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UFC fighters and their cornermen are now required to pay for their own COVID-19 testing expenses, according to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani.
Until recently, the UFC used to send free test kits to United States-based fighters and pay for international fighters' pre-departure tests. Since UFC 269 however, that is reportedly no longer the case.
Helwani reported the changes in the UFC's policy in a Substack post. He wrote:
"As of this weekend's UFC card, fighters and corners will be responsible for paying for their own COVID testing expenses, I'm told. Up until this point, fighters and corners did a 10-day pre-departure test, domestically and internationally. That was paid for by the UFC. International fighters/corners went to labs, domestic fighters/corners were sent kits. As of this weekend, they are responsible to take and pay for the tests themselves."
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As of May 2020, 79 different fighters were reported to have tested positive for COVID-19. On top of that, several high-profile fighters were forced to withdraw from scheduled bouts due to the virus, including Amanda Nunes, Glover Teixeira, Khamzat Chimaev, Leon Edwards, Paulo Costa and Miesha Tate.
UFC president Dana White's stance on COVID-19 vaccines
UFC president Dana White has spoken out against a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for fighters. White said he would leave it up to the fighters to choose whether or not they wanted to get vaccinated. The UFC boss told Fox News:
"My fighters can get vaccinated or not. I believe as an American, that's your choice. If you want to get vaccinated – your body. This is a free country. You do what you want. If you're vaccinated and you want to come to the event, you can come to the event in New York. If you're not, we're gonna be putting on 44 events around the country, you can go to one of those shows."
White recently revealed that he and his entire family had tested positive for COVID-19 after a Thanksgiving gathering. In an appearance on The Jim Rome Podcast, he shared that he approached UFC commentator Joe Rogan for advice on how to deal with the virus.
Watch Dana White's full appearance on The Jim Rome Podcast below:
