Articles tagged as dana
Dana White Made Urijah Faber Believe He Was Fighting Ivan Menjivar
If you watched TUF Live last week, you know by now that Urijah Faber will be meeting Renan Barao for the UFC interim bantamweight title at UFC 148 on July 7th. But even right up until the announcement, Faber was all sorts of confused about who he'd actually be facing. Faber told Pro MMA Radio that Dana White 'basically lied to him' and that he was given the distinct impression that he'd be rematching Ivan Menjivar (the two met in a 2006 bout in the TKO promotion, where Menjivar lost by disqualification due to an illegal kick). Here's what he had to say (transcribed by MMA Mania):
"I had first assumed it was going to be Barao, or McDonald or Menjivar and Barao was my first prediction. I started getting tape on him as soon as I found out about Dominick. This was a couple of weeks ago. Then, when Dana came in to do the announcement, I asked him if there were any hints or insights on who it would be and he was saying 'Oh, you wouldn't believe what all had gone down, how McDonald broke his hand and Barao didn't want to leave Brazil, to leave Aldo's side, because Aldo was training' and all this crazy stuff, so I didn't know for awhile.
Then like two days before the thing, I had text Dana and he was basically lying to me, saying it was gonna be Menjivar. For like two days I thought I might be fighting Menjivar. Then the day of the announcement, I was like 'Are you sure it's not Barao?' And he was like, 'Yeah.' But I had a feeling that it was. Then Dana apologized right before he announced it, for basically lying, which is kinda weird, I thought, because Barao was there. I don't care who I fight, I told Dana I wouldn't say anything anyway, if he was thinking I might spoil the surprise, or what the deal was."
The whole thing sounds really odd. Faber's a company man and it seems pretty obvious that he wouldn't tell anyone who his opponent was going to be if he found out a little while before everyone else. Was Dana really lying to him? Or was it just crossed wires? Either way, Menjivar is now meeting Mike Easton on the card and Faber has a date with Barao.
SBN coverage of UFC 148: Silva vs. Sonnen II
Posted in: dana, faber, barao, menjivar, announcement i
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow
Urijah Faber: Dana White 'was basically lying' and telling me I was fighting Ivan Menjivar
Welcome to the world of network television, where every top secret plot has multiple endings to prevent spoilers or early leaks -- even if it means keeping your own cast and crew in the dark.
If Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight number one contender Urijah Faber looked surprised when he found out he would be fighting Renan Pegado at UFC 148 over the Fourth of July weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada, it's because he was.
UFC President Dana White told "The California Kid" on last Friday night's episode of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 15: "Live" that "Barao" would be filling in for the injured Dominick Cruz when the two square off for the 135-pound Interim belt this summer in "Sin City."
So what was so surprising about one of the worst kept secrets in all of mixed martial arts (MMA)?
Well, as Faber explains to Larry Pepe on this Thursday's edition of Pro MMA Radio, White "was basically lying" to him, insisting he would be fighting Ivan Menjivar in a rematch from their controversial 2006 fight in Canada, which ended in disqualification.
Those comments, after the jump.
"I had first assumed it was going to be Barao, or McDonald or Menjivar and Barao was my first prediction. I started getting tape on him as soon as I found out about Dominick. This was a couple of weeks ago. Then, when Dana came in to do the announcement, I asked him if there were any hints or insights on who it would be and he was saying 'Oh, you wouldn't believe what all had gone down, how McDonald broke his hand and Barao didn't want to leave Brazil, to leave Aldo's side, because Aldo was training' and all this crazy stuff, so I didn't know for awhile. Then like two days before the thing, I had text Dana and he was basically lying to me, saying it was gonna be Menjivar. For like two days I thought I might be fighting Menjivar. Then the day of the announcement, I was like 'Are you sure it's not Barao?' And he was like, 'Yeah.' But I had a feeling that it was. Then Dana apologized right before he announced it, for basically lying, which is kinda weird, I thought, because Barao was there. I don't care who I fight, I told Dana I wouldn't say anything anyway, if he was thinking I might spoil the surprise, or what the deal was."
Michael McDonald was likely the promotion's first choice for stepping in; however, "Mayday" broke his hand not long after pasting Miguel Torres back at UFC 145 in Atlanta. It sounds like Pegado needed some convincing -- and probably got it from "Junior" -- before ultimately accepting the fight against Faber on July 7.
In his absence, bantamweight "Hulk," Mike Easton, will step in on short notice and face off against "The Pride of El Salvador."
All's well that ends well, I suppose.
The UFC 148: "Silva vs. Sonnen II" fight card has gone into the shop for repairs (yet again), so make sure you check out our updated line-up right here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, faber, barao, menjivar
Read the full article at MMA ManiaFormer MMA Fighter Dan Quinn Leaves Voicemail Death Threats For Dana White
Dan Quinn is all kinds of crazy. A Californian MMA fighter with a 5-7 record, Quinn hasn't fought since 2010 after losing his last 3 fights in a row, and he never made it to the big leagues. Quinn became somewhat notorious online by putting out strange videos, and for his zealous belief in and endorsement of the supplement Stevia -- a sweet leaf sugar substitute that grows in the West of North and South America.
Dan Quinn is so passionate about the unfounded benefits of Stevia, he even managed to get UFC star Diego Sanchez to endorse its benefits a few years ago when he first made the cut to fight at 155lbs.Diego soon abandoned the cult of Stevia, and Quinn has since put out videos including one addressed to Sanchez titled "Diego Sanchez, I'd f--k your probably gay ass up, small guy"
The latest craziness from the 'Shaman of Stevia'? Leaving death threats on Dana White's voicemail.
Quinn is no stranger to directing rants at Dana White via youtube, but this time he's kicked it up a notch. On the voicemail, Quinn accuses Dana White of sending in hired guns to take him out and his family, to stop his Stevia movement, and so Quinn threatens to shoot Dana White in the head. Then a supposedly Irish man from Dublin leaves a couple of messages threatening Dana White for going after his boy Dan Quinn, insinuates a connection to the Boston Irish crime scene, and says he'll bomb Dana White and the Fertittas in response. This 'Irish' guy most likely being Dan Quinn doing a really bad accent. Among the three messages made available to TMZ, all are littered with the F-bombs and C-nukes you'd expect from someone as loony as Dan Quinn.
Dana White is taking it seriously though, and according to TMZ his security team have handed the tapes over to the Las Vegas police department for further investigation.
After the jump, video / audio of these death threats.
Posted in: dana, dan, quinn, stevia, dan quinn
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow
Former Fighter Dan Quinn Threatens To Put A Bullet In Dana White’s Head
Many fighters have said nasty things about UFC president Dana White over the years, but to my knowledge, none of them have ever threatened his life. Well, until now. According to TMZ, former fighter Dan Quinn obtained Dana White’s private number and left death threats on his voicemail. TMZ released the audio this morning of [...]
Posted in: fighter, dana, death threats, knowledge none, ’s head
Read the full article at MMA Convert
Former MMA fighter threatens to kill Dana White leaving voicemail messages threatening to blow up Dana's offices and put a bullet in the back of his head
submitted by IntelligentYinzer [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: dana, mma fighter, blow, danas offices, voicemail messages
Read the full article at Reddit
Dan Quinn has threatened to kill Dana White, but we just think it's the stevia talking
Last week my mom called to inform me that she bought a tray of stevia plants at Wal-Mart because they were on clearance. I told her she could harness the power of Jesus Christ if she mixed stevia with water and smoked marijuana accordingly. After she asked if I was intoxicated, I went on to tell her that if she teamed up with Dana White and placed stevia in the ocean to make 'Pure h20', they could create even more beach front property to sell to the rich. I inserted 'playa' and 'homeboy' at the end of each sentence in an attempt to draw her deeper into the Dan Quinn vortex. It worked. She's hooked on stevia and has seen nearly all of Dan Quinn's YouTube vlogs except this one.
This morning, TMZ released a video of The Saint of Stevia threatening the UFC president, Dana White. In actuality, this is nothing new. Dan Quinn has threatened Oprah, Dana White, Bill Gates and God in the past -- but it's always good to see Quinn make TMZ.
Also, we still plan to release our The Saint of Stevia documentary -- eventually.
Here are the audio tapes TMZ acquired of Quinn threatening to put a bullet through Dana White's head. For some reason, I think it's just Dan Quinn being Dan Quinn. The dude doesn't even know how to fire a gun without being 'spun' on stevia.
Posted in: dana, dan, quinn, stevia, dan quinn
Read the full article at Middle EasyFaber v. Barao confirmed for UFC 148.
For anyone who didn't see the TUF Live tonight, Dana just confirmed it. submitted by ialsolovebees [link] [5 comments]
Posted in: ufc, dana, anyone, faber, ialsolovebee
Read the full article at Reddit
Dana White diagnosed with Meniere's disease, surgery for UFC President
UFC President Dana White has been diagnosed with Meniere's disease, and is scheduled to undergo surgery in Los Angeles. Tuesday night's fight card at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia was the first event he has missed since he bought the UFC in January 2001. White spent the night watching the fights from home and tweeting with fans.White revealed the news via Twitter prior to the fights.
@kale_h123 I have minears disease. Sucks
— Dana White (@danawhite) May 15, 2012
@danrafaelespn first fight
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, disease, minears disease
Read the full article at Low KickThe Article That The UFC's Dana White Couldn't Let Go Unanswered
We've covered UFC president Dana White's response to Dave Meltzer's analysis of the UFC on Fox 3 ratings and we've covered Meltzer's response to Dana, but we haven't actually covered the Wrestling Observer article that got Dana so worked up.
Here are some of Meltzer's main points:
He called UFC on Fox 3, "a genuine XFL caliber ratings disaster"
"Males 18-34 declined from a 3.2 to a 1.6. These are not the kind of numbers that can keep you in prime time."
Meltzer acknowledges that a number of factors hurt the ratings including the Floyd Mayweather bout, the opening weekend of The Avengers, Cinco de Mayo, Kentucky Derby and NBA playoffs.
"...the show was not well marketed. FOX didn't advertise it as hard as the previous shows."
Says the question "is whether MMA on network TV is a novelty with a short shelf life, just like Celebrity Boxing..."
"...the (Fox TV) contract has had a lot of growing pains for both sides. No matter what is said publicly, FOX didn't pay the money it did for the ratings it's getting. And UFC can't be happy that less people are watching the product than on Spike."
"If this is part of a pattern, it is a big deal. As it is, this was the single most significant television ratings for any pro wrestling or MMA event since Shamrock vs. Ortiz (in Fall 2006) changed the way the television industry viewed UFC."
"If the issue is that UFC has burned out its audience with too much product, and this is just an example of this, along with the TUF ratings, then it's disastrous. The reason is, overexposure is a killer that it takes a long time to recover from, if you can. More so, overexposure, ie, burning out the audience, by the time you've figured out you've done it, the damage was done months or even years earlier."
"MMA has been around in Brazil since the 1930s, and gone through three booms, and it had a boom in Japan, and the end result is that in all cases, it never sustained."
"It's likely to wind up similar to boxing, where rank-and-file shows don't mean anything, but big shows with the two or three major superstars can set records on PPV."
"It's been successful for long enough that it's not a fad, but boxing isn't a fad either and if you put a secondary show on FOX on Saturday night, it's not going to last, That's why boxing hasn't been on network TV in prime time in eons."
"To me, the 8/4 show at the Staples Center in Los Angeles becomes the single most important event in UFC history. Another rating like that and it will give UFC the reputation that it's fine as a cable property, but it's simply not mainstream and can't survive in the expensive real estate section of network prime."
It should be clear from reading just these notes why Dana responded so strongly. Meltzer may have a relatively small audience at the subscription-only Wrestling Observer but his reputation as an analyst of the cable TV and pay-per-view businesses is well established.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, rating, meltzer
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowHow's Taste My Tweet Tweet? MMA on Twitter - Dana White To Undergo Surgery, How Ronda Rousey Handles Her Exes
A few updates on what's been going on in the MMA & UFC Twitterverse
HOW RONDA ROUSEY HANDLES EXES... OR WHATEVER YOU CALL THAT
"Okay ... Couldn't help tweeting this cause it felt too damn good sending this message to not share it" -Ronda Rousey
There's a ton of tweets after the jump, but first, don't forget to follow me on twitter: @antontabuena
Oh, and these guys are probably worth following as well: The Official BloodyElbow Twitter Account, Luke Thomas, Kid Nate, Brent Brookhouse, Richard Wade, Chris Barton, Damon O, Scott Broussard, Tim Burke, Matt Bishop, Fraser Coffeen, Dallas Winston, KJ Gould, Ben Thapa, Josh Nason, T.P. Grant.
DANA WHITE SITS OUT UFC ON FUEL TV 3... WILL GET SURGERY
"first fight I will miss in 11 years and it is KILLING me!!! I have to have surgery in LA 2 morrow or trust me I would be" -Dana White, get well soon.
"I'm hoping to be in and out quick. I have no time for this shit but it has to be done... now I have what's called minears disease it's like Vertigo but on steroids! Not fun... " -Dana White
"Lol now for the first time ever of sitting my ass at home watchin the fights I HATE not seeing the walk ins!!! Fix that shit @UFC" -Dana White
"Hey @chilledt5 we have to show walk ins from now on! This is BS! Everyone blow him up and Yell at @Lorenzofertitta too! I'm a fan 2 nite :) ...@chilledt5 and @lorenzofertitta fix the walk ins!!! We the fans want them!! What the he'll do u people do all day @UFC fix this shit!" -Dana White, gives Lorenzo and the UFC a preview of what he usually deals with during events.
TWICTURES
"New promo picture for @TeamGaspari !!!" -Ronda Rousey
"At the TUF gym in Vegas. Watching @LancePalmer & @chadmendes workout. #Weirdos" -Danny Castillo
"We go to the US！ 行って来まーす(^^)" -Megumi Fujii
"My very first Thai boxing coach Lee Smith, sadly lost his life in Moto accident gone to soon never forgotten" -Ross Pearson
RANDOM TWIDBITS
"Up bright and early in Hawaii gonna get some grub then do some lap swimming in the ocean. Sharks beware of the mouse....squeak!!!!!!!" -Demetrious Johnson
"Tax man, I know its wishful thinking but please spend that money well. I didn't suffer for it so some suit can eat $150 muffins. Thank you." -Dan Hardy
DANA WHITE ON DAVE MELTZER
"@danawhite Don't you think bring up Dave losing his job was below the belt? Was irrelevant to the argument.." -Random Fan
"yes like his story was. U kick me in the nuts I kick you back... Meltzer is a nice guy and I like him but his story was BS." -Dana White
SHANE CARWIN TROLLS HIMSELF
"Everyone knows the @UFC buys it's stars amazing cars. Here is what Uncle @DanaWhite got me. Do not be Jelly!" -Shane Carwin
"haters where is the "@DanaWhite got you that car so you would stop running out of gas". Step your game up, I shouldnt be insulting myself." -Shane Carwin
Posted in: ufc, dana, ronda rousey, rousey, rlm
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC President Dana White Misses First Event In 11 Years
UFC president Dana White has made it his mission to fly from state-to-state or country-to-country to never miss an event put on by the UFC. However, not even White could get himself to Virginia for Tuesday night’s UFC on FUEL TV: Korean Zombie vs. Poirier card. On his Twitter account, White confirmed that he would [...]
Posted in: ufc, event, dana, president, twitter account
Read the full article at MMA ConvertIt's cool that Dana sees it from our perspective now..
submitted by tekprodfx16 [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: tekprodfx, dana, perspective
Read the full article at RedditDana White Vs. Dave Meltzer: Meltzer Responds, Transcript Of Dana's Broadside
We posted video yesterday of UFC president Dana White's odd video blog for UFC on Fuel TV 3 which instead devoted itself entirely to Dana White responding to Wrestling Observer (and former Yahoo!) writer Dave Meltzer's analysis of the UFC on Fox 3 numbers (subscription required).
Meltzer responded in the WO Forum:
"Here's all I want to say.
