Thank you UFC fans!!!
– Sold out in minutes. One of the fastest sell outs in UFC
history.
– Arena record for highest gross.
– 15k attendance
I will see you in Jacksonville pic.twitter.com/mPwmOf4Saa— danawhite (@danawhite)
March 26, 2021
Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. The Ultimate Fighting Championship had no issues
filling its first arena back with full fan capacity.
UFC President Dana White celebrated on Twitter
on Friday that the Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville,
Fla., has completely sold out. The venue in Florida’s most populous
city holds 15,000 fans, and UFC
261 is being allowed 100 percent capacity for the card. Per
White, the ticket sales broke the record for the highest gross in
the arena’s history, while clocking in as one of the quickest
sellouts in UFC history.
The promotion headed to this arena back in 2020 after the
cancellation of several cards that March and April. Although no
fans were in the building, the UFC staged three events including
UFC 259, UFC Fight Night 171 and UFC on ESPN 8. These shows were
the first ones back after the break, thanks to the lax Florida
restrictions relative to other states and their respective
commissions. While the UFC considered Florida for earlier shows, it
turned its gaze to California and the Tachi Palace before the state
and the broadcast partner’s parent company nixed the potential
cards. The coronavirus pandemic is not yet over, as vaccinations
increase but spikes are still prevalent in the Sunshine State.
MMA
Mania posted a screenshot of the Assumption of Risk waiver that
fans are required to sign in order to purchase tickets. Even though
the provision is standard as far as live events go during the
pandemic, the specific language drew ire from MMA fans.
“The Holder fully understands and agrees that…attendance at
[UFC 261] may lead to exposure to COVID-19 and that contraction of
COVID-19 may result in severe and permanent damage to the health of
the Holder and/or others, including, but not limited to, death,
fever, weight loss, irreversible pulmonary, respiratory and/or
neurological system damage, loss of taste or smell, mental or
emotional distress, temporary or permanent disability, loss of
income, loss of employment, loss of financial or other
opportunities, medical expenses, which may or may not be covered by
insurance, cleaning expenses, mandatory self-quarantine…”
The blockbuster UFC 261 event takes place on April 21, in front of
a packed house at the Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in
Jacksonville. There, fans will be treated to a trio of championship
affairs, first at strawweight between Weili Zhang
and Rose
Namajunas. The focus on gold then shifts to the flyweight
division, when Valentina
Shevchenko puts her crown up for grabs against Jessica
Andrade. The evening will be capped off by a rematch and grudge
match between Kamaru
Usman and Jorge
Masvidal at welterweight. The main card will be bolstered by a
pair of top-10 matchups as Chris
Weidman rematches Uriah Hall at
middleweight while Anthony
Smith comes to blows with Jimmy Crute
at light heavyweight.
