UFC 261 first sold-out indoor event, face masks not mandatory

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

 

The new normal of sports is slowly taking shape as Dana White and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will be catering to a full capacity crowd this coming UFC 261.

The sold-out event will be featuring three title bouts headlined by strawweight champion Zhang Weili against former champ Rose Namajunas, women’s flyweight champion Valentina Schevchenko squaring off against Jessica Andrade and the most-anticipated welterweight rematch between champion Kamaru Usman and challenger Jorge Masvidal.

This is the first-ever sold-out major indoor event since COVID-19 pandemic broke out last March 2020.

As quarantine measures eased, some health protocols were also altered including the choice of wearing the face mask.

The UFC announced that face masks will no longer be mandatory in UFC 261 but everyone will have to go under the system of security company CLEAR.

CLEAR will impose COVID-19 measures in the venue using an online and an on-site screening procedure that will flash COVID-related health questionnaires.

Moreover, CLEAR’s additional feature in their system can detect and verify COVID-19 related information for the fans who will about to enter the venue.

Fans who are opposed to CLEAR’s protocols may opt not to enter the event and will have the option to have their ticket refunded.

Currently, commissioner Adam Silver and the NBA are already in talks with CLEAR to help them arrange the same system to be deployed at UFC 261.