What, Me Worry?

Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President, Dana White, was criticized on Thursday for his lack of transparency in regards to the coronavirus outbreak. While just about every major sport closed up shop for the foreseeable future, White and Co. were tight-lipped until late last night.

That’s because no one at UFC is “panicking” over the future of the country. Sure, the virus was recently declared a global pandemic, but White talked to U.S. President and personal friend, Donald Trump, who assured him everything was fine and that he should continue living his best life.

”I talked to the president and the vice president about this, and they’re taking this very serious,” White told ESPN. “They’re saying, ‘Be cautious, be careful, but live your life and stop panicking.’ Everybody is panicking, and instead of panicking, we’re actually getting out there and working with doctors and health officials and the government to figure out how to keep the sport safe and continue to put on events.”

I guess now is a good time to mention that White also told the combat sports media that he “didn’t give a shit” about coronavirus just a few weeks back. Unfortunately, his laissez-faire attitude left the promotion scrambling at the last minute once local governments got involved.

Several of the upcoming UFC events have been moved to the APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, while others will proceed as planned behind closed doors. The coronavirus situation is constantly evolving, so expect more developments in the coming weeks.