, travel restrictions in the United States would force the Cowboy to remain home. The President will have to look towards international fighters without travel restrictions to compete, with the overwhelming majority expected to be from the Middle East or Eastern Europe.

Gilbert Burns Wants to Fight Donald Cerrone

There are some throughout the MMA community that would’ve been willing to compete against Donald Cerrone at UFC 249. This included Gilbert Burns, a fighter in the UFC with a record of 18-3. The most recent victory for Burns was at UFC Fight Night 170, where Damian Maia got knocked down by Gilbert.

Gilbert Burns ranks sixth in the Welterweight Division, with him now looking for a future opponent or title contender. He stated that he’d be willing to compete against Donald Cerrone at UFC 249 or a future Pay-Per-View. This concept was immediately concerned by Dana White, meaning that the Cowboy’s next fight could be against a future champion. It’ll mark another challenging bout for Donald Cerrone. If he loses to Gilbert Burns, it could mean retirement for the former UFC Headliner.

The Covid-19 Pandemic is changing the way Conor McGregor behaves with fellow fights and the public. This followed after the infamous fighter provided his condolences to Floyd Mayweather Junior, who lost his uncle Roger Mayweather. Floyd trained with his uncle and had a close relationship throughout their entire lives. Additional individuals that provided their condolences included Dana White and multiple boxing legends.

Individuals throughout Combat Sports were shocked by the announcement that Roger Mayweather had passed away. He’d made a notable name for himself after training both generations of the Mayweather Champions. However, Roger had experienced a long battle with diabetes that eventually caused him to pass away unexpectedly. This marks the 2nd tragedy that Floyd Mayweather Jr has experienced in recent years. The 1st was the death of his Ex-Girlfriend, Josie Harris. She left three children in her death.

Floyd Mayweather Junior and Conor McGregor have sustained a long rivalry throughout the public eye. It inevitably led to the two men fighting each other for ten rounds. While McGregor held his ground for three rounds, dominating over Floyd Mayweather Jr, Conor would inevitably lose his stamina and succumb to the skillsets of the infamous boxing champion. It’s suspected that the two we’ll have an inevitable rematch. Seeing the two rivals engage in this civil behaviour, shocked fighting analysts. It shows that Conor McGregor is maturing as an older man.

McGregor’s Aunt Passes Away

Conor McGregor also experienced a recent death in his family. Instead of it being his uncle, the Irishman lost his aunt. After considerable speculation of how she passed away, McGregor confirmed that she didn’t pass away from Covid-19. The initial posting from Conor on her death was vague, which prompted supporters and MMA analysts to question Anne Moore’s death.

McGregor issued a new post through Instagram. He confirmed that Anne Moore hadn’t contracted the Covid-19 Virus and appreciated the sympathetic, kind wishes throughout his social media accounts. McGregor did mention that following her funeral, everyone will confront Covid-19 in the coming weeks. He hopes that supporters with gather family and friends, implement self-isolation measures and remain safe. The death of his aunt prompted Floyd Mayweather Jr also to provide his condolences. It’s the most beautiful exchange these two fighters have had.

The coronavirus is causing numerous cancellations within the boxing community. This global pandemic is considered historically unprecedented for our modern era, with countless sporting events having to postpone their respective seasons and monitor this event going forward. Most promoters through the MMA and Boxing community have been reluctant to cancel their respective venues, with government associations now requiring that mass gathering be terminated going forward. This has prompted global postponements for numerous fights on the professional level, with low-scale venues being outright cancelled.

This marks the 1st time that the boxing community has seen multiple cancellations since World War Two. There have been various representatives of this community, like Frank Warren or Dana White, who have demanded that venues will continue to take place regardless of the conditional factors surrounding Covid-19. Dana White and Frank Warren want to implement a digital streaming service that will ensure millions of supporters receive their required Boxing or MMA entertainment.

Cancelled or Postponed Events

Confirmations on cancelled venues and postponed fights aren’t expected to come until next week, with the continued reluctance displayed by global promoters. It should be mentioned that some nations are enforcing a minimal mass gathering of twenty-five people, which would terminate any chances of digital venues being streamed. It’s suspected by fighting experts that the Anthony Joshua and Kubrat Pulev in London for June 20th will be terminated. An untitled venue for Las Vegas on May 2nd has already been cancelled, with suspected fights listed for Nevada expected to be entirely cancelled until the summer.

