UFC Fight Shows At APEX In Las Vegas Saturday and June 6 Are A Go After Nevada Athletic Commission This Morning Approves UFC Events

By Cassandra Cousineau and Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com

It’s fight night on for Dana White and Las Vegas-based UFC, which received the green light from the Nevada Athletic Commission Wednesday morning to hold UFC fight show events at the promotion’s APEX facility without fans Saturday and June 6.

“Throughout this process we’ve worked hand and glove with UFC,” said Bob Bennett,  the athletic commission’s executive director

On Tuesday evening, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak said sports events without spectators were OK, and then the state’s athletic commission did its part to approve the UFC fight show plan for Saturday.

The commission also approved Top Rank boxing matches for June 9 and 11.

White tipped his hand last Wednesday morning when he texted LVSportsBiz.com and said the next UFC fight show would be at the APEX May 30.

UFC is imposing stricter testing for COVID-19 after it staged UFC 249 in Jacksonville, Fla. May 9. A tighter protocol will be in effect before the fights inside the APEX. Unlike the UFC events on May 13 and 16 in Jacksonville. where Ronaldo Souza and one of his cornermen tested positive before UFC 249, each fighter will be required to take two separate tests before Saturday’s event at the APEX.

The first will be administered upon check-in at the designated hotel in Las Vegas.

Then, each fighter will be quarantined in his or her room until results are obtained. A memo obtained by ESPN reads, “This means you should not leave the Athlete Hotel or have physical contact with anyone other than the members of your camp until you have received your test result,” the memo reads, per ESPN. If the test is negative, fighters “may continue with fight week activities. … If your result is positive, you should remain in your hotel room and await further instructions from UFC’s medical team.”

The second test will then be scheduled for after the official weigh-in. Again, fighters will have to isolate themselves in their hotel rooms.

“During this time, no athletes or cornermen will be permitted to leave the Athlete Hotel without express prior approval from the Nevada State Athletic Commission,” the memo reads. “You also should not have physical contact with anyone other than the members of your camp.”

All fighters and team members will need to sign a HIPAA authorization form so the testing lab can share results with the UFC. HIPAA is the 1996 act which provides protection for personal health information.

Here is the latest Nevada COVID-19 numbers as of Tuesday.