UFC 249: Justin Gaethje beats Tony Ferguson to bag interim lightweight crown

Florida: Justin Gaethje bagged the UFC interim lightweight title at UFC 249 after he produced a stellar show to beat Tony Ferguson behind closed doors in Jacksonville here.

"Thank God for not having the crowd," Hardy was quoted as saying by BBC in his post-fight interview.

"Shout out to DC. I heard him tell me to check him, so I started trying to check him. Game changer."

The UFC had to cut a bout from its Jacksonville fight card after a fighter and two of his cornermen tested positive for coronavirus, the mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion stable had announced.

Middleweight Jacare Souza was slated to fight USA's Uriah Hall at UFC 249. "UFC's medical team examined Souza and his two cornermen and found them to be currently asymptomatic, or not exhibiting the common symptoms of COVID-19," said the UFC.

UFC 49 was originally set to be held on April 18 at the Barclays Centre in New York featuring Khabib Nurmagomedov defending his UFC Lightweight Championship belt against Tony Ferguson.

Nurmagomedov first had to pull out due to Russia's travel restrictions due to the pandemic. While he was replaced by Justin Gaethje, the event itself eventually had to be cancelled and moved to May 9 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.