Dana called me and told me what he was going to do ahead of time saying he didn't want to blindside me. He was pissed at the article in last week's Observer and if he's pissed he doesn't hold it in. And I've got no issue with that or with him. I wish he hadn't brought up the Yahoo thing just because it brings sympathy to me that I don't want and that it probably does him no benefit to the outside world to be doing. It appears he's kicking a guy when he's down and I'm not down, so it didn't bother me, but to the outside world, I don't know how it comes across. th someone
Rather than rallying around me or saying Dana's hurting into Eric or Vince, just read the article. If you think I wasn't fair and presenting both sides of the story, then he's right to be mad. If you think I was fair, then that's cool. Any discussions should be about the points in the article because if anyone thinks I'm mad at him, well, that's the furthest thing from the case.
As far as I'm concerned, I thought the article was fair. He didn't. We've disagreed before and agree far more than we disagree when it comes to the product."
Meltzer also commented on White's comments on the Figure 4 podcast with Bryan Alvarez. Here's a YouTube embed of the audio:
The complete transcript of Dana's statement is after the jump along with Jamie Penick's analysis of Dana's comments.
Dana White on Dave Meltzer (transcription via Fight Opinion):
"First of all, Dave Meltzer wrote this huge story, doom and gloom story on how the UFC and Fox is blowing this things because of the numbers that came out. First and foremost, DAVE, you know I like you, I respect you, but you just lost your job at Yahoo... and you want to give us business advice? I'm actually writing a story next week that I'm going to put out of all the ways I think you could have, all the things that I think you could have done to keep your job at Yahoo. That's story is coming out next week, Dave, you might want to read it, OK? And... what I want to explain to all the fans out there and people who aren't fans about what went on, uh, on Fox 3 Cinco de Mayo.
"First of all, we were the number one program of the night with all key male demos. Now, I know a lot of don't understand all of this but I'm going to break this thing down for you and explain it to you. During the last Quarter Hour, we ere the number one program of the night with all adult and male demos. We peaked at 3 million viewers during the main event, which is the way a show is supposed to build throughout the night! Now, Kevin Iole wrote in his story that we got beat by Shark Tank and NCIS with total viewers. OK? Let me explain to you how that works. Shark Tank, first of all, is a one hour show. 1.9 million of those viewers were 50 years old and older! They were 50-plus, 60% of the people that night were 50-plus years old! The median age on that show was 55 years old.
"And it gets better!
"NCIS, again a one-hour show, 3.3 million of their viewers were 55 years old and older. OK? That's 75% of the audience, 75% of the people that were watching that show were over 55 years old. The median age on that show was 63 years old. UFC on Fox median age was 39 years old. So, what does this all mean? Oh, and one more thing. The HUT levels that night. HUT levels that night and HUT levels mean total viewers watching television that night were down almost 10 million from the first Fox show that we did, down almost 10 million viewers. 10 million people weren't home watching TV that night. Well, it was Cinco de Mayo. The Avengers came out, which was you know the biggest opening in movie history. And one other thing - the NBA Playoffs that night that went off right around the same time we did, it was the San Antonio/Utah game, we beat them across the board in every way, shape, and form you can beat them. Right? Do you see the writers, uh, that cover the NBA going out there and going, ‘Oh my God, it's doom and gloom, what's going to happen to the NBA?' Because if we beat them and our situation is so bad, what does that say for the NBA?
"So, my point of this whole thing is: 1) guys, do your homework. Seriously, do your homework before you go out and start shooting your mouth off in stories about things being a fad and doom and gloom and all this stuff. You don't know enough about it to t-t-talk about it, right? And 2) Dave Meltzer, you just lost your job at Yahoo, buddy, OK? The last thing anybody needs from you is business advice."
One has to wonder what White is thinking with this broadside against Meltzer. The original piece was posted for paying subscribers to the Wrestling Observer only. That's an audience of a few thousand at most. White originally intended to take to the airwaves and respond on Fuel TV. That strikes me as a counter-productive step as it simply increases awareness of Meltzer's piece.
We'll post a summary of Meltzer's arguments tomorrow.
Here's what Jamie Penick of MMA Torch had to say about White vs. Meltzer:
Yes, ten million less people were at home that night watching TV, but guess what? The UFC didn't put forth the type of main event to make any of those ten million stay home. That's a very real part of the issue. Yes, Nate Diaz vs. Jim Miller was a great fight, and hardcore fans absolutely expected it to be, but the UFC was going to get them to watch regardless. They didn't have a fight that drew in the casual fan in droves; they didn't have the type of fight that made people say, "oh, I know The Avengers is out, I know it's Cinco de Mayo, I know there's other stuff on TV, but I HAVE to see that fight!" Simply put, the UFC wasn't "must see TV" on May 5 with the card they provided, not for the masses. While that doesn't mean the end of the world for the UFC on Fox, it should be at least somewhat concerning to see such a steep decline. Instead, White went on the attack.
And to address his attack on Meltzer regarding Yahoo!, it's not as if Meltzer was "fired" from Yahoo! because of a lack of quality or for his abilities in the realm of business advice. His Wrestling Observer newsletter has been a highly successful venture for decades. Yahoo! decided not put as much of their resources into covering MMA as they had been doing, and decided not to pay Meltzer what he would have rightfully felt he was owed. And in the time since Meltzer has left, the CEO that made those decisions at Yahoo! has lost his job as well. It's not something that has any bearing on the situation, but White uses it here as an attack. This was another in a long line of reactionary responses from White that distorts things on this front, while ignoring some of the reason why criticism is being levied in the first place.
Posted in: night, dana, yahoo, thing, meltzer
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow
Dana White to miss first UFC event in 11 years
UFC on FUEL TV 3 will be an historic event, as it will mark the first time in 11 years that UFC president Dana White will miss a UFC event.
Posted in: ufc, event, dana, year, ufc event
Read the full article at sportsnet.ca
Text of Dana White’s bizarre attack on Dave Meltzer
Clearly, Dana White is feeling the media pressure over the poor ratings UFC on Fox 3 drew on May 5th.
Posted in: dave meltzer, dana, rating, ratings ufc, media pressure
Read the full article at Fight OpinionDana White: People are 'braindead' to be shocked at Diaz no show
submitted by MoLiHuaLong [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: diaz, show, dana, people, molihualong
Read the full article at RedditDana White Offers Up His Take On Recent Nick Diaz Situation
UFC president Dana White was asked to comment on Nick Diaz and his no-show over the weekend at the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo. As expected, White offered up a very candid explanation via his Twitter account. @evan1evan no, not shocked and I’m surprised u people are! He no showed a Las Vegas press conf to a [...]
Posted in: diaz, nick diaz, nick, dana, people
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDon Frye: 'Dana Who? It’s the Fertitta’s check book and Joe Silva doing the bookings'
Mixed martial arts (MMA) legend Don Frye and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White apparently do not like each other.
You have to look no further than their recent verbal jabs aimed at each other through their Twitter accounts and MMA radio shows. "The Predator" feels that White ruined the sport of MMA by not paying fighters properly and bragging about his Ferraris, while White feels Frye is just a "bitter fighter."
Sure, when two people dislike one another, their usually is still some kind of respect that exists between the two in some shape or form. Just look at Rashad Evans and Jon Jones. The two had a bitter falling out that lead to one of the most heated and real "rivalries" in the sport of MMA. Yet, throughout the 12 months of back-and-forth jawing, there was still a level of respect there as far as competitors go.
However, not everyone feels the same way, especially Don Frye.
Appearing on The MMA Hour, Frye explains his beef with White and says that despite what many may believe, Dana White does not run the UFC and is only along for the ride "using someone else's money."
Check it out:
"Like I said the other day, my generation, I got caught up in this internet stuff and squabbles and all that. My generation don't really do that. I'm not doing it anymore, so, as far as I'm concerned, Dana who? You know? I'm done with it. If he wants to sit down over a beer and talk face to face, because I'm not playing this bullshit game anymore. I met him when he first bought, or when the Fertitta brothers first purchased UFC. I had an interview with him and it didn't go anywhere and next thing I know he is bad mouthing me on the internet, so, like a dumbass, I started bad mouthing him. So I'm done with it now, Dana Who? Look, it's the Fertitta's check book, Joe Silva doing the bookings, ok? That is all there is to it. Those three guys are very respectable. You don't hear any of them cussing or calling anybody, you know, foul language. Those three guys are good guys and they run the organization."
When asked if he respected what Dana has done for the UFC and the sport of MMA in general, Don didn't mince any words:
"Why, why? If he doesn't respect what I've done for the sport, why in the hell should I respect, you know, that he is using someone else's money and somebody else's booking intelligence? No I don't (respect what he has done for MMA). Look at the way he talks about me and all that. If he does respect me, then I'll never say anything bad about him again, I'm trying not to now."
Why don't you tell us how you really feel, Mr. Frye?
"The Predator" began his career with the UFC during the dark days of MMA, amassing a 9-1 record with the promotion during his 10-month stint. His only loss during that time came at the hands of Mark Coleman, which was for the UFC 10 tournament championship nearly 16 years ago.
The beef with one of the most powerful men in the sport will likely leave Frye out of the UFC Hall of Fame for the foreseeable future, unless, of course, White takes Frye up on his offer and decides to sit down with a cold beer and hash it all out.
What are the chances of that happening?
Posted in: ufc, mma, dana, frye, respect
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDoes Dana White wish he had a Floyd Mayweather Jr?
submitted by e_rosewater [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: mayweather, floyd, dana, jr, erosewater
Read the full article at RedditDana White: Faber will fight for the Interim belt, Cruz stays on TUF
Speaking on Fuel TV's "UFC Tonight", Ultimate Fighting Championship president, Dana White, has officially confirmed that Urijah Faber will still compete at UFC 148, for the Interim UFC Bantamweight title.
"I'm looking for the right opponent, the guy who deserves this shot at Urijah Faber," said Dana White, who has a number of options to choose from. Renan Barao (28-1, 3-0 UFC) and Michael McDonald (15-1, 4-0 UFC) are leading candidates to get a shot at Faber, although it looks like the decision will fall
Posted in: ufc, dana, faber, urijah faber, right opponent
Read the full article at Low KickWSJ: Dana White Says The UFC Is Bigger Than The NFL Globally
Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta sat down the with Wall Street Journal recently to discuss the rise and continued success of the UFC. It’s most of the same stuff we’ve heard a million times before, although Dana White does make a rather interesting proclamation about halfway through. He claims the UFC is already bigger than [...]
Posted in: ufc, dana, claim, lorenzo fertitta, wsj dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White needs to stop the waiting game
submitted by theomegachrist [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: dana, game, theomegachrist
Read the full article at RedditDana White and Lorenzo Fertitta says the UFC is bigger than the NFL in this video
The UFC is bigger than the NFL. End of article. Now discuss this in the comment section. The greatest user comment will get a shout-out at the end of this article. That's the only thing I can offer in the place of what should be an article. We're giving away a shot at MiddleEasy immortality, so don't screw this one up.
We're not sure what to say regarding Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta's statement that the UFC is larger than the NFL. Granted, we like the UFC more than we like the NFL. Fighters don't get penalized for excessive celebration and we're not forced to watch nonsensical half-time shows. My gaming skills are vastly superior at UFC Undisputed than they are at Madden 2012. I would even venture to say I know more past (and present) UFC fighters than I do with the entire NFL. In our universe, MMA is bigger than the NFL. However we exist in a bubble that is slowly expanding to a vast area that is populated with a plethora of sports that are culturally bound to our environment. Flag football was a staple when I was a kid, so going by Dana White's assessment, the kids today are playing flag MMA in their backyard.
Check out this video from The Wall Street Journal of Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta implanting thoughts into your head.
Posted in: ufc, dana, thing i, nfl, lorenzo fertitta
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Says UFC is 'Neck And Neck With Soccer' On A Global Basis
UFC President Dana White and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta recently sat down with Lee Hawkins of the Wall Street Journal to talk about the company. The interview is about five minutes long, and sticks mostly to the business side of things. They discuss each of their roles in the company, and why they bought it in the first place.
There are two interesting quotes that came out of the video - first, Dana said that 70% of their fighters have a college education (something he's repeated often, but I'm not sure anyone's actually sat down to verify that). The other is a whopper - according to Dana, on a global basis, they're bigger than the NFL and "neck and neck with soccer". That's a pretty dubious claim to me. They might be able to get away with the NFL claim because the sport has little presence outside North America. But soccer? Come on now.
You can check out the video below the jump.
Posted in: dana, soccer, neck, basis theyre, lee hawkins
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Talks UFC on FOX 3, Nate Diaz and Anthony Pettis
Video: UFC on FUEL TV: Dana recaps UFC on FOX 3 Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White following the conclusion of UFC on FOX 3 to get his thoughts on the fights and where Nate Diaz and Anthony Pettis stand in the lightweight division following the event. Video via FoxSports.com
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, talks ufc, event video
Read the full article at MMA ConvertWhat Floyd Mayweather said to Dana White..
submitted by tekprodfx16 [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: mayweather, tekprodfx, floyd, floyd mayweather, dana
Read the full article at RedditCheck out these photos from today’s UFC on FOX presser at the legendary Beacon Theater
The best press conferences are ones that start with “Hey Dana, What’d you think of the last main event – cause I thought it sucked”. Any questions after that just aren’t going to be nearly as obnoxious unless Stephen Cofield is there (which he wasn’t). Once the media regained control of the microphone from the fan that snuck into press row, this scrum taught us that Josh Koscheck loves when you to ‘Boo’ him, Nate Diaz encourages you to eat organic, and hollow-point bullets have no effect on Lavar Johnson’s health. Beyond that, fans continued to nag Dana White for free tickets, and New Yorkers really want MMA to be legal in their state. That's really about it. Oh, and Pat Barry doesn't like airplanes, but we we already knew that. We know all you want is fresh original content, so here are some stare down pictures and a video of what Dana White expects this Saturday Night.
Posted in: dana, wasn ’t, nate diaz, press row, nag dana
Read the full article at Middle Easy
Dana White UFC on FOX 3 Presser Scrum
Dana White talks about several topics after the UFC on FOX 3 pre-fight press conference.
Posted in: ufc, fox, conference, dana, prefight
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseDana White Would Like to See More Ex-Fighters Become Officials
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: dana, official, mattyblayze, exfighter
Read the full article at RedditHow's Taste My Tweet Tweet? MMA on Twitter - Dana White Reacts Being Called A Homosexual
A few updates on what's been going on in the MMA & UFC Twitterverse
DANA WHITE VS. FAN WHO CALLS HIM GAY
"@danawhite I think your gay" -Random Female Fan Trolling
"@chu_nay_nay relax nunchucanaynay" -Dana White
"@danawhite well are you?" -Random Female Fan Trolling
"what if I am?" -Dana White
"@danawhite no hate in that "once you go black you don't go back" my friend @joelponce said you was so I was curious" -Random Female Fan Trolling
"cool" -Dana White, deserves props for handling this pretty well. It's much better than how people expect or portray him to be.
There's a ton of tweets after the jump, but first, don't forget to follow me on twitter: @antontabuena
Oh, and these guys are probably worth following as well: The Official BloodyElbow Twitter Account, Luke Thomas, Kid Nate, Brent Brookhouse, Richard Wade, Chris Barton, Damon O, Scott Broussard, Tim Burke, Matt Bishop, Fraser Coffeen, Dallas Winston, KJ Gould, Ben Thapa, Josh Nason, T.P. Grant.
RANDOM TWIDBITS
"Wanderlei: If I have to find you face to face every time I choose to ridicule you ...my frequent flyer miles would go faster than you can say "former Brazilian who lives in Vegas." -Chael Sonnen
"Headed to evolve Mma to start my camp!!!" -Rich Franklin, interesting that he will be spending 8 weeks in Singapore training for his UFC fight against Cung Le.
"I was thinking about how much of a dirty slut @Bartimus7 was. I dont have any grounds to say that. But it sounds good. Lol #ShotsFired" -Mackens Semerzier
"#IfTwitterHadAPromIdTake @BrianStann" -Tim Kennedy
"Haha, How do I even respond to this?" -Brian Stann
"Done deal!!!! Welcome to the UFC Hector" -Dana White
"After ringing the stock market opening bell ..." -Ronda Rousey
MORE ANGRY FANS VS. DANA WHITE
"@danawhite F*CK YOU F*CKING FAGGOT AMERICAN ! THE FIGHT HAS TO BE IN BRAZIL B*TCH ! #F*CKYOUDANAWHITE" -Random Angry Fan From Brazil, profanities censored by the editor.
