(UTV | COLOMBO) – UFC president Dana White says he was told to “stand down” from holding UFC 249 on 18 April, with the event now postponed.
Earlier this week, White said he was close to securing a private island to continue hosting fights during the coronavirus crisis.
White says the “powers that be” at pay-per-view broadcast partner ESPN and parent company Disney intervened.
“This whole thing has been a battle since day one,” White told ESPN.
“Today we got a call from the highest level you can go at Disney and the highest level at ESPN.
“The powers that be there asked me to stand down and not do this event next Saturday.”
In a statement, the UFC said: “While the organisation was fully prepared to proceed with UFC 249, ESPN has requested the postponement of the event and subsequent bouts until further notice in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
The announcement came hours after former UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas’ withdrew from the co-main event at UFC 249 after two family deaths related to coronavirus.