Report: Florida Still In The Running For UFC 249

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One of the more enjoyable aspects of the UFC 249 lottery is the countless number of fan tweets that identify a specific location for the April 18 pay-per-view (PPV) event, as if somehow UFC President Dana White and his team — with global contacts and endless resources — haven’t already thought of it.

UFC has “four or five places” that are currently on the table.

That includes the still-favored “Sunshine State,” which recently played host to a regional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion despite the coronavirus outbreak, and Florida State Boxing Commission (FSBC) is within its legal right to sanction it.

For now.

“UFC still talking with Florida commission about potentially hosting UFC 249, but no confirmation as of yet,” Steven Marrocco of MMA Fighting wrote on Twitter. “Gov. DeSantis’ most recent order doesn’t preclude the FSBC from sanctioning fight. But as with everything, it’s a very unstable situation that could change.”

Florida is also where this happened.

If UFC 249 does find a home for its April 18 PPV, it may do so without the services of reigning lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov. “The Eagle” was left stranded in Dagestan after the promotion failed to secure a location in time to beat the Russian travel ban, which reportedly went into effect on Monday.

Tony Ferguson is expected to remain on the card against Justin Gaethje an opponent to be named.