"f*ck YOU crybaby!!!" -Dana White
"@danawhite "Finally you did something rite,it's about fucking time!"" -Random Angry Fan reacting to Lombard signing.
"I did? Good for me! What did u do?" -Dana White
"@danawhite Che mills should have been paid more than 8k for that ass whupping joe silva set him up for." #UFC" -Random Fan
"He did" -Dana White
ARIANNY CELESTE IN FHM PHILIPPINES
"Fhm Philippines cover shoot out now! Go get em boys n girls!" -Arianny Celeste
NATASHA WICKS BACK IN RING GIRL DUTIES
"Ringside @invictafights w/ @giannapuppo ... awesome fights so far! Girls be crazy!!! :*" -Natasha Wicks
"Happy Hump Day!! Shooting at the Palms for the new BlackJack pits :)" -Natasha Wicks
"Morning!" -Logan Stanton, nope she's not back yet. Sorry.
TWIDEOS
"#Barfly web exclusive - Ed O'Neill and @DanaWhite talk training for Tito, deadly white belts and more" -UFC
"California kid @UrijahFaber, coming soon to a bookshelf near you" -UFC
Posted in: ufc, dana, fan, danawhite, fan trolling
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White’s UFC on FOX 3 Video Blog: Cruz & Faber Fight Picks, UFC 145 Behind The Scenes
Urijah Faber and Dominick Cruz make their UFC on FOX 3 fight picks in this second installment of Dana White’s UFC on FOX 3 video blog. Dana also brings fans some behind the scenes footage of UFC 145.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, scenes footage, ’s ufc
Read the full article at MMA Convert
Dana White UFC on Fox 3 Video Blog Day 2
UFC president Dana White is back with Dominick Cruz and Faber making their UFC on Fox 3 picks, plus an emotional behind the scenes look at UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans.
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Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, dominick cruz, bull
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC on Fox New Jersey vlog day 2
submitted by rx25 [link] [5 comments]
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, vlog, rx
Read the full article at RedditUFC on FOX 3 Video Blog: Dana White Catches Urijah Faber Flexing In The Window
Ever get caught checking yourself out in the mirror? Pretty embarrassing, right? Well, at least you didn’t caught by Dana White like Urijah Faber just did because instead of just laughing at you, he’ll record it and put on YouTube for the world to see. As Rener Gracie would say… daaaaang!
Posted in: dana, faber, urijah faber, urijah, rener gracie
Read the full article at MMA Convert
Dana White’s UFC on Fox 3 Vlog, Episode One (Video)
Fight week, blog week!
UFC president Dana White released the first installment of video blogs chronicling the lead-up to and aftermath from the impending UFC on Fox 3: Diaz vs. Miller fight card. In this week’s episode, Uncle Dana switches things up, explaining that the standard vlog format you’ve all come to know and love will return later this week.
For now though, we get an extended look at Urijah Faber getting his flex on in front of reflective glass while White and company film him clandestinely.
UFC on Fox 3 goes down this Saturday, May 5, at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The main event will see lightweight contenders Nate Diaz and Jim Miller square off for a possible title shot.
MMAFrenzy.com
Posted in: ufc, week, fox, dana, vlog format
Read the full article at MMA FrenzyUFC On Fox 3: Dana White Video Blog Part 1 - Clowning On Faber
Normally UFC president Dana White's video blogs start out with footage of the last event. Apparently Dana has one set for tomorrow that will do just that, but for the opening video blog for UFC on Fox 3, he decided to put out something a little different. And by "a little different", I mean "making fun of Urijah Faber".
As most people know by now, Faber is one of the coaches on The Ultimate Fighter Live, going against UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz. The outside gym windows are all tinted, and basically Dana sat on the inside of the gym with his cameraman and cracked on Faber, who was outside eating a sandwich and talking on his cell phone. While that doesn't sound funny at all, it actually was - because Faber kept stopping to check himself out in the mirrored window that Dana was standing behind.
Check out the video after the jump.
SBN coverage of UFC on Fox 3: Diaz vs. Miller
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, faber, gym windows
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowWatch Dana White snicker with glee as he catches Urijah Faber in the midst of a full on mirror flexathon
If you ever wanted to know what makes Dana White giddier than a room full of middle aged suburban housewives at a Pure Romance party, then today is your lucky day my friends. Here's the thing, to make Dana giggly just throw a shirtless Urijah Faber on the other side of sme mirror tinted windows and wait for the magic to happen. Dana will gleefully snicker with a fervor akin to that of Beavis and Butthead when anyone would say the word 'balls' or 'wiener' in their presence. Now you know, so don't ever try and tell me I've never done anything for you. I'll even go as far as to share the video with you. I try to be as generous as possible with you guys. Check it out:
Posted in: dana, urijah faber, friends heres, word balls, romance party
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White UFC on FOX New Jersey vlog day 1
submitted by killzy707 [link] [comment]
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditDana White: I Don’t Hate Fedor, but He’s Done
The name Fedor Emelianenko still gets brought up to UFC President Dana White, but he's not sure why anymore.
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Posted in: dana, fedor, share, google, bull
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Confirms Bout Between Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua And Thiago Silva
Dana White is well-known for answering questions from fans on twitter, and he confirmed a big light heavyweight bout in response to a twitter question today. People have been wondering who Mauricio "Shogun" Rua was going to face since his rematch with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson was scrapped. It turns out that it will be another Brazilian - Thiago Silva. Here is Dana's tweet:
stefoster23 stephen foster
@danawhite who is shogun fighting next
Apr 29 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @stefoster23↑
@danawhiteDana White @stefoster23 Thiago Silva Apr 29 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
Shogun (20-6) has been on the sidelines since his war with Dan Henderson at UFC 139. He dropped that bout by close decision, but is still a top contender in the division. Silva (14-3, 1 NC) returned from an athletic commission suspension to face Alexander Gustafsson at UFC on Fuel last month, but dropped a decision. No date or location has been announced for the bout yet.
Posted in: bout, silva, dana, shogun, thiago
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowA little picture confirmation from Dana White.
submitted by xKrazExMNUx [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: dana, picture, xkrazexmnux, picture confirmation, confirmation
Read the full article at Reddit
Dana White: Sometimes, Friends Not Fighting ‘Makes No Sense’
Jon Jones and Rashad Evans were friends. Eventually, some hardware came between them and they had to fight. UFC boss Dana White says if he was Rory MacDonald, he'd think long and hard before saying...
Posted in: dana, rashad evans, friend, rory, hed
Read the full article at Heavy MMAWill July 7th be Anderson Silva's last fight?
He just turned 37 this month and once again has a heated argument with Dana White regarding when and where he will be fighting. I think Anderson is fed up. He was promised a title fight in Brazil, and Dana just didn't come through. If Dana really wanted to have the fight there, he would've gotten it done, and he didn't. Word around is that if he didn't fight July 7th, he would've been stripped of his belt and it would've been Sonnen/Bisping for title as well. Regardless of the outcome @ UFC 148, I think we may very well see the last fight from the best there ever was. submitted by grec530 [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: fight, dana, didnt, wouldve, didnt word
Read the full article at RedditDana White's 75-minute argument with Anderson to move Sonnen rematch
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [8 comments]
Posted in: dana, rematch, move, mattyblayze, argument
Read the full article at RedditDana White says Rampage Jackson had all the tools, but could have been so much better
The career of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has seemed to have taken a downward turn as of late, and with it come some criticism from UFC President Dana White. Although White acknowledges the high-level skills of Jackson, he still thinks that perhaps Rampage could have had an even more productive, illustrious career. Dana White expressed the following via mmafighting.com:
"Tell me Rampage Jackson wasn’t born to fight. Not only in his power, but his attributes, his wrestling, his chin,
Posted in: rampage, jackson, dana, career dana, highlevel skills
Read the full article at Low KickDana White: 'I Am Not an Alistair Overeem Fan at All'
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [6 comments]
Posted in: overeem, dana, fan, alistair, mattyblayze
Read the full article at RedditDana White On Jim Rome: 'I Know (Overeem) Lied To Me'
UFC president Dana White went on the Jim Rome radio show today and answered questions regarding the suspension of UFC Heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem. Perhaps the most interesting comment Dana made was his admission that he hadn't heard the outcome of Overeem's hearing yesterday before the Nevada State Athletic Commission until Rome told him.
White has been traveling a great deal. He returned from Brazil to Los Angeles yesterday and is headed home to Las Vegas today. In Brazil he announced the move of the UFC Middleweight championship bout between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen from Brazil's UFC 147 to UFC 148 in Las Vegas.
Related Posts: Alistair Overeem License Denied By NSAC, Unable To Reapply For 9 Months | Alistair Overeem's Doctor Has A Very Interesting Background | Alistair Overeem Live NSAC Hearing Updates
Rome wasted no time in cutting to the chase and immediately got White on the record regarding Overeem. It wasn't pretty.
Dana's comments after the jump...
Jim Rome: Dana Alistair Overeem failed a random drug test for elevated testosterone last month. The Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended him for 9 months. What was your reaction when you first heard it?
Dana White:Actually I didn't hear it until you just told me right this second.
Rome: You don't know that story?
White: I'm in Los Angeles. I was in Brazil yesterday with Anderson Silva. I landed at 4 in the morning. I flew like 22 hours yesterday. I flew down to Miami and then to Rio and back to L.A. So it's the first I'd heard that. I knew he was going before the Commission but I didn't know what happened.
Rome: So what is your reaction to that?
White: I wasn't very optimistic about his chances. I didn't think things were going to turn out very well for him. So as expected. 9 months? 9 months isn't as bad as I thought it would be.
Rome: What did you expect?
White: I thought he'd get a year, easily a year.
Rome: So he blamed it on elevated levels of anti-inflammatory meds he was taking at the time.
White: Here's the rules. If that's the case, if he was on anti-inflammatories meds, whatever the deal was, you're supposed to disclose that to the commission before the test whatever you're taking. You're supposed to disclose that to the commission before the test not after the test.
Rome: Am I allowed to say this Dana? It sounds like garbage.
White: I'm not a fan. I'm not a fan at all. You're not going to hear me on your radio show defending Alistair Overeem believe me.
Rome: So is that going to cost him his spot with your company?
White: I don't know. We'll see. We'll see what happens man. You know he went before the commission and the commission gave him 9 months. I'm sure he's going to have to go in and get tested again. Before he went in there he sat down to lunch with me and my partner looked us in the face and said 'I'm the most tested athlete in all of sports they can test me whenever they want to." Well he flew in for the press conference, they tested him and now he's on a 9 month suspension.
Rome: Do you feel he lied to you?
White: I do yea. I know he lied to me.
Rome: I'm guessing you don't like guys lying to you Dana.
White: I don't like it. You know you sit down and you have these guys that you do business with and you say let's sit down, be honest with me and let's figure out how we can work together. And then they sit there and lie to your face. I don't know. Not the kind of guys I want to do business with.
Rome: He may have been the most tested athletes in your sport but now he's one of the most suspended athletes in your sport.
White: Yeah. So we'll see what happens. I've been on the road non-stop. I just got into L.A. and I get into Vegas tonight. I don't really know the full story of what went down but we'll figure out what happens from here.
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Posted in: overeem, dana, month, commission, rome
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowHow's Taste My Tweet Tweet? A Preview Of What Dana White Has To Deal With On Twitter
A few updates on what's been going on in the MMA & UFC Twitterverse
DANA WHITE ALLOWING A FAN TO WATCH TUF LIVE
"Hey @danawhite Any chance the new wife and I can come watch TUF live for real? Just got to Vegas a few hours ago. We'd really appreciate it." -Random TUF Live Fan
"yup! I'm in RIO and I get back on thur... DM ME" -Dana White
"I refuse to stay at home on Friday nights 2 watch TUF. Never missed an episode when it was on Wed." -Another Random TUF fan
"I hear u bro" -Dana White
DANA WHITE VS. FEDOR FANS
"@danawhite "over for Fedor" Bitch Fedor would stomp Nelson the fat fuck for breakfast, impale JDS for dinner and snap Velasquez for supper.." -Fedor Fan called "JesusMMA"
"and get KTFO by an 85lber in the 1st round and triangled by a HW. Calm down Jesus" -Dana White
"@danawhite Fedor went 10 years undefeated, one little blip he had, and that's all you can talk about. He'd decimate the UFC HW division." -Fedor Fan called "JesusMMA"
"couple of blips there Jesus." -Dana White
"did u ever get to talk to fedor or was it just his management? the amount was similar to brocks?" -Another Random Fan
"yes fedor too" -Dana White
DANA WHITE LOVES 5 GUYS
" I have a house in laguna 2 mins from Dana Point." -Dana White, replying to a random fan.
"Laguna aye? Wanna grab a burger at Five Guys next time you're in the area?" -Random Fan From Laguna
"deal!!! Love 5 guys" -Dana White
There's a ton of tweets after the jump, but first, don't forget to follow me on twitter: @antontabuena
Oh, and these guys are probably worth following as well: The Official BloodyElbow Twitter Account, Luke Thomas, Kid Nate, Brent Brookhouse, Richard Wade, Chris Barton, Damon O, Scott Broussard, Tim Burke, Matt Bishop, Fraser Coffeen, Dallas Winston, KJ Gould, Ben Thapa, Josh Nason, T.P. Grant.
DANA WHITE ON FANS HATING MIR VS. DOS SANTOS
"Boring. Wanted to go to Vegas for @Alistairovereem fight. Won't even bother stayin up for Mir Vs JDS." -Random Fan that hates Mir vs. Dos Santos
"who gives a shit? Why did u feel the need to tell me that? Stay home dickhead." -Dana White
"I will #fanstokeepopinionsquiet" -Random Fan that hates Mir vs. Dos Santos
"you tweeted it to be a douche. So mission accomplished!!" -Dana White
DANA WHITE ON CHAEL SONNEN
"Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen is on!!! July 7th in Las Vegas but first get Chael out of Brazil in 1 piece." -Dana White
UFC 145 AFTERMATH
"Good job to Michael McDonald, didn't see that uppercut. I will be back no worries." -Miguel Torres
"I was 224lbs last night "@bartolini69: @JonnyBones how much do you weigh the night of the fight, 220-225?"" -Jon Jones
RANDOM TWIDBITS
"only taking 2 guys to corner me in my next fight. Mark Beecher and Tupac Hollogram. I don't like many people yelling at me when I'm fighting" -Vinny Magalhaes
"The other thing is real life prostitutes never look like the ones on tv... I want to sincerely apologize for my last tweet. I did not mean to say prostitute I meant to say sex worker. There much better" -Forrest Griffin
"Just finished boxing up my old house. I'm getting ready to make it rain on the local Salvation Army in Ithaca.. Somebody's getting blessed" -Jon Jones
"Haha with his elbows, I doubt it would take long "@TFisXavier: Ron Artest is trynna get a title shot against @JonnyBones"" -Jon Jones
LISTEN, OR GET ARMBAR-ED.
"Visiting the capital of ny to help lift the ban on pro Mma" -Ronda Rousey
BRAINCELLS? BAH!
"One day I'll learn to keep my hands up" -Ian McCall
"@Unclecreepymma: Thats only for wussies and people who care about brain cells" -Cub Swanson "@CubSwanson ya seems kind of over rated" -Ian McCall
HAD TO GIVE THE TROLLS A FEW THINGS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT
""@Scott_Newlands: @LoStanton Love this snap! What a star! Check it out. #straightfromthecamera" <3 Bluenotes!!" -Logan Stanton
"hi twitter world :)" -Logan Stanton, I can see it now... "ZOMG! Anton is posting tweets from people not with the UFC!"... In the wise words of Dana White, "Who gives a shit?"
