The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) had decided something at the outset of the coronavirus outbreak. It was not going to get caught up in going off into a corner and hiding. They were bound and determined to get something going. And BetAnySports customers, for a moment anyway, were certain that if they were not able to run their UFC 249 show at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, they would be able to do so on tribal land in California, outside the jurisdiction of an a state athletic commission.
Alas, the “higher ups” (as Dana White put it) at Disney, a parent company of ESPN (with whom they have a deal) stepped in and strongly advised White not to proceed.
So now this time, without as much resistance, he is starting up again. And on Saturday night, UFC 249 will take place in Jacksonville.
It would be a correct assumption that Florida is a friendlier venue for this kind of thing than is California. That’s where governor Gavin Newsom made the decision to step forward and pressure the Disney hierarchy to stop White.
Well, the UFC has put a boatload of protocols in place for Saturday night’s event (9 PM ET, PPV). That includes the one that seems to be most critical from a political standpoint – no fans.
What’s On Tap
Lightweight champion and genuine UFC superstar Khabib Nurmagomedov is unable to compete because of the travel restrictions that exist. So the UFC is having to make do with an “interim” title fight. Tony Ferguson will now fight Justin Gaethje. And the UFC is once again doing something mainstream media has criticized boxing for in the past, which is to say they are conducting the fight for an “interim” championship.
The Betting Numbers
In the UFC 249 betting odds that have been established at BetAnySports on this event, Ferguson is favored:
| Fighter | Odds |
|---|---|
| Tony Ferguson | -200 |
| Justin Gaethje | +170 |
Under 2.5 Rounds -153
Over 2.5 Rounds +133
About Tony Ferguson
In a sense, Ferguson might be one of the unluckiest fighters in the lightweight division. On no less than five different occasions, he has been scheduled to fight Khabib and all five times the fight has fallen through. And one must keep in mind that Khabib is 28-0 and considered, along with Jon Jones, to be the UFC’s gold standard.
So as it stands now, Ferguson, a former national champion wrestler at Grand Valley State, is the #1-ranked lightweight contender. And he is riding a twelve-bout winning streak, which is not easy by any means. His is a varied attack; he can stand up, take his opponent down, and grapple. Of his 20 wins inside the distance, eight have been submissions, with a dozen KO’s. He is a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu, and trains in boxing and Muay Thai.
His last bout was at UFC 238 in Chicago. There he stopped Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, closing his right eye to the point where he couldn’t come out for Round 3. Ferguson is #10 on the UFC list of pound-for-pound best.
About Justin Gaethje
Gaethje (21-2) went to the University of Northern Colorado, where he earned All-American honors as a wrestler. So it might seem unusual to some people that he is known largely for his ability to do damage in the stand-up phase of things. The fact is, there are only two submission victories on his record, with 18 knockouts.
He is one of those fighters who came to the UFC from another organization, where he experienced a great deal of success. Gaethje had been the lightweight champion of the World Series of Fighting (WSOF), defending his belt successfully five times.
He has lost twice in the UFC – to Dustin Porter and Eddie Alvarez, both inside the distance. In all of his fights with the organization, he’s either had “Fight of the Night” or “Performance of the Night” attached to it.
Like Ferguson, his last bout took place against Cerrone, whom he stopped on punches in the first round. And also like Ferguson, he has Mexican lineage.
Overview
Gaethje gets “Fight of the Night” so many times not because he plays it safe. He comes headlong at people, and that can be impossible to stop for an overmatched foe. But Ferguson presents a different level of resistance here. Or does he? It would appear on the surface that the guy with more ways to win should have the edge. But Ferguson is sometimes without defense against strikes. And Gaethje is one of those people who comes out of the box quickly and makes you weather an early storm. The “under” might be the way to go here.
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