Full Card Released For UFC 249

By Fight Sports Apr 7, 2020

Following up on is word, UFC President Dana White has released the full card for UFC 249. Set to take place on April 18, the card features a variety of athletes willing to step up and fight during a time of uncertainty as a result fo the coronavirus.

The main event was announced early yesterday, as Tony Ferguson will battle Justin Gaethje for the UFC interim Lightweight Title. This comes after UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov returned to Russia to quarantine, citing a lack of location for the event a main reason why. The co-main event will be a rematch between former champions Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade. That bout was promised when the event was meant to take place inside the Barclays Center.

THE WHOLE CARD 🤯

See you on ESPN+ PPV. #UFC249 pic.twitter.com/J8jPBENMrs

— UFC (@ufc) April 7, 2020

Andrade was told to stay ready just in case she was needed.

A total of 12 bouts have been confirmed for the event. Many are from the original UFC 249 plans, while others have been added from prior events. Francis Ngannou v. Jairzinho Rozenstruik, originally set for UFC Columbus on March 28, was moved to the card. UFC Columbus was one of three events that the UFC were forced to cancel as a result of the coronavirus.

Other bouts scheduled for the event include:

Calvin Kattar v. Jeremy Stephens – an original from UFC 249
Uriah Hall v. Ronaldo Souza – an original from UFC 249
Greg Hardy v. Yorgan De Castro – originally set for UFC Columbus
Vicente Luque v. Niko Price
Alexander Hernandez v. Omar Morales – Hernandez was supposed to face Islam Makhachev, but restriction from Russian air travel forced the latter to be pulled from the event
Marlon Vera v. Ray Borg – Vera was originally set for UFC Columbus in a bout against Eddie Wineland
Michael Johnson v. Khama Worthy – Johnson was set to face Evan Dunham at UFC Lincoln on April 25
Sijara Eubanks v. Sarah Moras – an original from UFC 249
Ryan Spann v. Sam Alvey – Spann was supposed to face Paul Craig at UFC London, while Alvey was supposed to face Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC Columbus

Dana White has been adamant that UFC 249 would be going on as planned, even if the event location was kept secret for so long. The Nevada, New York and California Athletic Commissions have all barred combat sports from taking place, while several other states have ensured that fights were not going to happen there. Following an address, President Trump and the coronavirus task force stated that events with 10+ people should not an option.

Now, Dana has a card full of fighters ready and willing to compete on the brightest stage possible.