UFC COVID-19 update: Vaccinated fighters, coaches no longer subject to fight week testing beginning with UFC 270

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has once again updated its COVID-19 protocols, and the new changes will be a sigh of relief for everyone. Well, everyone who is vaccinated that is ...

According to a letter sent by UFC to all fighters, those who are vaccinated will no longer be subject to being tested during fight week, beginning with UFC 270, which is set to go down this Saturday night (Jan. 22, 2022) in Anaheim, California.

“No testing is required if you have proof of vaccination on record with UFC or if you can provide proof upon check-in at the host hotel (digital copy, photo, hard copy, etc),” read the letter, according to MMA Fighting. “If UFC does not have your proof of vaccination on record and if you cannot provide proof of vaccination in-person, you will be considered unvaccinated and must test as per the procedures below.”

The change applies to all fighters, coaches and cornermen who will accompany fighters during the event. Of course, every person traveling to UFC 270 still has to take a test and provide a negative result at least three days before arriving at the event’s location.

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OCTAGON RETURNS TO THE GREAT WHITE NORTH! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Canada for the first time in almost four years when it hosts UFC 289 inside Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Sat., June 10, 2023. In UFC 289’s pay-per-view (PPV) main event, women’s Bantamweight champion, Amanda Nunes, will lock horns with No. 5-ranked 135-pound contender, Irene Aldana, while former Lightweight kingpin and current No. 1-seeded contender, Charles Oliveira, battles No. 4-ranked Beneil Dariush in the co-feature with 155-pound title implications on the line.

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Masks will still be required by vaccinated and unvaccinated fighters alike. Speaking of which, any person who has yet to get the vaccine must be tested twice with negative results during fight week to attend the event on fight night. If arriving later than Thursday before the event, only one test is required.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), vaccinated people can still contract and spread COVID-19, though they spread the virus for a shorter period of time when compared to those who are unvaccinated. Furthermore, the vaccine is designed to prevent serious illness and/or death.

The new policy will almost surely limit the number of last-minute fight cancelations, which has ravaged numerous events over that past 1.5 years.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 270 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 270: “Ngannou vs. Gane” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.