Posted in: vs, dana, fan, fedor, tweet
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: I thought NSAC would suspend Alistair Overeem for one year
UFC President Dana White shared thoughts about Nevada State Athletic Commision's decision to suspend Alistair Overeem for 9 months due to failed UFC 146 pre-fight drug test. White was not impressed with Overeem's line of defense, once again stating that the Dutchman lied to his face when he said "I'm the most tested athlete in MMA. I never used PEDs". As for Alistair Overeem's future with the UFC, Dana White commented "we'll see what happens".
Here's the
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, alistair overeem, alistair
Read the full article at Low KickDana White says M-1 Global 'made the biggest f*** up in the history of all sports'
If overhand rights were a currency, fighters from around the world would travel to Fedor’s home in Stary Oskol, Russia with signs claiming that they are the 99%. Dan Henderson would probably have the same problem in California. We would need Dana White to step in and be the Ron Paul of this situation. The majority of the world’s wealth resides in only a small population of overhand right hands, and that’s an ongoing problem in the world of MMA, but people refuse to protest because this is all part of a pointless analogy that has little-to-no context outside of my imagination. The truth is that I’ve always wanted to see Fedor in the UFC. It would have been amazing to see the greatest heavyweight in the history of MMA compete against the best athletes during his prime. Unfortunately, that never went down, and Dana White has less interest in Fedor these days than I do in becoming a vegan according to this MMAInterviews video.
Posted in: dana, right hands, ron paul, currency fighters, littletono context
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana announces NELSON v. GONZAGA
submitted by ciscoiv [link] [13 comments]
Posted in: dana, nelson, gonzaga, ciscoiv
Read the full article at RedditUFC's Dana White Says B.J. Penn Is Not Retired
B.J. Penn claimed that he was "done" after being thoroughly roughed out by Nick Diaz at UFC 137. Penn has been more of less "off the radar" since the loss but there has still been a fair amount of curiosity over if the legendary fighter was actually hanging up the gloves.
UFC president Dana White addressed the situation this weekend (via MMA Fighting):
UFC president Dana White recently had a chance to speak with the Hawaiian great at the recent UFC on FX card in Sweden, and the pair addressed his future. According to him, Penn's career as an active fighter isn't over.
"I heard some s--- that he said he was going to retire and all this stuff," White said. "He was like, 'Nah, I'm going to fight again.'"
So, that sounds like Penn hasn't decided he's done quite yet.
I do enjoy Dana saying he "heard some s---" as though it was some sort of rumor that had been spread around the internet.
This was the interview Penn gave in-cage after the Diaz loss:
Hats off to Nick Diaz. He's the man. Joe, this was probably the last time you'll see me in here. I can't keep performing at the top level. That's it Joe. I got a daughter and another daughter on the way, I don't want to go home looking like this. I'm done.
That being said, never take a fighter's retirement in the ring/cage directly after a loss as gospel. Emotions are riding too high and things usually change after a few months.
Posted in: ufc, diaz, bj penn, dana, penn
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White insists BJ Penn will fight in the UFC again
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: ufc, bj penn, dana, bj, mattyblayze
Read the full article at RedditDana White explains decision to remove Alistair Overeem from UFC 146
When Alistair Overeem was popped for for an elevated T/E ratio after a surprise drug screening, it threw his scheduled fight against Junior dos Santos at UFC 146 on May 26, 2012, in Las Vegas, Nevada, into question.
But while UFC President Dana White was extremely pissed off at the situation just as soon as he was made aware of it, he remained remarkably quiet regarding the entire ordeal. In fact, he frequently told reporters he wouldn't comment on anything that has to do with "The Reem."
Granted, he admitted it was because he's been so pissed he knows he would blow his top and say things he can't take back, but this isn't the Dana White we've all come to know.
The original plan, as originally reported, was the powers that be would wait until Overeem had his day in court, which is scheduled for April 24 when he goes in front of the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) to offer his defense. If the NSAC is satisfied with his explanation, he'll be granted a license. If they're not, he won't even be able to apply for one again for an entire calendar year.
If that seems like a ton of risk on Overeem's part, that's because it's exactly that. And it would have been the same for UFC if they were to wait for the outcome of this hearing.
Then, out of nowhere it seemed, White went on Twitter and announced that Overeem was officially out of the fight and Frank Mir would be stepping in to take his place. This wasn't an unexpected move; to the contrary, it was what everyone was waiting for. The surprise is the how and the when of the announcement.
White explains at the UFC 145 post-fight press conference last night.
"We were right up on deadlines with a lot of things we need to do to promote a pay-per-view," he said. "And I'm not very optimistic on (Overeem's hearing) on Tuesday."
By "deadlines" it makes sense to think that UFC 145 was it. That's because the promotion ran ads during the pay-per-view event, as they usually do, to promote the next major show on the schedule.
It's just too bad Overeem's hearing was scheduled for three days after.
If there was any measure of confidence that "Demolition Man" would get licensed on that day, perhaps the UFC could have gone ahead with promoting the event as planned. But there's obviously not, as White stated, and if things go south, Overeem is out of the next year.
And maybe out of the UFC altogether.
Can anyone make a case for why White shouldn't have pulled the trigger on taking Overeem out of the UFC 146 main event? Anyone?
For much more on the Overeem situation click here and here.
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, alistair overeem, overeems hearing
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC 146 Junior Dos Santos vs Frank Mir Official For May 26 In Las Vegas
UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior dos Santos finally knows who he will be defending his title against at UFC 146. Up until this point UFC President Dana White had been unusually quiet about this topic, other than asserting the foolishness of his fighters in taking Performance Enhancing Drugs, and how he can't babysit all of them to make sure they don't.
Alistair Overeem was set to challenge for the championship in what would have been one of the biggest matches of the year, until he had a random test sprung on him and his fellow Heavyweight peers at a pre-UFC 146 press conference to hype the event. Overeem's Testosterone to Epitestosterone Ratio came back at 14:1, more than twice the 6:1 ratio Nevada State Athletic Commission allows, and more than 3 times the 4:1 ratio the World Anti Doping Agency -- who will regulate the Olympic Games this Summer -- allow. This is following a conditional license granted to Overeem by NSAC in December when he failed to show up to a scheduled test, and left the country the day before to attend to alleged family affairs in his home country of the Netherlands. All other Heavyweights tested came back within acceptable levels.
Related: Overeem Tests Positive For Elevated Testosterone Levels | Dana Responds To Overeem's Failed Drug Test | Is A Million Dollar Program The Solution For The UFC's PED Problem? | Dana White Doesn't Want To Talk About Alistair Overeem, Letting Due Process Run Its Course
Originally the bout between Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez was said to be still in place, but now according to Dana White via twitter, Frank Mir will replace Alistair Overeem in the UFC Heavyweight Championship title fight.
Taking off to Atlanta!!!! May 26 th is now Mir vs JDS for the HW title in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand.
— Dana White (@danawhite) April 21, 2012
The delay in announcing any changes to the main event billing opened the UFC up to speculation, with many wondering if they would try to continue the Overeem vs Dos Santos fight under the premise Overeem was without a license at the time of the random test, and despite the conditional license granted to him in December stating he would be random tested additionally as part of the conditional license agreement.
Although waiting so long to make an announcement isn't exactly ideal, the UFC should be applauded for making the right decision in removing Overeem from the card, and for giving Junior dos Santos an official replacement he can now train for. More than anyone else dos Santos suffered with the delay, not knowing if he was still going into a fight with a man he knew would have an unfair hormonal anabolic steroid advantage, or if he was getting a new opponent but being unable to train specifically for that opponent until the UFC had made a decision.
Alistair Overeem's hearing in front of the NSAC is expected to be held next Tuesday, April 24. A replacement opponent for Cain Velasquez has not yet been announced.
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, do, test
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowCrazy rumor from @FrontRowBrian: Anderson won't fight Chael anywhere but Brazil, Dana threatens to fire him
@FrontRowBrian Major story breaking in Atlanta. Anderson Silva has told Dana White he NOT fight Chael Sonnen unless it's in Brazil. UFC147 presser in Rio on 4 Tues. Anderson will be present. Dana will announce date change to Vegas. Dana will fire AS if he declines fight Should Anderson be fired, Sonnen v. @Bisping II is the back up plan for July 7 for the belt Uncle Dana is beyond frustrated with Anderson. Let's see if he can convince Anderson to fight in Vegas. Dana playing hardball This dude has broken some legit stories before but this one is a bit much. submitted by Bootpolish [link] [5 comments]
Posted in: fight, dana, anderson, vegas dana, declines fight
Read the full article at RedditDana White UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans Video Blog, Day 1
Go behind the scenes of UFC on Fuel TV: Gustafsson vs. Silva last weekend in Sweden in the latest edition of UFC president Dana White's video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, vs, dana, blog
Read the full article at Heavy MMAUFC 145 Dana White Vlog Part 1
With UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans just one day away UFC president Dana White finally releases a new installment of his popular video blog (vlog). Dana still hasn't reported for duty in Atlanta, Georgia where UFC 145 takes place. He has to be in Las Vegas for the shooting of tonight's The Ultimate Fighter Live.
This video features backstage footage from last Saturday's UFC on Fuel TV 2 in Sweden. Highlights include a busted up Thiago Silva getting stiches after his decision loss to Alexander Gustafsson. Then it cuts to Dana talking to a notably unscathed Gustafsson.
From there White lets Brad Pickett know that the British bantamweight had won Fight of the Night...and then it's over.
SBN coverage of UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans
SBN coverage of UFC on FUEL TV 2
This is just a fraction of White's fight week activity which also included more than 33 hours of flight time as he trekked from Sweden to Abu Dhabi to Las Vegas in one long voyage. Tonight after shooting TUF he'll fly from Vegas to Atlanta for UFC 145.
Posted in: ufc, dana, las vegas, vega, brad pickett
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White’s UFC 145 Video Blog: Part One
The first of what is likely many video blogs chronicling Dana White’s road to UFC 145. In this vlog, a behind the scenes look at UFC on FUEL 2.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, video blogs
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White’s UFC 145 Video Blog – Day 1
Check out UFC president Dana White's UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans video blog, day one.
Posted in: ufc, day, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 145 vlog day 1
submitted by killzy707 [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditDana White video blog for UFC 145: 'Jones vs Evans' (Episode one)
Fight week, blog week!
UFC 145: "Jones vs. Evans" is just days away and that means UFC President Dana White is a busy, busy man. As per usual, he's got his cameraman in toe to document the madness for his annual video blogs.
Episode one, embedded above, features a behind-the-scenes look back at the UFC on FUEL TV 2: "Gustafsson vs. Silva" event that took place last Sat., April 14, 2012, in Stockholm, Sweden.
It's the usual backstage fare. DaMarques Johnson expresses his disappointment at losing to John Maguire via armbar in the second round of their welterweight scrap. Paulo Thiago actually stops to watch a replay of his 42 second knockout at the hands of Siyar Bahadurzada.
It was rough. And painful to see his expression watching himself fall.
Finally, Alexander Gustafsson and Thiago Silva play nice before Dana White leads the charge to the post-fight press conference. But UFC on FUEL TV 2 is in the books and we've been there and done that.
Now it's time to look ahead to UFC 145. Stay tuned for episode two of White's video blogs leading up to the big event. And make sure to hit up our complete UFC 145 event archive right here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, alexander gustafsson, blog, thiago silva
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC 145: Lorenzo Fertitta Claims That Rashad Evans Believed Dana White Was Betting On Jon Jones
UFC executives are continuing to discuss their reaction to a story on the MMA blog CagePotato that the promotion alleges gave the misleading and incorrect impression that UFC president Dana White was betting on the UFC 145 headliner between Jon Jones and Rashad Evans.
The UFC demanded a formal retraction and CagePotato obliged.
UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta spoke to USA TODAY's Sergio Non about the story and the promotion's response.
Related Stories: CagePotato Retracts Offending Quote | UFC Demanding Retraction From Cage Potato
"We had a flurry of people contacting us through e-mail, Twitter. Rashad throwing a complete fit ... and then Dana having to call him to calm him down. If (people) thought it was just satire, we wouldn't have had that reaction," said Fertitta.
"Dana had to talk to Rashad on the phone for 30 minutes to calm him down, to tell him, 'Are you crazy? There's no way I would ever bet on a fight or bet against you,' " Fertitta says.
More from Fertitta after the jump...SBN coverage of UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans
Non asked about the "satire" defense:
Fertitta: But it didn't even read like a joke. It didn't read like a joke at all. If you look at the article, when you first read that, it sounds like that they were in a room with Dana, talking to him, and he says, "Oh," and he kind of made a mistake and said something, and said "Don't print that."
He also dug into the implications of CP retracting the piece:
USA TODAY: They issued a retraction on their website. Does it satisfy your demands?
Fertitta: We're currently evaluating whether it's sufficient or not. Like I said, there's been a massive amount of fallout in the wake of them putting out something that is completely reckless in the way that they did. I don't understand how anybody could defend what they did. It's a very serious allegation.
For them to even joke that Dana made a wager of that magnitude on one fighter versus another fighter is something that could have tremendous negative implications for the industry, for our company and a lot of different things.
As is often the case Fertitta's more measured responses put a more reasonable perspective on the UFC's position. Obviously CagePotato made a botch of the story with a bad attempt at humor but hearing directly from the UFC about the negative ramifications of a single unfunny post on a medium-size web site certainly makes their side more sympathetic.
Posted in: ufc, dana, story, fertitta, cagepotato
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowRashad Evans 'threw a fit' over CagePotato caption, really thought Dana White bet $500,000 on Jon Jones to win at UFC 145
This isn't over folks, not by a long shot.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight number one contender, Rashad Evans, blew a gasket earlier this week when his camp mistakenly informed him that promotion president Dana White had bet $500,000 on Jon Jones, who defends his title against "Suga" at the UFC 145 pay-per-view (PPV) event on April 21, 2012 from the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
He didn't.
Team Evans had misinterpreted a caption by mixed martial arts (MMA) website CagePotato.com, who made light of "Bones" recent sponsorship deal with the UFC, one that drew the ire of a small portion of the fight community for its perceived favoritism and/or conflict of interest.
See the caption in question right here.
The world's largest fight promotion demanded -- and received -- a retraction from CagePotato, but as Zuffa CEO Lorenzo Fertitta explains to USA Today, it may not be enough to combat the fallout from the "reckless" post.
His comments, after the jump.
"We had a flurry of people contacting us through e-mail, Twitter ... Rashad throwing a complete fit ... and then Dana having to call him to calm him down. If (people) thought it was just satire, we wouldn't have had that reaction. Dana had to talk to Rashad on the phone for 30 minutes to calm him down, to tell him, 'Are you crazy? There's no way I would ever bet on a fight or bet against you.' It didn't read like a joke at all. If you look at the article, when you first read that, it sounds like that they were in a room with Dana, talking to him, and he says, 'Oh, and he kind of made a mistake and said something, and said 'Don't print that.' We're currently evaluating whether [their retraction] is sufficient or not. Like I said, there's been a massive amount of fallout in the wake of them putting out something that is completely reckless in the way that they did. I don't understand how anybody could defend what they did. It's a very serious allegation. You've got to understand, Rashad's entire team -- his entire camp -- was in his ear telling him they read this online and that Dana bet half a million dollars against him. This was a real issue. This isn't just some kind of slap on the back, funny little joke. This was reckless reporting on their part."
CagePotato editor Ben Goldstein, who described the situation as "silly," offered his apology but also promised legal action of his own if the UFC continued to pursue his dot com for "satirical captions."
No harm, no foul?
Don't tell that to Rashad Evans, who has enough things to worry about heading into this weekend's title fight. To see what else he's up against in "The Peach State" click here and here.
Posted in: ufc, jon jones, dana, rashad, bet
Read the full article at MMA ManiaHow's Taste My Tweet Tweet? MMA on Twitter - Dana White Explains PRIDE Bet, Sonnen Talks Overeem
A few updates on what's been going on in the MMA & UFC Twitterverse
QUOTES FROM THE PRESIDENT
"I had a bet with Prez of Pride that if Chuck fought Wandy that Chuck would win. They didn't fight, rampage beat him." -Dana White, addressing reports that he bet $250,000 with the president of Pride Fighting Championships, Nobuyuki Sakakibara.
"not even close" -Dana White, when asked if he's "cool" with cagepotato after they issued a retraction.
