The promotion of mixed martial arts announced the move to UFC 249 main event on Monday. Gaethje replaces expert light hero Nurmagomedov, who appears to be unable to leave Russia amid epidemic.
UFC 249 is still slated for April 18, with Tony Ferguson fighting Justin Gaethje for a lightweight temporary title in the main event.
Although UFC President Dana White has yet to announce the venue for the largest pay-per-view in his spring show, he is still determined to hold an event in less than two weeks amid coronavirus pandemic.
The promotion of mixed martial arts announced the move to UFC 249 main event on Monday. Gaethje replaces expert lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov, who appears to be unable to leave Russia amid the epidemic.
"The battle is 100% signed directly on ESPN somewhere on Earth!" White tweeted Monday.
White remained steadfast in his UFC fight plan while almost all top-level sporting competitions stopped.
White is reported to be trying to secure a place on the west coast for the show, possibly on tribal land. Most states of the United States of America have restrictions that make it impossible to make an offer even without an audience.
White's research faced another obstacle later on Monday when the Ringside Physicians released a statement calling for the suspension of all combat sport events indefinitely.
The ARP statement said: "Any combat sport occurring during this global epidemic places athletes, officials and anyone else involved in the event at an unnecessary risk of infection and transmission of COVID-19." "Moreover, combat athletes often need medical attention after the fight, and we don't want to see any additional pressure on a really stressful medical system."
To host an event, White will have to find first-class doctors willing to work against the ARP recommendation. UFC is likely to actually have to employ its own judges and governors while it serves as its own regulatory body, as most state sports committees will not currently allow an event to occur in their jurisdictions.
White has tried to tackle the rest of the team's sporting plot to deal with the epidemic in the past five weeks. UFC had a full combat card in an empty square in Brazil last month, but had to cancel its next three scheduled offers when even the original Nevada did not allow the promotion of fighting in an empty square.
Most UFC fighters have expressed their desire to fight during the epidemic. Mixed martial artists are generally paid only if they fought, although Bellator and other promotions have paid to fighters whose seizures were canceled due to the epidemic in recent weeks.
Ferguson (25-3) is a longtime lightweight competitor who has been booked to fight Nurmagomedov five times. Every seizure failed due to injury or other conditions.
Gaethje (20-2) is among the most exciting UFC fighters, with a mind-free combat mindset indicating an exciting confrontation with reckless Ferguson.
I'm terrified and ... I love it, "Gaytigi tweeted after the announcement.
Nurmagomedov announced last week that he had no intention of leaving his homeland of Dagestan, noting that travel restrictions in Russia had made this impossible. The undefeated hero later claimed that he would be willing to go into combat, but was unable to plan because he did not know where and when it would happen.
UFC 249 was originally based at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Read More: Coronavirus: ATP, WTA Seasons Suspended Until June 7
