At the final press conference before the fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford, Dana White ended up in the eye of the storm.
The UFC president, who had claimed that what he enjoys most is when “the night goes by quickly,” looked uncomfortable when facing questions about the Muhammad Ali Act and the amendments that TKO -UFC and WWE’s parent company- would support.
Canelo saves the moment
When the tension rose, Canelo Alvarez‘s wit came to the fore. The super middleweight champion interrupted with a “Fight, fight, fight, fight!” which drew laughter and lightened the mood. The comment came just as FightHype’s Sean Zittel questioned White about proposed changes to the law protecting boxers and the recent antitrust lawsuit that the UFC settled with a multi-million dollar payout.
Zittel did not hold back: “Why do you want to implement a business model that has already forced your company to pay $375 million and still faces pending class action lawsuits?” The question was aimed directly at TKO’s role and the possibility of boxing ending up under a system similar to that of the UFC, where the promoter also acts as a sanctioning body and controls the fighters.
White does not give ground
Visibly annoyed, White responded:
“Obviously this is a long conversation. If you want to talk about it, schedule an interview with me. It’s not about me or my business. It’s about these two guys who are going to fight on Saturday.”
If you want to talk about it, schedule an interview with me
The UFC president insisted several times that this was not the place to discuss such a complex issue, and accused Zittel of wanting to “show off” in the middle of the conference.
The exchange went viral on social media and once again put on the table the discussion about the amendments to the Muhammad Ali Act, a topic that worries both fighters and fans. Even so, White reminded that there was a time and place for everything.
Meanwhile, fans’ expectations remain focused on the essentials: a historic fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford that promises to be a watershed moment in boxing.
Read the full article here
