Christchurch gym owner Tim McIlroy is disappointed his Domination Fight Series couldn't go ahead
The event originally planned for March 20 had to be rescheduled to August 14.
"I thought was a joke," McIlroy said.
"Woolston Boxing called and asked if I'd seen the news. I hadn't, I'd been doing classes. And then my phone just exploded."
A number of fights were scheduled for the event, including five kickboxing fights, an exhibition bout and an MMA title bout between two out-of-town fighters.
"It's hard for all those guys. They've done their training camps and cut weight," McIlroy said.
Cutting weight refers to a process where in the lead-up to a fight, athletes will lose weight rapidly through a variety of methods. One fighter shed 12kg in six weeks for the event.
James Heo was one of the fighters on the card. A South Korean immigrant, he quit his job to find out what a fighter's life was like and has been living off his savings while training day and night.
"When I heard the alert I knew something was going to be bad," Heo said.
"I knew it would've been postponed. I was gutted. We worked so hard for it. All of us, my coach, supporters and teammates. I hope it gets rescheduled but we've gotta do our part to follow the rules and get the country back on track."
The event is to be rescheduled later this year.