UFC 249: Short notice makes fill-in Justin Gaethje bigger underdog vs. Tony Ferguson

How determined is UFC president Dana White to go forward with next Saturday's UFC 249 card and give Americans a major sporting event to watch and bet on during the coronavirus pandemic? White says he has secured a private island somewhere in the United States that will host not just the 12 fights scheduled for the April 18 card but weekly fights for the next two months.

White will not say where that island is and there will be no fans in attendance. It's a bizarre yet fairly creative idea to be sure. UFC 249 was supposed to be headlined by unbeaten lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov against top contender Tony Ferguson, but Khabib had to pull out because he was in lockdown in Russia due to the coronavirus.

It's the fifth time that a Khabib-Ferguson fight has been scheduled and then scuttled for one reason or another. Khabib had been a -315 favorite at William Hill sportsbook with Ferguson at +265.

The 36-year-old Ferguson (25-3) instead will fight for the interim lightweight title against fellow American and 31-year-old Justin Gaethje (21-2). Ferguson opened as a -180 favorite as he enters on a 12-fight winning streak – his last loss was May 2012 against Michael Johnson.

Gaethje, priced at +160, has followed back-to-back losses with three straight first-round KO/TKO wins – two of those victories as a betting underdog as he is here. For what it's worth, Gaethje beat Johnson as recently as July 2017 by second-round TKO when Gaethje was an underdog.

"It should be a great fight," said Nick Bogdanovich, William Hill's U.S. Director of Trading. "Gaethje normally wouldn't be priced at +160 here, but taking the fight on short notice while Ferguson has had ample time to prepare is a very big factor. ….

"I don't see a letdown for Ferguson despite not getting the opportunity to face Nurmagomedov. There will be a lot of new viewers tuning into this match, so Ferguson should be focused for this one."

UFC 249 will begin on April 18 with early prelims on ESPN+, then more prelims at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN and finally the main card at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view.