The UFC president had insisted that the MMA pay-per-view showcase scheduled for April 18 would go on in spite of public health concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic.
White told Okamoto that he got a call from the “highest level” at ESPN and its parent company Disney and that “the powers that be there asked me to stand down and not do this event next Saturday.”
ESPN is UFC’s broadcast partner.
UFC looked to skirt COVID-19 safety protocols
The event was originally scheduled for Brooklyn’s Barclays Center before the coronavirus took hold in the United States and led to the suspension of all major sporting events and other large gatherings.