UFC 249: Ferguson vs. Gaethje was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on May 9, 2020 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, United States.

However, it was announced on March 5 that Gane was forced to pull out of the event after he was struck by a pneumothorax in training and the bout was eventually scrapped.

[22][23] On March 12, New York governor Andrew Cuomo issued an order restricting mass gatherings and sporting events due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[citation needed] Four days later, UFC president Dana White announced via a letter to employees shared to the public that this event "is still scheduled as planned, but the location may change".

[27] Khabib Nurmagomedov stated on March 30 that he was in Dagestan and his participation at the event could be jeopardized due to travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[31] The UFC announced on April 6 that Nurmagomedov would be replaced by former WSOF Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje, with an interim title to be disputed between him and Tony Ferguson.

[33] The rest of the card also underwent changes, with the following fights being added as well:[34] The following fights were removed from the event and are expected to be rescheduled for future cards:[34] A location for the event was not revealed, but Dana White said the UFC's temporary home would host U.S.-based fighters who aren't barred from traveling domestically.

[38] On April 7, Secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation Halsey Beshears made a post on Twitter, offering to help sanction and host UFC events in the state.

While not officially announced by the promotion at the time, former two-time bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz (who hadn't fought since December 2016) was expected to replace him.

[3][4] Florida venues are permitted to host UFC events behind closed doors as a result of Executive Order 20-91 signed April 9, 2020 by governor Ron DeSantis, specifically stating as an essential service, "employees at a professional sports and media production with a national audience - including any athletes, entertainers, production team, executive team, media team and any others necessary to facilitate including services supporting such production - only if the location is closed to the general public.

The rest of the card featured the following fights:[53] Fights that were originally expected to take place at this event on April 18, but later expected to be rescheduled for future cards included Hernandez vs. Morales, Vera vs. Borg, Worthy vs. Johnson and a women's bantamweight bout between Sijara Eubanks and Sarah Moras.