A lot hinged on the success of the UFC’s Saturday night return to Las Vegas with the first live sporting event in Nevada since the widespread coronavirus shutdowns began more than two months ago.
With the promotion hoping to stage fight cards without spectators for the foreseeable future at its UFC Apex facility — and other sports leagues potentially staging their own games or events locally — it needed the first one to go off without a hitch.
By all accounts, that happened as the UFC followed the new protocols enacted by the Nevada State Athletic Commission and saw its 11-fight event on ESPN proceed as planned.