"Ben makes Fitch look like Wanderlei Silva!!!" -Dana White, who really dislikes how Ben Askren fights.
"@benaskren when ambien can't sleep it takes Ben Askren. The most boring fighter in MMA history. I would rather watch flys fuck" -Dana White
"FIIIIIIIGHT WEEEEEK!!!!!! Jones vs Evans this Sat. I leave Abu Dhabi in a few hours and get Vlogs going this week." -Dana White, after all the issues, he's back to business.
There's a ton of tweets after the jump, but first, don't forget to follow me on twitter: @antontabuena
Oh, and these guys are probably worth following as well: The Official BloodyElbow Twitter Account, Luke Thomas, Kid Nate, Brent Brookhouse, Richard Wade, Chris Barton, Damon O, Scott Broussard, Tim Burke, Matt Bishop, Fraser Coffeen, Dallas Winston, KJ Gould, Ben Thapa, Josh Nason, T.P. Grant.
CHAEL P. SONNEN'S VOICE OF REASON
"Top of AMAZON list, and soon to be New York Best Seller..." -Chael Sonnen, who's new book is out for $14.85 in Amazon.
"VIDEO: The latest #ChaelsCorner on #ufctonight is a doozy! @Alistairovereem + @sonnench + #PEDs = Gold" -UFC on FUEL
RANDOM TWIDBITS
"At what point is one so hairy they should start using conditioner on their body hair. Cus I'm getting close" -Forrest Griffin
"It's National Kiss Day! If any random person tries to kiss me I'm treating them like a terrorist." -Tim Kennedy
"If I had to pick one ( more) guy to knock me out it be @BrianStann cus he'd do it classy like" -Forrest Griffin
"Yes we have pole dancing at #AKA it's awesome! http://lockerz.com/s/202178005" -Luke Rockhold
TWICTURES
"220lb War Machine" -Jon Jones
"Showing off some ink" -Alessio Sakara
"Lookn a bit young here. My friends used to call me the " angry boy scout"" -Duane Ludwig
"This is the face you make you you think you're about to start blogging but actually take a picture on accident" -Ronda Rousey
"Plse keep ur eye out for this man He's 5'4" 180 lbs Dresses dapper & may b attached 2 a small Italian woman @JoeJitsu" -Urijah Faber
"#spandex" -Arianny Celeste
"My dog... May or may not like this. Happy Easter!" -Amir Sadollah
BLACKZILIANS
"What's this team in South Florida all about?" -Ultimate Insider
FABER AND CRUZ GET HEATED ON TUF
Posted in: mma, ben, dana, rlm, amazon video
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC's Dana White's reaction to the CagePotato retraction
Making an off-the-cuff funny about Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White betting $500,000 on Jon Jones to defeat Rashad Evans this weekend (April 21, 2012) apparently isn't so funny even if it was supposed to be a "just a joke."
Just ask CagePotato.com.
In its endless quest for chuckles within the mixed martial arts (MMA) community, the website -- which its editors describe as "cutting edge, topical and brutally honest" -- found itself in hot water this afternoon when the UFC legal machine requested a retraction for the "outrageous," "defamatory" and "false" statement that White has wagered a half-million greenbacks on the upcoming UFC 145 main event.
To check out the picture and caption that triggered the firestorm click here.
In the same breath, the Zuffa legal eagles insinuated that the retraction was the first step "in the filing of a lawsuit seeking punitive damages against a party that has maliciously published defamatory statements about another."
Unsurprisingly, CagePotato.com didn't waste anytime issuing the retraction. However, website editor Ben Goldstein -- who described the situation as "so silly" -- told the USA Today that the website, which is backed by Break Media, won't go down without a fight if the world's leading mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion intends to "set their lawyers on us on a regular basis because of satirical captions we write...."
Check out CagePotato's official retraction, Goldstein's comments and White's reaction to the retraction after the jump:
CagePotato's official retraction:
On Saturday, we published a post about the UFC's sponsorship of Jon Jones for his upcoming fight against Rashad Evans, which included a satirical caption about UFC president Dana White betting money on the fight. The caption was intended to be a joke, and we were confident that it would interpreted that way by our readers. Earlier today, we received a press release announcing that the UFC and Dana White are demanding a retraction "regarding certain false and defamatory statements attributed to UFC® President, Dana White." CagePotato doesn't contest any part of (the UFC) request; we hereby retract the line in question, which has since been removed from our site. Again, the caption wasn't published with any malicious intent whatsoever, but we understand that Dana White's reputation would be harmed if our readers actually believed that he bets on the UFC's matches. Once again, Dana White does not bet on his own fights, and he never has. We apologize for any misunderstanding the caption may have caused.
Goldstein's comments:
"This is just so silly that I want to print this retraction and get this behind us. I have no (problem) saying on our website, 'Look, it's just a joke. We didn't mean it to be intended this way.' I'm just not interested in turning this into some sort of beef with UFC. It's really not that important to me. Maybe it's something that hits very close to home for him. He doesn't want to be seen as someone who would ever bet on his own fights. ... I can respect that, because if people started believe that the head of UFC was actually betting on his own fights, that's a serious allegation. I have no problem swallowing my ego and apologizing for a joke. But if it turns out that they want to set their lawyers on us on a regular basis because of satirical captions we write on our website, then we'll fight back. We'll get our own lawyers involved and defend ourselves. ... We're not going to change the way we do business."
And, last, but certainly not least, White's reaction to the retraction:
"Not even close [to being cool]"
Based on everything right here, right now, it's a safe bet that this situation is far from over.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, retraction, caption
Read the full article at MMA ManiaCagePotato Retracts Offending Quote, Dana White Tweets Issue 'Not Even Close' To Being 'Cool'
CagePotato has issued a statement on their web site retracting the caption that caused the UFC to issue an official call for a retraction earlier today.
Here is CagePotato's statement:
On Saturday, we published a post about the UFC's sponsorship of Jon Jones for his upcoming fight against Rashad Evans, which included a satirical caption about UFC president Dana White betting money on the fight. The caption was intended to be a joke, and we were confident that it would interpreted that way by our readers. Earlier today, we received a press release announcing that the UFC and Dana White are demanding a retraction "regarding certain false and defamatory statements attributed to UFC® President, Dana White."
CagePotato doesn't contest any part of (the UFC) request; we hereby retract the line in question, which has since been removed from our site. Again, the caption wasn't published with any malicious intent whatsoever, but we understand that Dana White's reputation would be harmed if our readers actually believed that he bets on the UFC's matches. Once again, Dana White does not bet on his own fights, and he never has. We apologize for any misunderstanding the caption may have caused.
Related: UFC Demanding Retraction From Cage Potato For Allegation Dana White Bet On Jon Jones
CagePotato managing editor Ben Goldstein spoke to Sergio Non at USA Today about the situation:
"This is just so silly that I want to print this retraction and get this behind us. I have no (problem) saying on our website, 'Look, it's just a joke. We didn't mean it to be intended this way.' I'm just not interested in turning this into some sort of beef with UFC. It's really not that important to me.
"Maybe it's something that hits very close to home for him," Goldstein says. "He doesn't want to be seen as someone who would ever bet on his own fights. ... I can respect that, because if people started believe that the head of UFC was actually betting on his own fights, that's a serious allegation."
Dana White's Twitter response is after the jump as well as the information USA TODAY reported about the confirmed instance of White betting on an MMA bout...
The Twitter fun started with this tweet from CagePotato writer Jason Moles:
@TheJasonMolesJason Moles @DanaWhite Here is @CagePotatoMMA's retraction. http://t.co/g4YtG4gZ We cool? Apr 17 via web Favorite Retweet Reply
And continued with Dana White's response:
@danawhite
Dana White @TheJasonMoles not even close Apr 17 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
Goldstein had more for USA TODAY:
"I have no problem swallowing my ego and apologizing for a joke," he said. "But if it turns out that they want to set their lawyers on us on a regular basis because of satirical captions we write on our website, then we'll fight back. We'll get our own lawyers involved and defend ourselves. ... We're not going to change the way we do business."
And Sergio Non reported on the one documented instance of Dana White betting on MMA:
While White hasn't gambled on UFC fights, he has bet on one of his fighters loaned to another organization. In 2003, he made a $250,000 wager with the president of Pride Fighting Championships, Nobuyuki Sakakibara, that Chuck Liddell would win that organization's 205-pound tournament that year. Liddell lost in the semifinals to Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, who fought for Pride at the time.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, cagepotato, caption
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow
Askren vs White/Everyone
Lots of people claim to not care what other folks think, but few actually do. I mean don't. Whatever. Anyway, Bellator's wrestleweight welterweight champ Ben Askren might be one of those few. He makes zero apologies for his wrestling-only approach to MMA, and demonstrated as much against Douglas Lima two weeks ago, when he dump-n-humped his way to his second title defense and sixth consecutive decision win. Not-so-fun fact: I counted a total of one half-hearted attempt by Askren to submit or otherwise finish his opponent. The crowd voiced their displeasure throughout, so in his post-fight interview, Askren told them to go watch boxing if they don't appreciate the ground game. Which I found very ironic, considering Askren's game is about as devoid of striking as boxing is devoid of grappling. Mix your goddamn martial arts, son!
Fast forward to Monday, when Askren went on Twitter and called BS on Dana White's claim that random testing the entire UFC roster would be impossible. Askren may whoop Dana's ass in the hair department, but Dana's got serious skillz when it comes to crudely telling people off (and thereby avoiding their point) via Twitter, and so The Baldfather dropped the BOOMS you see above. Seriously, this guy spouts STFU's with the kind of frequency and fervor that not even a drunken fratboy can approach.
Many observers are calling this a bad career move on Askren's part, but Dana's already pooh-poohed that, and let's be real here, Askren's fighting style is infinitely more damaging to a potential UFC contract than a single disagreeing tweet. Besides, the UFC's welterweight division already has a Jon Fitch, so I have to presume they would reply to Askren's application with a polite PFO letter.
Posted in: ufc, dana, ufc contract, askren, impossiblenbsp askren
Read the full article at FightlinkerAskren vs White/Everyone
Lots of people claim to not care what other folks think, but few actually do. I mean don't. Whatever. Anyway, Bellator's wrestleweight welterweight champ Ben Askren might be one of those few. He makes zero apologies for his wrestling-only approach to MMA, and demonstrated as much against Douglas Lima two weeks ago, when he dump-n-humped his way to his second title defense and sixth consecutive decision win. Not-so-fun fact: I counted a total of one half-hearted attempt by Askren to submit or otherwise finish his opponent. The crowd voiced their displeasure throughout, so in his post-fight interview, Askren told them to go watch boxing if they don't appreciate the ground game. Which I found very ironic, considering Askren's game is about as devoid of striking as boxing is devoid of grappling. Mix your goddamn martial arts, son!
Fast forward to Monday, when Askren went on Twitter and called BS on Dana White's claim that random testing the entire UFC roster would be impossible. Askren may whoop Dana's ass in the hair department, but Dana's got serious skillz when it comes to crudely telling people off (and thereby avoiding their point) via Twitter, and so The Baldfather dropped the BOOMS you see above. Seriously, this guy spouts STFU's with the kind of frequency and fervor that not even a drunken fratboy can approach.
Many observers are calling this a bad career move on Askren's part, but Dana's already pooh-poohed that, and let's be real here, Askren's fighting style is infinitely more damaging to a potential UFC contract than a single disagreeing tweet. Besides, the UFC's welterweight division already has a Jon Fitch, so I have to presume they would reply to Askren's application with a polite PFO letter.
Posted in: ufc, dana, ufc contract, askren, impossiblenbsp askren
Read the full article at FightlinkerSo it looks like Dana White isn't a fan of Ben Askren...
I've long held that Ben Askren is the modern-day Sakuraba. You're just going to have to believe me solely on my laziness not to explain exactly how Ben Askren is the modern-day Sakuraba. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if even Ben Askren knows that he's the reincarnation of Kazushi Sakuraba. Someone should hit him up on Twitter and give him the heads up so Dana White could stop comparing his fighting style to a bottle of the sleep medication.
Of course, that's not MiddleEasy's belief. The dude has been sitting on our official Frate Trane List for over a year now. Askren's ability to completely nullify his opponent's gameplan is exciting enough for us. We even made an entire article about Douglas Lima's sheer ability to not do anything in his fight with the Bellator welterweight champion. However, Dana White's opinion drastically differs. Check out what the UFC boss said on Twitter just a few hours ago.
Even Jon Fitch got a little verbal shrapnel from Dana White.
Ben Askren, always an optimist this guy. Here's his response to Dana White's digital tirade earlier today.
Posted in: ben, dana, sakuraba, ben askren, askren
Read the full article at Middle EasyUFC President Dana White: 'When Ambien Can't Sleep, It Takes Ben Askren'
Earlier today I posted a tweet from Bellator champion Ben Askren calling UFC president Dana White's statement that the UFC can't test all of their fighters a "bold faced lie." Not surprisingly it didn't take long for Dana to respond to someone tweeting him that story with a shot at Askren.
Here's Dana's response:
thefightweek thefightweek
@Benaskren says @danawhite is a bold face liar for saying the #UFC doesn't have the resources for random drug tests http://t.co/3MqQ5rYS
Apr 16 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @thefightweek↑
@danawhiteDana White @thefightweek @benaskren when ambien can't sleep it takes Ben Askren. The most boring fighter in MMA history. I would rather watch flys f**k Apr 16 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
Taking shots at Dana and then having Dana say that he'd rather watch flies engage in coitus than watch you fight can't bode well for a fighter's future.
And let's all be honest here, Ben Askren is a miserably boring fighter.
He can continue to get upset at fans and media who call him out on his particularly boring style of fighting and the fact that he only has one stoppage win since arriving at Bellator (and that was a bad call by the ref against Ryan Thomas), but the fact remains that he has done nothing to make him someone that is "must see."
Winning is obviously the most important thing, but having a reputation of putting on bad fights and then insulting the fans who boo your performance isn't exactly a going to fast track you to the big stage. Now, Ben even has Dana upset with him.
It's good news for Bellator though as I'm sure they'll have Ben fighting in their promotion for a good long while now.
Posted in: ufc, ben, dana, ben askren, askren
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana sez
Welcome to another edition of Dana Sez, where Dana White declares what's what and MMA websites farm his word crops for a bountiful news harvest. First up, his position on the Alistair Overeem situation:
"I will snap and freak out and I don’t want to do that," White told reporters following the conclusion of the press conference. "I don’t want to talk about it. I’m too upset about it. Seriously, I can’t talk about it."..."Everybody gets due process," White said. "Alistair Overeem will have his due process with the Nevada State Athletic Commission. We’ll see what happens and we’ll go from there. When it all goes down, somebody else will speak about this. Not me."
It doesn't sound like Dana White is too impressed with Alistair Overeem's plans to make a legal runaround on his positive UFC 146 drug test. Which is nice because it makes the UFC prez's next statement about random testing sound slightly less bullsh*t:
"I have 375 fighters in every country all over the world. The battle that I have to get these guys to get their [expletive] bout agreements back and show up for press is un[expletive]believable. The fact that I have to make personal phone calls to tell guys to talk to the [expletive] press. Now I'm going to start making personal phone calls to go show up for random drug tests? The general public and the media need to grasp some [expletive] concept of reality, okay? The reality of us doing all the [expletive] things that we're doing, when we already have the gold standard in drug testing, and then trying to chase 375 guys all over the world to randomly test them too? It's impossible," White said.
The UFC having the 'gold standard' in drug testing just tells you how miserable testing is across the rest of the sports world. Unfortunately, we're still in this wierd place where government run commissions are the ones responsible for testing and they're doing a wholly inadequate job.
Putting the UFC in charge of it's own testing doesn't seem like the optimal solution either. That's why they've put their support behind a new international federation that can replace their self-regulation for European shows. Are these guys going to be any better at catching cheaters as American commissions? Probably not. Oh steroids. You sticky wicket.Fans have talked about the idea of international feeder leagues for a while now and it looks like Dana and the Fertittas are starting to toy with the idea:
(The rest after the jump!)
read more
Posted in: dana, drug testing, testing, expletive, dana sez
Read the full article at FightlinkerBen Askren says Dana White is lying about the impossibility of random UFC drug tests
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White recently told members of the mixed martial arts (MMA) media that it would not only be "unrealistic to chase his fighters all over the world and test them for marijuana, cocaine, steroids and other drugs," but that it would also be "impossible."
