Tony Ferguson hasn’t lost in eight years. Justin Gaethje has 18 knockouts in 21 career victories. The two are set to collide for the interim lightweight title in UFC 249, a pay-per-view card Saturday night in Jacksonville, Fla.
The sport of boxing will be keeping score.
Not blow by blow for Ferguson-Gaethje or any of the other 11 bouts scheduled that night, but day by day.
Boxing is keenly interested in how the UFC and its president Dana White plan to conduct the event in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
That includes Texas, which is beginning to put together guidelines for a possible return to action after COVID-19 KO’d the sport in mid-March.
“We’ll be watching,” said Greg Alvarez, manager of the combative sports division for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Since March, the TDLR has had to cancel more than 25 professional boxing and MMA events statewide, including five in San Antonio, because of the health crisis.
The Jacksonville show is important because it could open the door for not only MMA and boxing, but all major sports.
UFC is promising strict safety measures for the event, including mandatory medical screenings and COVID-19 tests throughout fight week for fighters and corner people.
UFC reportedly has 1,200 tests on hand for the event, with results available in 24 hours, and people have already been filmed getting tested for the coronavirus.
The event will be held without fans at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville.
The UFC began administering both the diagnostic swab coronavirus test and the antibody test when the fighters arrived Tuesday.
After passing through a medical checkpoint, they were to receive credentials to be worn at all times at the host hotel. Fighters and corners were asked to avoid mingling in large groups and to try and self-isolate until their test results came back.
Daily temperature readings and symptom checks were scheduled, and the teams were provided private workout rooms for training and reducing weight.
“In today’s world, it’s as safe as possible,” said Dr. Donald Muzzi, chief ringside physician for the Florida State Boxing Commission. “We’re living in a new normal.”
Other precautions include limiting the number of arena staff and media members in attendance. Organizers have discussed having the referees wear mask and eye protection.
“When this event is over, we’re going to step back and see what we’ve learned,” Muzzi said.
Texas and other state commissions — not to mention the nation’s major sports leagues — will be taking note.
TDLR’s medical advisory board is scheduled to meet soon to discuss steps for a return for combative sports.
Boxing received a boost Tuesday when Abbott said gyms could re-open with restrictions May 18. Local boxers have had to resort to training in makeshift facilities set up in garages and backyards.
The ability to stage boxing events is the next logical step.
Because boxing has no central governing body, officials are hoping for a series of universal guidelines from the Association of Ringside Physicians (ARP) for state commissions to follow.
Boxing’s major ratings organizations are expected to author their own protocols.
The WBC released its plan this week, calling for promoters and state commissions to put boxers and their teams into 14 days of isolation before staging events behind closed doors.
The WBC also set out guidelines for remote judging, whereby judges will score bouts by watching the fight live via TV from home, logging into a WBC portal and then scoring the fight after every round.
Saturday’s UFC 249 card is one of three events the organization is planning in Jacksonville over an eight-day period.
Alvarez and other Texas officials will be watching. So will Cameron Davies, a local businessman and boxing promoter with Davies Entertainment. His boxing show, originally scheduled for March 28, has been rescheduled for June 13.
TDLR has not made a determination as to when or if boxing events will return to action.
Davies said he’s pushed back the June 13 show to July or August, despite selling 2,200 tickets.
“I just don’t want to get anybody (sick),” he said. “Boxing is dangerous enough as it is. The last thing you want to do is come back too early.”
Twitter: @johnfwhisler
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All eyes on UFC card in Florida - Houston Chronicle
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