UFC president Dana White is desperate for the coronavirus lockdown to end - so he can get Conor McGregor back in the ring in front of a crowd.
McGregor had wanted to fight three times in 2020 as he made his UFC comeback - but his plans were thrown into disarray by the coronavirus crisis.
The MMA promotion will return on Saturday night when Tony Ferguson takes on Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title at UFC 249, with no fans in attendance due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
And in a bid to keep the show on the road amid the pandemic, former two-weight champion McGregor could next be in action at a venue being built by the UFC on a private, unknown island.
After McGregor stopped Donald Cerrone in just 40 seconds in January in his fight for more than a year, White is considering pitting 'The Notorious' against Jorge Masvidal at the island venue, which is expected to be ready by the middle of June.
But the UFC chief admits he will miss the money that comes with ticket sales for a McGregor show.
“It’s tough to give up a Conor McGregor gate," said White, in quotes reported by The Mac Life.
"It’s tough to do. I talked to him yesterday and he wants to fight and he’s excited about tomorrow too.
"He was like, 'This is so awesome. Good luck tomorrow. Hope this goes off’.
“He doesn’t like the idea of fighting without a crowd either, but he wants to fight, you know, so I don’t know. We’ll have to see how this thing plays out."
White said a McGregor fight in front of an audience could rake in anything between $5million and $18m.
"You do a Conor McGregor fight in the right place, you can do an $18m gate," White added.
"That’s a big number to give up. I mean, even giving up $5m.
“I don’t know how long this thing’s going to last, or, you know, who knows?
"We’re just gonna put on fights, man. That’s what we do and it’s what we’re going to keep doing. And hopefully, I don’t have to do this for two years with no gate.”