Not impossible, just expensive.
That's according to Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben Askren, who ripped the Las Vegas fight boss on his official Twitter account earlier today (April 16, 2012), claiming that White's assertion was a "bold faced lie."
The USOC random tests Olympic athletes in all sports. Dana saying testing his fighters would be impossible is a bold faced lie. Just making a statement about a level playing field. I didn't say it wouldn't be expensive just that it is not impossible.
White insists the UFC and various athletic commissions do more drug testing than anyone else in sports, including the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA) and Major League Baseball (MLB).
But is it enough?
Recent failed drug tests by Alistair Overeem, Nick Diaz and Cristiane Santos may suggest otherwise, but is there a program available that can break the cheaters without breaking the bank?
See one possible solution (from an unlikely source) right here.
Posted in: dana, test, drug, drug tests, ben askren
Read the full article at MMA ManiaBen Askren On UFC's Dana White: 'Saying Testing His Fighter Would Be Impossible Is A Bold Faced Lie'
Ben Askren must be content being the Bellator welterweight champion, because he is certainly not making any fans in the UFC front office with comments like he dropped today. Askren took to Twitter in the wake of Dana White's statement that it would be impossible for the UFC to test all of their athletes and called Dana a liar.
Related: UFC's Dana White Says Random Testing Is 'Impossible'
The tweet:
@BenaskrenBen Askren The USOC random tests Olympic athletes in all sports. Dana saying testing his fighters would be impossible is a bold faced lie. Apr 16 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
That's a pretty clear statement by Ben.
My issue with Dana's statement is the way he is phrasing his reasoning that testing can't work. Here's a refresher of his comments:
"I have 375 fighters in every country all over the world. The battle that I have to get these guys to get their [expletive] bout agreements back and show up for press is un[expletive]believable. The fact that I have to make personal phone calls to tell guys to talk to the [expletive] press. Now I'm going to start making personal phone calls to go show up for random drug tests? The general public and the media need to grasp some [expletive] concept of reality, okay? The reality of us doing all the [expletive] things that we're doing, when we already have the gold standard in drug testing, and then trying to chase 375 guys all over the world to randomly test them too? It's impossible," White said.
"You know why? Because this job is insane. It's [expletive] crazy. I was standing in Las Vegas ten hours a guy filming a [expletive] TV show, and now I'm sitting here. And I'm going to randomly drug test 375 guys around the world. You know where I'm going in a few hours? To Abu Dhabi. Then I go back and film ‘The Ultimate Fighter,' then I go to Atlanta, Miami, and I'm in Rio de Janeiro for three hours, then back to Las Vegas where I'll film ‘The Ultimate Fighter' again. And in between there somewhere I'm going to randomly drug test 375 [fighters]."
The issue is that no, no one expects Dana to be doing the testing. His schedule should have no impact on the testing. It should be made clear that the testing is not optional and you have 48 hours from notification to get to an approved site to submit your sample.
There can be an officer for the promotion put in charge of it to take it out of Dana's hands. Saying he is too busy isn't a good enough excuse.
And you'll have to forgive me if I don't consider anything involving state commissions to be the "gold standard" of anything.
Posted in: dana, test, testing, im, expletive
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowVideo: Dana White Media Scrum After UFC On Fuel TV 2
UFC president Dana White spoke to the media for several minutes after the UFC on Fuel TV 2 post-fight press conference. Whoa! TV was there and recorded the conversation. They released a video of the highlights and it is above. Topics covered include:
International expansion of The Ultimate Fighter;
Possibly doing simultaneous shows in different countries;
Need for commentators, cameramen, production staff to expand;
The decision to cut Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal from Strikeforce and his behavior before the NSAC;
The Association of Boxing Commissioners;
India's SuperFight League and the UFC's commitment to "100% absolutely" bringing the UFC to India;
The crowd in Sweden;
Drug testing in the UFC and testing by the Athletic Commissions, Dana claims MMA testing is "the gold standard" for testing in sports;
"We are 100% more on top of drug testing than any other sport on Earth except the Olympics.
SBN coverage of UFC on FUEL TV 2
Posted in: ufc, dana, tv, testing, fuel
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC 146: Dana White Doesn't Want To Talk About Alistair Overeem, Letting Due Process Run Its Course
The biggest story in the UFC remains Alistair Overeem's positive test for elevated testosterone levels ahead of his scheduled UFC 146 challenge for Junior dos Santos' heavyweight title. When news first broke of Overeem's test, UFC president Dana White described himself as "beyond pissed" and said anyone getting caught using banned substances is a "brain-dead dummy."
Related: Overeem Tests Positive For Elevated Testosterone Levels | Dana Responds To Overeem's Failed Drug Test | Is A Million Dollar Program The Solution For The UFC's PED Problem?
Dana has been quiet on the Overeem front since that point, seeming to have decided it was for the best to not lose his mind in public. In fact, that's exactly what White told reporters at the press conference for UFC on Fuel TV 2 (via MMA Fighting):
"I will snap and freak out and I don't want to do that," White told reporters following the conclusion of the press conference. "I don't want to talk about it. I'm too upset about it. Seriously, I can't talk about it."
...
"Everybody gets due process," White said. "Alistair Overeem will have his due process with the Nevada State Athletic Commission. We'll see what happens and we'll go from there. When it all goes down, somebody else will speak about this. Not me."
I can't imagine, having read this, that they're still fully interested in allowing Overeem to remain in the main event.
This seems more like a "we need to let things run their course and then we'll react."
And, given Dana and the UFC's bragging about how serious testing is for their athletes, it's very hard to imagine that they'd be willing to risk the image they're attempting to cultivate by giving a guy who popped for such high levels a title shot. But who knows, maybe they're comfortable with doing it if Alistair and his lawyer are able to find the right loophole to get his license.
Related: Can Alistair Overeem Still Get Licensed? | Alistair Overeem Situation Continues To Spiral Into Nonsense
It's very interesting to see Dana say that he isn't going to be the one to talk about the situation. It's the first time I can remember that he voluntarily took a backseat to someone else due to being worried that he is too upset and will say the wrong thing.
The one thing that is clear, Dana is still upset, even if it's clear that Overeem is putting together some sort of plan to try to get his license anyway.
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, alistair overeem, alistair
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Talks King Mo, India, Drug Testing and More (Video)
As per usual, following the UFC on Fuel TV 2 post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White held court with the media for a few follow-up issues.
Posted in: ufc, conference, dana, court, king
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White: Overeem Will Have His Due Process, Then Somebody Else Will Talk About It, Not Me
UFC president Dana White says that Alistair Overeem will get his due process, then somone else will talk about it... he doesn't have the temperament for it.
Posted in: overeem, dana, alistair overeem, somebody, process
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Announces Frank Mir vs. Cain Velasquez “Will Happen” at UFC 146
Just days after declaring his desire to replace Alistair Overeem against Junior dos Santos, UFC President Dana White has announced that Frank Mir’s currently scheduled fight against Cain Velasquez will still be taking place. That fight, which is scheduled for UFC 146, is the co-main event at the May 26th event, and will be a number one contender’s bout to determine who faces the champion later this year.
Hours after the news broke that Overeem tested positive for elevated testosterone, Mir sent out a release mentioning that he “would be excited if given the opportunity to compete for the UFC’s heavyweight title at UFC 146″. However, early this morning Dana White posted on his twitter account that “Mir vs Cain will happen”.
The UFC has yet to make an official statement regarding Overeem’s test or the status of the main event at UFC 146. Along with Mir, Dan Henderson has stated his case for the opportunity, stating that he would accept the fight if offered.
Overeem has a meeting scheduled for April 24th with the Nevada Athletic Commission to discuss his test. The UFC very well may not make a decision regarding dos Santos’ opponent until that meeting.
Posted in: ufc, fight, overeem, mir, dana
Read the full article at MMA FrenzyDana White Says Mir vs. Cain Will Happen; Where Does UFC Go From Here?
UFC president Dana White on Saturday said that Frank Mir vs. Cain Velasquez will still happen; so where does the UFC go from here if Alistair Overeem can't fight?
Posted in: ufc, mir, vs, dana, mir vs
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC President Dana White Says Frank Mir Vs. Cain Velasquez 'Will Happen," Alistair Overeem's Possible Replacement Still Unknown
Since the news that Alistair Overeem tested positive for elevated testosterone, turning in a sample with a 14:1 ratio (Nevada allows as high as 6:1), the questions over who would replace Overeem after the inevitable suspension have been constant. With one of the more unrealistic options falling out as possibilities with Fedor Emelianenko's camp announcing that he now has a fight scheduled for June in Russia, the most obvious choice for a replacement seemed to remain Frank Mir.
Mir was scheduled to fight Cain Velasquez on the same UFC 146 card that was supposed to see Alistair Overeem challenge Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title, so it would be an easy switch to make.
But now Dana White has shot down that idea on Twitter:
jimbefc jim barnard
@danawhite please dont break up the mir/cain fight i really wanna see these guys bang,could be a really great fight
Apr 07 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @jimbefc↑
@danawhiteDana White @jimbefc Mir vs Cain will happen Apr 07 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
Could this mean that the #RallyForMarkHunt movement has finally cracked Dana? Or is there another option?
Let's run through the top 15 ranked heavyweights on the USA TODAY / SB Nation Consensus Rankings to see what viable options remain:
Junior dos Santos - Well, JDS can't fight himself.
Alistair Overeem - Unless somehow his B-sample tests clean, he's out as an option.
Cain Velasquez - Dana just shot down the idea of Cain or Mir moving up to the title shot.
Fabricio Werdum - Mike Russow at UFC 147 is a bit of a waste of Werdum, I suppose he's an option. Although he lost a really lame fight to Overeem just two fights ago. A rematch with dos Santos wouldn't be horrible three and a half years later.
Frank Mir - Again, shot down by Dana.
Josh Barnett - Not going to happen with the Grand Prix finals coming up and the way Showtime wants the finals to be handled.
Shane Carwin - Recovering from injury, not an option.
Daniel Cormier - See: Josh Barnett
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: Recovering from a broken arm.
Antonio Silva - Knocked out in his last fight, unlikely as an option.
Fedor Emelianenko - As stated, has a fight in Russia. Not that that couldn't change, but he's very unlikely.
Brendan Schaub - Knocked out last fight, not a title challenger yet.
Mark Hunt - Why not?!
Roy Nelson - Dominated badly by Werdum in his last fight.
Travis Browne - Get serious.
Mark Hunt is the only realistic option (with Cain and Mir eliminated by Dana) that has won more than one fight at in a row. This is getting interesting.
Fabricio Werdum may remain the "best" option though.
Posted in: fight, overeem, mir, dana, option
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowTweet of the Day: UFC's Dana White Gets Drunk With Olivia Munn After Stressful Overeem News
So Alistair Overeem ruined a perfect UFC 146 main event with his failed drug test, it really pissed off Dana White. The UFC President had a very stressful day, but it looks like he still managed to have a blast that night. Here's Dana tweeting about getting drunk with Olivia Munn:
"Me and my buddy @Oliviamunn are having a blast 2 nite no matter how shitty my day was!!!!!!!"
"Forgot the pic with my girl @oliviamunn !!! Might be dr#*¥ and don’t give a Fu@#"
I'm not sure why his less sober self wanted to censor the word "drunk", but it's interesting to point out that for some reason, (I'm assuming) sober-Dana had to delete those tweets. Of course, you can never really delete stuff that's floating all over the internet, so it's still here for your viewing pleasure.
And again, since we're dealing with the internet, Dana White had to field a few very interesting questions such as "you hitting that Dana? Nice" and "Your wife is gonna punch you in the dick bro!".
Olivia Munn of course, cleared everything up. More after the jump.
The popular actress and host replied:
"Good news! Tests results came back POSITIVE on our best friendship!!!"
"dude, this pic makes it look like I'm breast-feeding you. Its misleading, I admit... Ur my big brother & I love you."
There you have it. It's apparently not as bad as it looks, but don't you wish you had someone like Olivia Munn to cheer you up after a stressful day at work?
Posted in: day, dana, olivia munn, munn, olivia
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana drowns his UFC 146 sorrows with Olivia Munn
How did Dana White dull the pain of yet another big fight going bust? By getting sloppy all over Olivia Munn and twitter. Some highlights from the evening (which included the above picture):
“D. Contreras @SanandDan@danawhite @oliviamunn your both red!”
“Dana White @danawhite@SanandDan @oliviamunn alcohol ”
“Marco Di Meo @DiMeo19@danawhite are you hammered right now?”
“Dana White @danawhite@DiMeo19 yup”
“Daniel Humire @dhumire@danawhite @oliviamunn lol dana is so f*cked up right now. He drowning his ufc 146 sorrows.”
“Dana White @danawhite@dhumire @oliviamunn true”
“oliviamunn @oliviamunn@danawhite Good news! Tests results came back POSITIVE on our best friendship!!!”
“oliviamunn @oliviamunn@danawhite dude, this pic makes it look like I’m breast-feeding you. Its misleading, I admit… Ur my big brother & I love you.”
Well played on the steroid joke, Munn. Well played.
Posted in: dana, oliviamunn, olivia munn, munn, joke munn
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White: Junior Dos Santos Will Defend Title At UFC 146
UFC president Dana White has confirmed that Heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos will defend his title at UFC 146 according to a report from the Associated Press. Dos Santos, who took the belt from Cain Velasquez last November at UFC on Fox, had been scheduled to face Alistair Overeem.
That fight was apparently scotched when Overeem failed a 'surprise' drug test after a press conference in Las Vegas. No official action has been taken, but as Overeem wasn't licensed in Nevada it seems exceedingly unlikely that the Nevada State Athletic Commission will extend that privilege to him now that he's tested over the limit for Testosterone.
Related Stories
Junior Dos Santos Responds To Overeem Results | Fans Clamoring For Fedor Or Mark Hunt Vs. Junior Dos Santos | Alistair Overeem's T/E Ratio 14:1 | Is A Million Dollar Program The Solution For The UFC's PED Problem? | Mir Ready To Step In For Overeem | Overeem's Win Over Lesnar Should Be Overturned, But It Won't Be | Drug Issues Taint Strikeforce Legacy | Dana Responds To Overeem's Failed Drug Test |Who Will Face Dos Santos? | Overeem Tests Positive For Elevated Testosterone Levels | UFC 146 Fighters Tested By NSAC After Press Conference
Fans are clamoring for the UFC to bring in former Pride champion Fedor Emelianenko or to give Mark Hunt a chance to play 'Rocky' but it seems most likely that Frank Mir will get the title shot. Mir is riding a three-fight win streak, including a dramatic come-from-behind win over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 140.
More SBN coverage of UFC 146
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, do, drug
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White softens his anti-Barnett stance
Right up until the UFC bought Strikeforce, Dana White and Josh Barnett hated eachother's guts. Once the purchase went through, White extended an olive branch of sorts by not insta-firing everyone on the roster who had crossed him in the past - Barnett and Paul Daley sitting at the top of that list. From there it seems to have allowed room for reconcilliation, and now another guy Dana promised would never see the inside of the Octagon again will probably be welcomed back:
"The way that Showtime wants to do it is when that fight finally happens, whoever wins it, they wanna do another fight on Showtime, so that guy would probably come to the UFC. We'll see what happens, you know? Josh and I have been playing nice with each other for a little while, since he got into the UFC. It's more than just, 'Does he win? Does he do this?' You gotta be able to come to terms with the guy and be able to deal with him. If he wins the fight, I can't see why he wouldn't come here, unless we weren't able to make a deal with him."
Understandably, Dana White may be slightly more skittish about trusting people like Josh Barnett after what happened to him yesterday. In some ways, Dana's hate is just a rough exterior designed to keep him from being hurt. Deep down inside he's a PRIDE fanboy who's scarred by rank betrayal and from trying to kick the Fedor football so many times. Why do his fighters always break his heart?
