Dana White was not a fan of the questioning.
Ahead of Canelo Alvarez and Terrance Crawford’s fight in Las Vegas, Nevada, on September 13th, a press conference was held, and hosting it was UFC CEO and Zuffa Boxing executive Dana White.
One of the questions presented to White had to do with potential changes to the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act. Here’s an excerpt of the Act that was passed in the year 2000:
Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act – Amends the Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996 (the Act) to direct the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC) to develop and approve by a vote of at least a majority of its member State boxing commissioners guidelines for: (1) minimum contractual provisions that should be included in bout agreements and boxing contracts; and (2) objective and consistent written criteria for the ratings of professional boxers. Expresses the sense of Congress that State boxing commissions should follow such guidelines.
Declares that a contract provision shall be considered to be in restraint of trade, contrary to public policy, and unenforceable, against any boxer to the extent that it contains a coercive provision as provided in this Act and that: (1) it is for a period greater than a year; or (2) the other boxer under contract to the promoter came under that contract pursuant to a coercive provision. Specifies that no subsequent contract provision extending any rights or compensation covered herein shall be enforceable against a boxer if the effective date of the contract containing such provision is earlier than three months before the expiration of the relevant time period. Makes this paragraph applicable to any contract between a commercial broadcaster and a boxer, or granting any rights with respect to that boxer, involving a broadcast in or affecting interstate commerce, regardless of the broadcast medium.
A reporter asked White why he wants to make changes to an Act that helps fighters and bring forth a business model to the sport of boxing that has UFC paying over $300 million in antitrust lawsuits, in addition to the company facing potential class action lawsuits. White responded with the following:
“Well, this is obviously a long discussion. If you wanna talk to me about that, set up an interview. This isn’t about me and my business. This is about these two guys on Saturday night.” The reporter tried to ask a follow-up question about the same subject, and White responded, “Listen, listen, I get it, you wanna showboat right now. Set up an interview with me if this is really what you wanna talk about. If you had questions for these two, ask ‘em and you can set up an interview with me.” Reporter asked White if TKO can’t make changes to the Ali Act, will White continue investing in boxing, and White responded, “Listen, if you wanna be an asshole, let’s do it in private and we can do an interview. If you wanna showboat, I get it… This isn’t a discussion to have at a press conference for these two that are gonna fight on Saturday. Two legends.”
Zuffa Boxing is in conjunction with the Chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, Turki Al-Sheikh. It was announced that WWE WrestleMania 43 is coming to Saudi Arabia in 2027, and Al-Sheikh was present at the press conference.
If the quote in this article is used, please credit the original source with an H/T to Fightful for the transcription.