It should be mentioned that multiple fighters are continuing their training camps to ensure that their physically fit to compete whenever the Covid-19 pandemic is solved. Numerous opponents throughout the UFC and Boxing community have fallen ill to the coronavirus, prompting the fight between Shakur Stevenson and Miguel Marriaga to be terminated. It’s suspected that the Mick Conlan’s Saint Patrick’s Day Venue will also be cancelled going forward.

Connor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov have both supported the decision to postpone any MMA or UFC venues until May 2020. This extended towards Floyd Mayweather Junior, with the three men slated to compete against one another sometime this year. Supporting these postponements would force their respective fights to be delayed. Will provide our readers will any additional updates regarded postponed or terminated venues.

Most aren’t aware that Khabib Nurmagomedov refuses to participate in any fights during Ramadan. Considering that he’s the top-rated fighter in the UFC and is slated to begin his third lightweight title defence in the thirty days, it’s shocking that Dana White permits this decision. Most fighting analysts claim that refusal to operate under contract for Ramadan indicates that Khabib Nurmagomedov is a weak man. The champion has never taken these statements lightly, with previous reports causing Khabib to attack reporters verbally.

It’s not surprising that Khabib Nurmagomedov feels this way towards Ramadan. It’s considered the holiest month for Muslims, with this community of billions not allowed to eat for thirty days while the sun rises. It prompts significantly hard training sessions for Middle-Eastern Fighters, with some analysts claiming these actions are horrible for their body and could affect performances in the octagon. It should be noted that every injury that Khabib Nurmagomedov has experienced followed a month or two after Ramadan when his body was weakest.

This doesn’t mean that Khabib stops all variations of his training, with the champion still competing in various sessions within the United States of America. Khabib has often attacked his trainers during this period, with the lack of food creating a troubled mind that is stressed and deprived of the needed energy to engage in daily life. Because of what this religious period means for Muslims, Khabib believes that spending time with family and going to mosques for prayers is more important than keeping a physical health body. For his profession, this is a somewhat foolish decision but respectable that Khabib stands by his faith to such extremes.

Khabib himself stated: “It’s tough and very dangerous, too. All-day, you don’t drink, and you don’t eat. Injuries can come. That’s why we don’t have too much contact and without sparring. It’s still hard.”

These statements continued with Khabib Nurmagomedov requires forty-five days to recover after Ramadan. This means that the UFC Champion is unable to compete for more than 2+ months of the year. Most UFC Fighters aren’t pleased with the champion’s decision, as typically it considered unprofessional not to defend your title at any period. True heroes will defend their title in any physical, mental or religious condition. Just ask Muhammed Ali if he’d fight during Ramadan and he’d agree immediately.

There are reports that former and current fighters with the UFC are angry over the low pay there receive in comparison to the multimillion-dollar payments the organization’s rich investors receive.

Based on an article within The New York Post, the UFC paid one time dividends to multiple A-listers to the tune of nearly $300 million. Those A-listers include Charlize Theron and Mark Wahlberg amongst its beneficiaries. Dana White, the president of the UFC, is also slated to receive a windfall of over $3 million based on sources interviewed. White has been the recipient of hast comments over the last several years as a result of the low amounts paid to fighters.

UFC kingpin Dana White is on schedule to receive more than $3 million from the windfall according to sources. He has received harsh criticism in recent years from former fighters regarding low pay.

White Notorious for Tips that change lives

The flip side to White and comments made in respect to him is his notoriety for being a more than generous tipper. This is so much so that in some cases, it has changed the lives of those on the receiving end. Based on a report from The Las Vegas Review-Journal, White once tipped Vegas Palms Casino Resort dealers $100,000, and while generous, it angered r MMA retired fighter Kyle Kingsbury. Commenting, Kingsbury said; “I heard about Dana tipping a waitress $10,000 and that was my wage as a fighter. I lived in my mom’s garage and I had two jobs when I was fighting in the UFC. I was a personal trainer and a bouncer [and] bartender in a strip club.”

There are many others that have joined Kingsbury in an anti-trust lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that the anti-competitive conduct in the UFC has created a systematic monopsony which controls that market, limits the salaries and stifles competition for its fighters. This, in return, brings down the salaries paid to those fighters and often pressures then into signing long-term exclusive contracts.

On the part of the UFC, it denies those claims levied against them and are insistent that fighters are paid competitively and fairly. Commenting, a UFC spokesperson stated; “UFC pays its fighters more than any other MMA promote. We are proud of the company we’ve built and we are confident in our legal position.”

In another report from earlier this month, it was stated that only 16% of the revenue taken in by the UFC is paid to its fighters. If compared to Major League Baseball, who as an organization pay between 48 and 50% of its revenue to players, it is a number that is remarkably low.