Dana White Reacts To Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine And Reveals What It Means For Russian UFC Fighters
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UFC president Dana White has 'no idea' about the status of Russian fighters set to complete on upcoming cards amid the country's invasion of Ukraine.
Russia's assault of Ukraine has prompted sporting organisations and countries cancelling the visas of Russian athletes.
Heavyweight contender Alexander Volkov's headline clash at UFC London this month is in jeopardy as a result of U.K's sanctions.
I have cancelled the visas of the Belarusian Men’s Basketball Team who were due to play in Newcastle tomorrow night.
— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) February 26, 2022
The UK will not welcome the national sports teams of those countries who are complicit in Putin’s unprovoked and illegal invasion of #Ukraine.
The Russian fighter is thought to have received the necessary documents to compete in the U.K, but the status of his bout against Tom Aspinall remains unknown.
White is even trying to get Volkov into the country sooner to avoid possible sanctions ahead of his March 19 fight at the O2 Arena.
On Aspinall vs. Volkov, he revealed via MMA Junkie: "We’re trying to get him into England sooner so he can fight.
"When things like this start blowing up, we start looking at potential problems and what possibilities are, and we try to get around them.
"We try to figure out, 'If that’s going to happen, let’s get these guys into England earlier.'
"I know that we’ve been trying to get Volkov to leave Russia, and he hasn’t wanted to."
Dana White in a great mood.
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) March 1, 2022
Listen to @aaronbronsteter's Full Interview here:https://t.co/fhQqlKffHc pic.twitter.com/sApJ7yQutq
Another fight which could be in doubt is the UFC bantamweight title fight between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan.
The undisputed clash is slated to take place at UFC 273 in April, but it could be in danger of being postponed in wake of Vladimir Putin's decision to invade Ukraine.
White added: "Like I tell you guys all the time, just when you think the world’s about to get normal again, it gets even nuttier.
"So, we’ll see how it works out. You keep asking me questions like, 'Will Conor McGregor fight for the title when he comes back in the fall?' I don’t know what’s going on in the fall. When the fall comes, we’ll see what’s happening.
"'If Petr Yan cannot get into the country?' I have no idea what’s going to happen with Russia and all these other things. I don’t know."
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Topics: UFC, Dana White, Russia