Here’s his morning update on the status of possible late replacement Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal for the welterweight title fight at UFC 251 on July 11, 2020: Things are looking very, very good.
According to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, “the talks are moving in a positive direction.”
“This morning seemed like a long shot for this fight to happen,” Helwani told the ESPN Sports Center. “Now, it seems to exclude any last minute hiccups … and there are still a few more hurdles to overcome, people are pretty sure that in exactly seven days from now people will see one of the most anticipated fights of 2020 A fight we didn’t think was going to happen, now it seems like maybe the UFC’s bitterest fight is really going to unfold. “
The big challenge now is not the money problem, but getting Usman and Masvidal to overcome the challenge of coronavirus testing and the flights necessary to bring them both to Abu Dhabi. And yes, it is key that they really get to “Fight Island”.
I see people asking: Why not fight in Las Vegas? Valid question Simple answer: All this marketing from Fight Island is an excellent RP for Abu Dhabi. These events are not free. They want the big fights. It would defeat the purpose if the biggest fight of the month is not on Yas Island.
– Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) July 5, 2020
It is important to understand that although it is a sporting event, it is also a massive marketing campaign for Abu Dhabi. In fact, the United Arab Emirates has tried to evade the stigma of being the remote country that Garfield sends emails to Nermal for years. Dubai has been pouring literally hundreds of millions of dollars washing sports in its country, and Abu Dhabi has similar piles of cash dedicated to presenting the United Arab Emirates as a place to visit and do business and not be cut into several pieces with a saw. for metals or arrested for kissing on the beach. (To be clear, Dubai did all of that, not Abu Dhabi.)
Honestly, I’d be surprised if Abu Dhabi wasn’t the one to lean on Dana White to pay whatever money it takes to get Masvidal and Usman together. And good for them, both men deserve a lot of cash for accepting this ridiculousness of the last seconds.
So let’s cross our fingers and hope that all the Coronavirus tests are negative and that the sudden increases in Florida don’t shut down outbound flights before both men can get on a chartered plane. Because except for one positive test for COVID-19, it seems like UFC 251 got much more epic.
