UFC's President Dana White intends on hosting events on "fight island."
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00:00While most of the sports world has canceled or suspended seasons due to the coronavirus
00:07pandemic, Dana White is carrying on with the UFC.
00:11Joining me now is SI's Greg Bishop, who recently spoke with White.
00:14Greg, the UFC is hosting three cards in eight days in Florida, starting this Saturday.
00:20How did the UFC decide to hold these events while some states are still under stay-at-home
00:24orders?
00:25Yeah, I thought it was really interesting what Dana said.
00:28You know, he basically said that he didn't want to take any time off, that he had hoped
00:31to hold events throughout the entirety of the pandemic, and that he had done so with
00:36these cards specifically in a way that made them safe, that made it possible to come back.
00:43And one thing he said that really stuck with me is, somebody's got to be first.
00:47And so, you know, they're moving ahead full speed.
00:49They have a fight on Saturday.
00:51They have two more fights, as you referenced, next week.
00:54And they will be the first sport back, the first major one.
00:57So it'll be interesting to see how it goes down.
01:00I found it interesting, too, that White looks at this pandemic as almost a challenge for
01:04him to navigate.
01:05So what are some of the precautions to keep people safe in these fights?
01:09Yeah, I think that he wasn't terribly specific in terms of the safety stuff they've done,
01:14but he said it would be as safe as any space in America.
01:17And so I think you'd imagine that, you know, a lot of the guidelines are in place.
01:22So for instance, there won't be fans in the stands.
01:24They'll have their DJ on hand to play music, but they won't be like piping and crowd noise.
01:30And then I imagine they would do things that have been recommended, like taking the temperature
01:35of people before they head into the building, maintaining social distancing wherever possible,
01:40and making sure the fighters are healthy and safe.
01:43So it is interesting, particularly for a combat sport, just because these guys are in such
01:48close proximity.
01:49They're fighting and grappling and sweating on each other.
01:52And I'm sure that there will be some people there that are nervous, too.
01:55Now, another thing that you talked to Dana White about is Fight Island.
02:00Can you explain what exactly is this?
02:01Yeah, I love Fight Island.
02:03Actually, it was funny.
02:04I said I imagined something like out of a reality television show where there's like
02:08tiki torches and fire everywhere.
02:11And you know, it just seems like, you know, it might be true and on brand for Dana.
02:16You know, essentially what he's done is he's taken an island, he won't say exactly where,
02:20and he's getting it ready to host fights.
02:22And you know, what he said is it would eliminate a lot of problems in terms of having to fly,
02:27you know, to different countries where you might need visas or where they might still
02:30have travel restrictions based on the pandemic.
02:33And this place will have rooms, it will have an octagon, it will be television ready.
02:38And essentially, you know, once it's up and running, because it's not quite completed
02:41yet, they're going to host fights there that they would have held in other countries.
02:44And so I don't think it'll be maybe the dramatic backdrop that I was expecting, but it'll be
02:50interesting to see people fight that way for sure.
02:53I do also hope that there are tiki torches, but we can make sure that that suggestion
02:58gets to Dana White as soon as possible.
03:00Greg Bishop, thanks so much for the time.