Coronavirus: UFC Fight Night 171 moved from London and now set for United States
- Published
Saturday's UFC Fight Night event in the Brazilian capital Brasilia took place behind closed doors
UFC Fight Night 171 has been moved from London because of travel restrictions imposed by the United States as a result of the coronavirus outbreak and is set to take place in the US instead.
The US-European travel ban will include the UK from 04:00 GMT on Tuesday.
Britain's Leon Edwards was set to face former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley in London but has withdrawn.
"The fight can't obviously continue in London, but it will go on," said UFC president Dana White.
"We are working on finding a new venue, likely to be in the United States, and I have my matchmakers working on putting the undercard together."
Birmingham fighter Edwards said it was not possible to find a viable solution at short notice for rearranging the bout, which was due to take place at the O2 Arena on Saturday.
"Myself and my team are all fathers, husbands, sons and brothers, and not all of us can leave our families right now," Edwards said on social media.
"I wish we could have found a way for the fans, I truly do. I have been dreaming of headlining a UFC show in my home country since I started this sport. This cancellation is truly heartbreaking.
"I have never worked harder and never been more prepared for the biggest moment in my career. But I know that the whole world is hurting right now and this is bigger than me, this is bigger than sports."
Woodley is still keen to fight and has called out fellow American Colby Covington.
While the spread of coronavirus around the world has impacted the staging of sporting events globally, the UFC is not planning to cancel any events, with White saying he is keen to proceed after talking about the implications with US President Donald Trump.
"I talked to the President and the Vice President of the United States about this and they're taking this very seriously and they're saying 'be cautious and be careful but live your life and stop panicking'," White told ESPN.
One of those events, UFC Fight Night 170 in the Brazilian capital Brasilia, went ahead on Saturday but behind closed doors - with large gatherings of people currently banned in the city.
In the main event, underdog Charles Oliveira of Brazil claimed a shock submission win over American Kevin Lee that was greeted by an eerie silence at the empty Ginasio Nilson Nelson Arena.