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, josh barnett, josh
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White responds to Overeem failing UFC 146 drug screen
Dana White quickly issued a statement today regarding Alistair Overeem's elevated testosterone levels:
“I am beyond pissed about this,” said UFC president Dana White on Wednesday in a conference call with Canadian media that had been scheduled for one week. “I’m so (expletive) mad right now I can’t even begin ... ” “The worst part is that he sat in front of us and lied to us,” said White, noting that Overeem has been in UFC’s offices meeting
Posted in: ufc, overeem, dana, statement today, alistair overeems
Read the full article at Low KickDana White Accepts MLS Player's Challenge After Calling Soccer 'Least Talented Sport On Earth'
On March 21, UFC president Dana White was asked about fighting in hockey during a fan Q&A. His answer somehow turned into an opportunity to randomly bash soccer, as he declared it "the least talented sport on Earth"based on the large goal size and low scoring games.
That led to former MLS star Jimmy Conrad issuing a challenge to Dana:
Some quotes:
Why would a tough guy like you feel so threatened by soccer that you needed to go off on it unprovoked? Is it maybe cause you know the one thing any three year old can do is fight? Hell, mine spent a whole year fighting me.
...
Have you ever even played soccer, Dana? Can you pass a ball, like to a teammate, instead of some guy in the 3rd row? Can you run at top speed, while holding off a defender, and aiming for the corner of the goal being guarded by a massive 6'4" goal keeper? Yeah, probably not.
So listen, here's what I'm going to do. Because I like you, I'm going to give you the opportunity to join me and a few friends for a game of soccer. Since you believe playing soccer requires no talent, I'm sure you'll be the star. Unless you scared. Well let me know. I look forward to hearing from you.
Dana White quickly took to Twitter to say "I'm in bro!!!"
JakesJournal Jake's Journal
This could be fun. MT @kick: So @JimmyConrad_com addressed UFC Pres @danawhite comments on soccer. #ChallengeExtended. http://t.co/zb9fLn7m
Apr 02 Favorite Retweet Reply
JimmyConrad_com Jimmy Conrad
@JakesJournal @kick @danawhite Agreed. I need Dana's people to talk to my people and do something fun here in NYC. Dana, what say you?
Apr 02 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @JimmyConrad_com↑
@danawhiteDana White @JimmyConrad_com @jakesjournal @kick I'm in bro!!! Apr 02 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
happykappy7 Jonathan Kaplan
If only @DanaWhite had the guts to say Challenge Accepted! "@Kick: Check out @JimmyConrad_com challenge to UFC pres http://t.co/wiJpuv3Y"
Apr 02 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @happykappy7↑
@danawhiteDana White @happykappy7 @kick @jimmyconrad_com I said yes you soccer freaks. I'm in LOL, calm down. Apr 02 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
I think we all know how this ends. Dana will go, Jimmy and his friends will run circles around Dana and then Dana does the smiling "man, I was wrong. These guys are f**kin' talented. I just got my ass kicked!" And the world keeps on spinnin'.
Posted in: dana, kick, soccer, im, reply
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowJimmy Conrad doesn't appreciate Dana White criticizing soccer
In high school, we were required to participate in at least one after-school sport every season. In the Fall, the most talented athletes always ended up playing football, while some chose to compete in cross-country running, and the remainder ended up playing soccer by default. With that observation, it’s easy to conclude that soccer is a sport that takes the least amount of enthusiasm to play when you’re forced to chose a sport you have no desire to play. However, it’s also one of the most demanding if you want to have a career in it. In America, that equates to a profession filled with hilarious David Beckham jokes and the same public recognition as the president of your local chain of supermarkets. Jimmy Conrad knows all about that stuff, but he’s proud of being a professional soccer player anyway, He thinks Dana White’s critical comments regarding his former sport were baseless and reassures the public that soccer isn’t nearly as easy to play as it looks; which is coincidentally exactly how I feel about Ms. Pacman. Anyway, here’s his open letter to Dana White, to which he has responded just a few hours ago.
Here's a little Twitter exchange between the two, compliments of The UG.
Posted in: sport, dana, soccer, afterschool sport, ms pacman
Read the full article at Middle EasyDon Frye: Dana White (and his 30 Ferraris) ruined the sport of MMA
Thank god, it's Frye-day.
Forty-sumthin' mixed martial arts (MMA) veteran Don Frye, who started his career with seven straight bouts under the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) banner (pre-ZUFFA), still loves the sport of cage fighting.
In spite of UFC President Dana White.
"The Predator" told Sherdog's "Savage Dog Show" that MMA was "ruined" by the penny-pinching promoter, who brags about his "30 Ferraris" while making thousand-aires out of undercard competitors:
"The fans are fantastic. Fantastic fans. But the thing is, Dana White’s just ruined the sport. I got to thinking about it today and you know, he ruined it for me... It’s a crime. You see some of these guys only getting two or three or six thousand dollars and you’ve got Dana bragging about having 30 Ferraris. Come on. You have a sponsor and he charges a sponsor what, a hundred and fifty grand to have your stuff on the fighter? That’s money he’s stealing from the fighter. Then he goes and he pays them two or three thousand dollars. That’s crazy."
Frye is piggybacking off recent complaints from the boxing industry (among others) that the UFC is running a monopoly after effectively absorbing any and all competition that poses any kind of threat, including PRIDE, WEC and Strikeforce.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) disagrees.
Despite the stranglehold ZUFFA has on stateside MMA, there are still plenty of places for combat sports athletes to compete, such as Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC), DREAM, ONE FC, BAMMA and of course, Bellator.
And the UFC has made its share of millionaires.
Nevertheless, Frye is perturbed about the way some of the spoils are shared amongst the roster, and even goes as far as to call it "stealing" from the fighters.
Anyone out there in MMA land agree?
More on the ZUFFA pay scale here, here and here.
Posted in: ufc, mma, sport, dana, frye
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDon Frye: 'Dana White's Just Ruined The Sport'
Don Frye is one of MMA's biggest personalities. His tendency to speak his feelings as honestly as anyone in the sport along with his sense of humor and a history of being a "go for broke" fighter have turned Frye into one of the most beloved figures around the sport.
Of course, talking about UFC fighter pay in any negative way is a quick way to change that. The question of "Are UFC fighters underpaid?" was asked while Frye was on the "Savage Dog Show" on Sherdog and this was his response:
Oh my God, it's a crime. It's a crime. You see some of these guys only getting two or three or six thousand dollars and you've got Dana bragging about having 30 Ferraris. Come on. You have a sponsor and he charges a sponsor what, a hundred and fifty grand to have your stuff on the fighter? That's money he's stealing from the fighter. Then he goes and he pays them two or three thousand dollars. That's crazy.
While it's not a particularly new stance, and despite my feelings that there is a slight pay issue in the UFC, this seems to miss a bit of the point. What Dana makes off the UFC should have no bearing on what the bottom level fighters should make.
Simple business sense would suggest that Dana White is far more important to the success of the UFC than an opening level fighter (who seems to make no less than $6,000) and is therefor worth more money.
My issue with pay is less about the bottom rung fighters and more about the gap between the current "middle class" which tends to average somewhere around $30,000-50,000 (with win bonus) and the top end which is generally well over $100,000. But that's all in flux and something that may well correct itself in the next year or two.
Frye also thinks that Dana White has "ruined the sport":
I do. I really do. I had a lot of fun. The fans are fantastic. Fantastic fans. But the thing is, Dana White's just ruined the sport. I got to thinking about it today and you know, he ruined it for me. I thought, ‘Why am I letting that asshole dictate my life and take all of the fun out of it for me?' I just ignore him and go on with my life. I might climb back in the cage just because I finally say, ‘F--k it. Why let him ruin it?' I just ignore him and go on with my own business.
Even if I disagree with him, I'm firmly in the camp of people who'll never be able to get too mad at Don. The man is a national treasure.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, sport, dana, frye
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowVadim Finkelstein talks Fedor in UFC
We've heard from Fedor, we've heard from Dana, and now it's time to hear from Mr M-1 Global himself Vadim Finkelstein about the possibility of the Last Emperor in the UFC:
UFC President Dana White recently said that he has zero interest in signing Fedor...You need to know Dana. If he says he has no interest in signing Fedor, then in fact, he really wants to. He says one thing, and doing another. How can you not want a fighter who can bring millions? Any fight with Fedor could break all the rating records in the UFC.
Maybe you should make the first step?We are open for dialogue. It’s just that Dana White thinks that we will come to him, kneel down and say: "We are ready for any conditions to sign a contract." Of course, this will never happen. Fedor deserves nothing but respect. But like I said, there’s still a high demand for Fedor. We are ready to have Fedor fighting in the UFC, it’s just that we need a normal offer. And the fact that White is always saying that he offered us everything “on a silver platter” is a lie.
As for other possibilities:
Brazil really wants to see Fedor. There the largest media company in the country is involved there. But, again, we have plenty of offers, and not only from Rio. There’s a huge demand for Fedor as a fighter.
Who else is interested in Fedor?Singapore. We are sending our representative to Singapore for negotiations. I heard about certain interest from the Indian organization Super Fight League. However, we are yet to discuss anything with them. But in general we have another very serious contact. Unfortunately, I cannot disclose this information. But the negotiations are already underway.
I wonder if Fedor's accountant has looked into how much it'll cost for his fighter to retire 'comfortably.' I'm sure these podunk shows in buttf*ck Asia would still pay pretty well for Fedor's services, but do the numbers add up when you figure he's only got a few years left on his career? He could spend that time toiling in the minors fighting cans and dragging his legacy through the mud. Or he could come into the UFC and make enough money in a year to take care of himself for the rest of his life, win or lose. Unfortunately, we all know which one of these options is more likely.
Posted in: ufc, dana, fedor, fedors services, fedors accountant
Read the full article at FightlinkerReport: Brock Lesnar Returns To WWE On One Year Contract, Dana White Fine With It
BE's Josh Nason (via Dave Meltzer) reported this morning that former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar was close to returning to his former home, World Wrestling Entertainment,at WrestleMania 28 tomorrow night. Now it appears that it will be on a much larger scale that a one-off appearance, and UFC president Dana White is fine with it. Dave Meltzer has the news (as usual):
Brock Lesnar has arrived in Miami and arrived with security and a large group of people shielding him from everyone. This is the going story, but not confirmed, that Lesnar has signed a one year deal and will work a more than Undertaker and less than Goldberg type of schedule.
MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani asked Dana White about Lesnar reportedly going back to wrestling, and he seems fine with it:
@arielhelwaniAriel Helwani Not sure if the rumors of Brock signing with WWE are true right now, but if you're wondering whether @danawhite/UFC would be ok with it ... Apr 01 via Echofon Favorite Retweet Reply
@arielhelwaniAriel Helwani ... He just told me, "yes." So that's that. Apr 01 via Echofon Favorite Retweet Reply
Ariel did make it clear that it was still a rumor and Dana wasn't confirming the rumor, he was simply commenting on how he'd feel if it was the truth. Either way though, it certainly seems like Lesnar will be stepping back into a WWE ring tomorrow night for the first time in over seven years.
Posted in: dave meltzer, dana, lesnar, rumor, brock
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White really wants to sign Fedor Emelianenko to the UFC ...
... or at least that's what the Russian legend's management team is saying.
There's a certain song and dance to any negotiation and Fedor Emelianenko is shimmying to the beat of the UFC's drum. That's because he doesn't exactly have a lot of leverage anymore and it's entirely possible the world's largest fight promotion is no longer interested in his services.
In fact, UFC President Dana White expressly stated recently that he has "zero interest" in signing "The Last Emperor" to a deal. Bitter or not, he's the big dog making the decisions.
Then again, Lorenzo Fertitta has told fans on his Twitter account that he would be willing to wheel and deal with Fedor and his people as long as co-promotion wasn't on the table. And considering the state of the game, that may very well be the case.
For their part, Fedor's management team is holding firm in their belief their fighter will make his way to the Octagon, as long as the conditions are right.
"You need to know Dana," Vadim Finkelstein told Gazeta.ru (translated by LowKick.com). "If he says he has no interest in signing Fedor, then in fact, he really wants to. He says one thing, and doing another. How can you not want a fighter who can bring millions? Any fight with Fedor could break all the rating records in the UFC."
Emelianenko (33-4), who once tore through the ranks of Japan's mixed martial arts (MMA) scene like a rampaging Godzilla, seemed undersized and overmatched during his foray into stateside competition.
Despite a couple of first-round laughers against former UFC heavyweight titleholders Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski, who both succumbed to the wily Russian within the opening frame of their respective Affliction bouts, the Combat Sambo Champion was nearly greased by ex-mechanic Brett Rogers in his Strikeforce debut.
While he eventually secured the second round knockout win, his following three bouts would not only shatter his mystique, they damn-near sent him into retirement, with a brutal knockout loss to part-time middleweight Dan Henderson as the straw that broke the Soviet's back.
He's been able to get back into the win column in recent months, but most of the hoopla behind his abilities -- and the desire to see him compete amongst the UFC elite -- has long since dissipated.
Or has it? Is there any chance in hell we ever see him mixing it up under the UFC banner? Or is he simply a victim of M-1 propaganda?
Opinions, please.
Posted in: ufc, dana, fedor, emelianenko, opening frame
Read the full article at MMA ManiaFedor Emelianenko's Manager Says 'We Are Ready To Have Fedor Fighting In The UFC'
Yesterday I posted about Dana White dismissing any chance of Fedor Emelianenko coming to the UFC. In response Fedor's manager Vadim Finkelstein made a statement to one of the biggest news websites in Russia, Gazeta.ru, translated by Lowkick.com:
UFC President Dana White recently said that he has zero interest in signing Fedor...You need to know Dana. If he says he has no interest in signing Fedor, then in fact, he really wants to. He says one thing, and doing another. How can you not want a fighter who can bring millions? Any fight with Fedor could break all the rating records in the UFC.
Maybe you should make the first step?We are open for dialogue. It's just that Dana White thinks that we will come to him, kneel down and say: "We are ready for any conditions to sign a contract." Of course, this will never happen. Fedor deserves nothing but respect. But like I said, there's still a high demand for Fedor. We are ready to have Fedor fighting in the UFC, it's just that we need a normal offer. And the fact that White is always saying that he offered us everything "on a silver platter" is a lie.
It's also very interesting to note that UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta had a very different take when asked about Fedor on Twitter last week:
CRISPY_PIG liam treston
@lorenzofertitta if fedor's management come to the ufc and ask for a contract no co promotion would you discuss it with them or no chamce
Mar 25 Favorite Retweet Reply
in reply to @CRISPY_PIG↑
@lorenzofertittaLorenzo Fertitta @CRISPY_PIG I would Mar 25 via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet Reply
From my perspective it seems clear that Lorenzo and Dana have perfected one of the best good cop/bad cop plays in sports. It's also clear that even Vadim and M-1 have to realize how vastly diminished Fedor is as a commodity on the open market and it seems like even sleepy Fedor has noticed that he's been unable to get the caliber of competition he's worthy of since being cut by Strikeforce.
It's impossible to say if the parties involved will work anything out or if there is really even any point in Fedor coming to the UFC at this point. What do you say you want to see The Last Emperor in the Octagon or not?
Poll
Would you be more likely to order a UFC pay-per-view if Fedor Emelianenko was fighting on the card?
YUS!
Nah, Fedor's old news
I wouldn't mind but it wouldn't be the deciding factor.
252 votes | Results
Posted in: ufc, dana, fedor, fedor emelianenko, retweet reply
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: UFC Title Shot Next for Dan Henderson
UFC president Dana White says former Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson's next fight will be for a title. But will it come at light heavyweight or middleweight?
Posted in: ufc, title, dana, dan, light heavyweight
Read the full article at Heavy MMAFriday Link Club: PRIDE FC – Five Years Later
Don’t forget tomorrow at 8am ET, ONE FC: War of the Lions takes place live and streams for free on the ONE FC Youtube page.
