Dana White has admitted that the UFC will be forced to move next weekend's pay-per-view event from Los Angeles if the California wildfires continue.
The promotion kicks off the new year with UFC 311 as Islam Makhachev makes a potentially historic lightweight title defense against Arman Tsarukyan. In the co-main event, Merab Dvalishvili will defend his bantamweight belt for the first time against undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov.
However, as deadly wildfires continue to engulf parts of California, the event may have to be rescheduled. They plan to host the show at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood; where events have already been moved due to safety concerns.
Dana White talks about the possible move of UFC 311 to Las Vegas
After Monday night's NFL game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Minnesota Vikings was moved from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, attention began to turn to UFC 311. The match will take place just over a mile away at the new Intuit Dome and there are concerns about the safety of the event.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Uncrowned's Ariel Helwani had reported that if the event were forced to move, Las Vegas was a frontrunner as a host city. It's home to the UFC and apparently there's even free booking at the famous T-Mobile Arena.
And in a recent broadcast with Kick Streamer Adin Ross, Dana White confirmed these reports. he told the controversial social media star: “If the fire gets bad, we'll come to Vegas… We'll move it to Vegas if it gets too bad, but from now on it's all possible. The NBA is going this week, we're going.”
The head of the California State Athletic Commission makes a statement about UFC 311
On Friday evening, Helwani began reporting on the prospect of the event being rescheduled. UFC owner Ari Emmanuel has since lost his Los Angeles home to the fires, and it remains to be seen what will happen to the card.
As part of Friday's episode of The Craic on Helwani's Uncrowned network, host Petesy Carroll received a statement from California State Athletic Commission boss Andy Foster. “We are monitoring the ongoing wildfires and subsequent state of emergency and catastrophic response in the Los Angeles area,” Carroll said.
“Our hearts are with the residents of that region and we appreciate the efforts of First Responders to keep the community safe.
“No decisions have been made at this time regarding rescheduling of UFC 311, but we will continue to work with state and local officials and the UFC to determine the best course of action, thank you.”
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