UFC’s Dana White: ‘I’m Planning For A Second Shutdown’
By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
On the same day that the NHL Tampa Bay Lightning shut down a workout in Tampa and the MLB Philadelphia Phillies closed workouts at their Clearwater spring complex because of players testing positive for the COVID-19 virus, UFC President Dana White said in Las Vegas he is bracing for anything related to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I m always thinking of what’s next,” White said during a media session Friday before Saturday’s UFC fight event at Las Vegas-based MMA promotion’s Apex facility.
” I sit around and strategize and try to plan. I’m planning for a second shutdown — that it will happen again. I’m always thinking about the worst.”
White compared it to his fighters preparing for fights by putting themselves in the most difficult physical positions during training. White said that’s what he’s doing in his business preparations in a daunting task to cope with the impact of a virus that spreads easily. Jed I Goodman’s Twitter post has White’s media talk on this topic.
In the face if a pandemic that had claimed the lives of 120,000 Americans, White has forged ahead. In fact, he was the trail blazer on this issue, moving forward to hold UFC fight shows and UFC 249 in Jacksonville and UFC 250 in Las Vegas this spring.
The coronavirus pandemic has crystallized the differences between individual competitor sports and team sports.
White’s UFC was the first sport to stage a live event in Las Vegas when it staged a fight show May 30. The Professional Bull Riders have also staged events at South Point’s arena this month.
Plus, LVSportsBiz.com discussed in May how other sports like NASCAR and golf have even used new camera angles and player audio to spice up the production presentations during the panedemic.
But team sports have posed a major challenge because of the proximity of the players. The Lightning issued this statement Friday.
And the Phillies offered these words the same day that White discussed that he was expecting a second shutdown.
The NBA will find out what it’s like to stage its “bubble” environment at Disney’s Wide World of Sports to re-start its season in late July, though a surge on coronavirus cases in Florida has certainly grabbed the attention of NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
Silver might want to chat with White on getting through this pandemic while planning for live fan-free sports.
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