Reports: UFC 249 finds home on California tribal land

UFC 249 has a closed-door home: Tachi Palace Casino Resort just outside of Lemoore, Calif., near Fresno.

Following a tweet by veteran MMA reporter Jeff Sherwood on Monday, The New York Times published on Tuesday a detailed report on the venue for the April 18 pay-per-view, which will be headlined by Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title.

Additionally, Sherwood reported UFC 249 would be the first of four UFC events held at the venue.

There is an ongoing suspension of combat sports in California due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, because the venue for UFC 249 is on land owned by the Tachi-Yokut Tribe, part of the Santa Rosa Indian Community, the event does not fall under the jurisdiction of the California State Athletic Commission, nor of the statewide stay-at-home orders issued several weeks ago by California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

UFC 249 originally was scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but the location was abandoned after New York, which has been the hardest hit coronavirus location in the country, limited mass gatherings.

UFC 249, which will be streamed live on ESPN+, originally was slated to feature Ferguson challenging lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. But Nurmagomedov had to withdraw from the bout due to travel restrictions in his native Russia.

Tachi Palace has a long history of hosting MMA events, preceding California’s 2006 legalization of the sport. Twenty-two of the first 24 WEC cards were held at the casino, and the Tachi Palace Fights series ran from 2009-2018.

CSAC has regulated events at the casino when asked by indivdual promoters, such as at Invicta FC 25 in 2017. The commission told the Times it will abide by Newsom’s edict and will not oversee any events.

“The commission echoes the guidance of California Governor Gavin Newsom, the Department of Public Health, local health officials, and the recommendations of the Association of Ringside Physicians regarding the cancellation of events where people may be at risk of contracting Covid-19 and encourages the industry to do the same,” the commission stated. “The commission will not participate in the UFC event on April 18, regardless of the event location.”