(This story first appeared at BoxingJunkie.com)
Boxing promoter Bob Arum said his sport should follow the lead of the major sports leagues, not UFC president Dana White.
White and the UFC are holding three events in a week starting Saturday without live audiences at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. They will be the first UFC events since the coronavirus took hold.
White had originally scheduled UFC 249 for April 18 on tribal land in central California, but bowed to political pressure and postponed the event.
Arum suggested that White is still acting recklessly. The Top Rank CEO has discussed staging events with no spectators in late June at the earliest.
“Good luck to them,” Arum told BoxingScene.com. “I just hope that they’re not endangering the safety of anyone. But this kind of cowboy behavior doesn’t do anybody any good.
“We’re looking now with Nevada, which we’ll do in a sensible way, or California. We’re working with (Nevada Athletic Commission executive diretor) Bob Bennett and (California State Athletic Commission executive officer) Andy Foster, and we’re talking to the Texas commission. We’re only gonna do this if it’s safe for the fighters and everyone involved, and if it’s approved by the medical authorities.
“We’re not gonna be cowboys, like Dana White. I don’t wanna get politics involved, but I have really very little respect for Dana and what he’s doing.”
Arum will look for cues from the NBA and NFL.
“I think the behavior of people in sports we should be following are Adam Silver of the NBA, Roger Goodell of the NFL – people who are proceeding cautiously and safely, not people who are acting like cowboys,” Arum said.
“For example, (the UFC) wanted to do this fight in California and they were prevented by the governor and by senator (Dianne) Feinstein going to ESPN and having Dana pull (the event).
“It turned out one of the fighters, in fact, tested positive afterward for coronavirus. You know, if we get something like that on one of Dana’s shows, and God forbid there’s a serious incident of spreading the disease, it doesn’t do well for anybody who’s involved with sports.”
Lyman Good was on the UFC 249 card when it was scheduled to take place in Brooklyn, N.Y., but he pulled out and later announced he had tested positive for coronavirus.
Boxing promoter Bob Arum: UFC's 'cowboy behavior' in Florida could hurt all sports