Post-PRIDE five years later: What happened to the main players? | Fight Opinion
ONE Fighting Championship: A Preview of the Stacked Main Card | Bleacher Report
Invicta FC making debut in style with free live stream on April 28 | Five Ounces of Pain
Dana White Has No Interest In Signing Fedor | FightLine
Sadly, Lee Murray’s Days of Impregnating Women in Prison May Be Over | Cage Potato
Dana White: Nick Diaz Would be Insane to Retire | 5thRound
Canadian Prime Minster gives counterpart GSP gloves | MMA Payout
King Mo Says He Did Not Play the Race Card Against NSAC | TheFightNerd
Rafael Cordeiro gives us his thoughts on TUF: Brasil and Shogun heading back to the top | MiddleEasy
Dana White: Dan Henderson will get next title shot at Light Heavyweight or Middleweight | MMA Mania
Vadim Finkelstein: We are ready to have Fedor fighting in the UFC | LowKick
Posted in: dana, fc, tuf brasil, impregnating women, middleeasy dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana said
Dana White has been a busy boy lately, talking to every media outlet that approaches him about any topic under the sun. Rather than chop his mighty oak of information up into smaller logs that will fuel site content for several days, we're instead cramming all the interesting things he said into one post. First off, here's Dana on testosterone replacement therapy:
"On this flip side, this is legal. This you can do. Testosterone replacement therapy is something you can do and it’s for guys whose testosterone is too low, but here’s what you’re supposed to do. You’re supposed to get your levels to that of a normal guy your age and if you’re even that much over, now it becomes illegal. So again, it's based on what's legal and what's not legal. That is legal, marijuana is not legal." "But as far as me having a ... I actually think that it's good. Obviously it’s bad that these guys abused steroids earlier in their career. That’s what’s so terrible. Amongst all the other things that you find out what’s good and what’s bad about using steroids: these young, talented guys who are full of testosterone already, go in and start abusing these drugs. Now when you get up to your late 20′s, which should be your prime, early 30′s, now your all screwed up because your off the steroids and now you’ve destroyed your system forever where you can’t produce testosterone.""These guys, they now have medicine where they can replace it and get it back to normal levels. Which is good ... but we wanna stop guys from taking steroids when they're young. You shouldnt take them. It's bad. No matter what short term effects you have, the long term effects are a lot worse. Just ... it's stupid. And that's what we're trying to stop right now. But testosterone replacement therapy is legal."
How whack is that. TRT is possibly the most epic loophole in the history of performance enhancing drugs and Dana White thinks it's good. This whole situation is a PR nightmare that could explode at any moment and potentially cripple the sport in the process, and Dana White thinks it's good! More apoplectic rage on the subject over at FightOpinion, and tons more of what Dana said after the jump.
read more
Posted in: guy, dana, steroid, testosterone, term effects
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White Assures Everyone Silva vs. Sonnen 2 is Happening; Presser Scheduled
Don’t let Chael Sonnen fool you, he's fighting Anderson Silva at UFC 147 in Brazil and he'll be heading there in April along with Dana White to officially announce UFC 147.
Posted in: ufc, silva, dana, anderson silva, sonnen
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyFight Day: Dana White UFC 146 Video Interview
HeavyMMA's Megan Olivi talks to UFC president Dana White following Tuesday's UFC 146 press conference about that May card, Silva-Sonnen II and much more.
Posted in: ufc, dana, heavymma, tuesday, silvasonnen ii
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White cuts King Mo.
submitted by MarkEffed [link] [13 comments]
Posted in: dana, markeffed, cut, mo, king
Read the full article at Reddit
UFC's Dana White Interview
This interview with Dana is very enlightening and candid. He discusses why there will be no Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua II and discusses his bonkers travel schedule. In said travel discussion, he discusses HKL Boss Man Luke Nelson's recent post about Dana's work ethic and tireless dedication to growing the sport.
The video is a little long but is worth every damn second of your time. Enjoy.
Posted in: dana, interview, ufcs dana, travel discussion, travel schedule
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendUFC Video: In-Depth Dana White Interview Talks His Vision For The Next 5 years
UFC president Dana White sits down with Marcus Kowal of Sweden's MMAnytt for a very interesting interview that cover's Dana's whole history with MMA in pretty serious detail.
Topics covered include:
How Dana and the Fertitta Brothers got into MMA, first as students of Jiu-Jitsu, then as promoters;
The business philosophy of the UFC: sport over spectacle;
How he works with UFC matchmaker Joe Silva;
Dana's unsuccessful efforts to book a Dan Henderson vs Mauricio "Shogun" Rua rematch;
The UFC's goals for the next five years (notably one of the key goals is letting people know that now they're on Fox, FX and Fuel);
Efforts to get the UFC regulated in New York, France and everywhere around the world;
The move from Spike TV to Fox;
Dana outlines his insane travel schedule at length;
Dana's plans to get everything "dialed-in" over the next two years so he can coast for the next five;
His plans to appear on every international edition of The Ultimate Fighter.
More SBN Coverage of UFC on Fuel TV 2
Posted in: ufc, dana, year, detail topics, business philosophy
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow
Dana White Dissing Soccer as "Least Talented Sport" is Funny: Fan Reaction (Yahoo! Contributor Network)
UFC President, Dana White's casual comments have started another controversy--this time over one of the world's most beloved sports, soccer. Football or "footy" as it is affectionately known outside of the 50 states, is hardly a sport for the...
Posted in: sport, dana, soccer, dissing soccer, controversythis time
Read the full article at Yahoo! SportsUFC Pres Dana White: Soccer Least-Talented Sport On Earth (Yahoo! Sports)
Being a blabbermouth is one thing, but these are fighting words.
UFC president Dana White, legendary for speaking his mind, didn't hold back...
Posted in: ufc, sport, dana, pre, mind didnt
Read the full article at Yahoo! Sports
Ken Shamrock sounds off on fighter pay, Dana White’s role in the UFC’s growth
MMA icon Ken Shamrock has never been one to remain silent when he has a strong opinion he feels is worth sharing. Shamrock is a former UFC champion and was part of the promotion during its infancy, helping build it into what is now the sport’s leading organization.
For Shamrock, though, just being remembered doesn’t seem to be enough, and as such he’s continued to speak out against the likes of UFC President Dana White regarding pay and his role in the UFC’s growth.
“I don’t like to come in and say, ‘I’ve done this and I’ve done that,’ because really, it takes a village to make something happen. And to hear Dana White say, ‘I did this and I did that. It was me. And he didn’t do this and didn’t do that,’…well, how in the world did they get to where they were at if it was just Dana,” said Shamrock while visiting The MMA Hour on a recent episode. “Because I didn’t see him in the ring. I didn’t see Dana fighting. I didn’t see the numbers go up when they just had Tito (Ortiz) there. I didn’t see any of that.”
Shamrock went on to discuss how he helped push the UFC to the forefront during his feud with Ortiz. The two were coaches on The Ultimate Fighter and helped draw some of the biggest viewership numbers the promotion has seen to date. Shamrock, a former professional wrestler, also talked about a bone he’s had to pick for some time – fighter pay.
“They will never let you get in there and see the books,” said Shamrock in reference to a claim by White that he made $2.5 million in the company. “It’s not open. So then they make statements like that, and it doesn’t make sense.”
Shamrock will always be remembered for his role as a UFC Hall of Fame fighter, though any chance of a reconciliation between himself and White seems highly unlikely at this point for personal reasons.
PHOTO CREDIT – UFC
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, shamrock, role
Read the full article at Five Ounces of PainKen Shamrock Discusses UFC's 'Bogus Lawsuit' And Building The Promotion
Former UFC and WWE star Ken Shamrock was on MMA Fighting's "The MMA Hour" with Ariel Helwani and discussed a number of subjects. Most interesting among the topics discussed was Ken's take on the UFC fighter pay controversy, something he added to when he was one of the main subjects of ESPN's piece on the topic.
First, the video:
Ken on Dana White's claim that Dana loaned him $60,000 (transcribed by MMA Mania):
He, (Dana White) fires off on all these things like I owe him money. That's an absolute lie, I owe him no money. Filing a bogus lawsuit? That's funny. Everybody has a right to defend themselves whether they win or lose. If you win, obviously they are going to say yours is a bogus lawsuit. But, to say that he gave me $60,000, this is the hard part about it, I'm trying to figure out, he said I made 2.5 million dollars, and I'm like, when I first went to the UFC, they begged me to come. Dana White came to me and asked me to please come to the UFC. These are numbers that people can check into, I'm not lying about this, where as Dana says things and you can't back them up, you can't find the numbers, he just says, 'We we did this, and we did that for people, and check out the numbers.' Well let us check them out, they won't let you check them out. I made those guys over 50 to 60 million dollars on the fights that I was doing and he said he loaned me sixty grand? How in the world does that match up? They came to me and wanted me to fight for them because they were making 40,000 buy rates on their pay-per-view before I came in the UFC. When I came into the UFC, we did 150,000 buys with the first fight with Tito and then 600,000 buys and then up over 1,000,000.
More after the jump...
Ken also was asked if he feels he was treated fairly during his time with the UFC:
First of all, I set out deals and I agreed to them. So, I am not going to look back on it now and go, 'Man, look at all the money they made and look at all the money I made, it's not fair.' I'm not going to say that because I did a contract and I made that deal, so therefore it is what it is. But, when I hear things like this, where it sounds like he did all these things for me and I did nothing for them, I mean, that just stirs up a little fire because I am just thinking to myself, 'Where would they be if that feud didn't happen?' They were getting ready to shut the doors from my understanding. Whether it's true or not, that is just what I heard was that they we not doing well. I came in and the numbers changed. I am by no means sitting here and saying that I did that alone, no. Because Tito and myself did a great job with the feud and the bickering and the bantering back and forth and obviously the UFC was there to cover it and put it together and give me the opportunity to do it. But to say that any one person in that situation did more than the other is ridiculous. That's the kind of stuff that has me a hard time dealing with Dana because it seems that anytime something goes wrong, he is the one getting picked on and everyone else is the villain. That's just not the case. He is the one in charge, he is in control and anything that goes on is usually caused by him.
Posted in: ufc, money, dana, number, ken
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowKen Shamrock claims he helped make the UFC and Dana White $50 to $60 million
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall of Famer and all around mixed martial arts (MMA) legend, Ken Shamrock, has not had a professional fight for more than 1.5 years, which resulted in a loss to Mike Bourke via technical knockout at King of the Cage: "Platinum" in Durban, South Africa.
That, however, has not stopped "The World's Most Dangerous Man" from being in the MMA spotlight. Specifically, his ongoing and seemingly never-ending feud with the UFC is what seems to keep that light shining on one of the true pioneers of the sport.
What started as a great relationship with the most recognizable MMA organization in the world has turned sour over the years with lawsuits and back-and-forth verbal jabs with UFC President Dana White.
Being featured in an interview with ESPN regarding a possible UFC "monopoly" and the always hot topic that is fighter pay, didn't help Shamrock's rocky relationship with the Zuffa whatsoever; in fact, it only made things worse.
The always open and up front Shamrock appeared today (March 19, 2012) on "The MMA Hour," touching further on his beef with the UFC, White's claims the Shamrock owes him money and his role in helping the UFC become the MMA juggernaut it is today.
Check it out:
"He, (Dana White) fires off on all these things like I owe him money. That's an absolute lie, I owe him no money. Filing a bogus lawsuit? That's funny. Everybody has a right to defend themselves whether they win or lose. If you win, obviously they are going to say yours is a bogus lawsuit. But, to say that he gave me $60,000, this is the hard part about it, I'm trying to figure out, he said I made 2.5 million dollars, and I'm like, when I first went to the UFC, they begged me to come. Dana White came to me and asked me to please come to the UFC. These are numbers that people can check into, I'm not lying about this, where as Dana says things and you can't back them up, you can't find the numbers, he just says, 'We we did this, and we did that for people, and check out the numbers.' Well let us check them out, they won't let you check them out. I made those guys over 50 to 60 million dollars on the fights that I was doing and he said he loaned me sixty grand? How in the world does that match up? They came to me and wanted me to fight for them because they were making 40,000 buy rates on their pay-per-view before I came in the UFC. When I came into the UFC, we did 150,000 buys with the first fight with Tito and then 600,000 buys and then up over 1,000,000."
Not wanting to take sole credit, Shamrock went on to say that it was not just him by himself that helped the UFC grow, but rather a mixture of people that includes Dana White and Tito Ortiz:
"I don't like to come in and say, 'I've done this and I've done that,' because really, it takes a village to make something happen. It takes a lot of people to make it successful. And to hear Dana White say, 'I did this and I did that. It was me. And he didn't do this and didn't do that.' Well, how in the world did they get to where they were at if it was just Dana? Because I didn't see him in the ring. I didn't see him fighting. I didn't see the numbers go up when they had Tito just there. I didn't see any of that. What I saw was me getting in there, building an organization, having a feud with Tito Ortiz to help build those numbers along with Dana White, along with the corporation and the company to shoot those feuds and also to have Tito there, who was a great villain, to have somebody going against me, that's how we did those numbers, because we all got involved and did it, that is how it happened."
Finally, Shamrock talked about whether or not he felt he was treated fair by the promotion during his tenure:
"First of all, I set out deals and I agreed to them. So, I am not going to look back on it now and go, 'Man, look at all the money they made and look at all the money I made, it's not fair.' I'm not going to say that because I did a contract and I made that deal, so therefore it is what it is. But, when I hear things like this, where it sounds like he did all these things for me and I did nothing for them, I mean, that just stirs up a little fire because I am just thinking to myself, 'Where would they be if that feud didn't happen?' They were getting ready to shut the doors from my understanding. Whether it's true or not, that is just what I heard was that they we not doing well. I came in and the numbers changed. I am by no means sitting here and saying that I did that alone, no. Because Tito and myself did a great job with the feud and the bickering and the bantering back and forth and obviously the UFC was there to cover it and put it together and give me the opportunity to do it. But to say that any one person in that situation did more than the other is ridiculous. That's the kind of stuff that has me a hard time dealing with Dana because it seems that anytime something goes wrong, he is the one getting picked on and everyone else is the villain. That's just not the case. He is the one in charge, he is in control and anything that goes on is usually caused by him."
It seems that the Ken Shamrock vs. UFC beef won't be dying down anytime soon.
Regardless of the ongoing tension between the two parties, Shamrock's place in the UFC cannot be erased, which is no more clear than with his appearance on the UFC’s new and revamped pay-per-view (PPV) intro, which opens with Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock at UFC 1, but ultimately ends with powerful wrestler tapping to the submission wizard.
That's got to count for something.
To listen to Shamrock's entire in-depth interview click here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, shamrock, number, didnt
Read the full article at MMA ManiaKen Shamrock Fires Back at Dana White Over Fighter Pay Issue
Though his place in UFC history has been marginalized by his long-running feud with Dana White, Ken Shamrock's place in MMA lore can hardly be questioned. He was one of the stars of the UFC's early days as a perfect foil to Royce Gracie, and he later took part in one of the sport's first big-money rivalries with Tito Ortiz.Since his last defeat at the hands of Ortiz though, he's essentially been persona non grata in the UFC. Part of that is due to a lawsuit that embroiled the sides for a few years, an issue that came up recently again when Shamrock spoke to ESPN about fighter pay.
At the time, White blasted Shamrock, saying he was too uninformed about current fighter pay to speak on the topic before detailing what he alleged to be Shamrock's money troubles before the UFC stepped in up his aid.Speaking on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour, Shamrock said he believed the controversy was overblown, noting that "owner-player confrontation" was common in every major sport.What he did take exception to, though, was White's statement about his financials. At the time, White said he fronted Shamrock $60,000, and ultimately paid him $2.5 million for his last two UFC bouts, both against Ortiz.Shamrock shot back by noting that the UFC brought him in specifically for what they felt would be a box-office winner, and that he delivered with two fights that generated huge money for the UFC."I don't like to come in and say, 'I've done this and I've done that,' because really, it takes a village to make something happen," he said."It takes a lot of people to make it successful. And to hear Dana White say, 'I did this and I did that. It was me. And he didn't do this and didn't do that.' Well, how in the world did they get to where they were at if it was just Dana? Because I didn't see him in the ring. I didn't see Dana fighting. I didn't see the numbers go up when they had just Tito there. I didn't see any of that.
"What I saw was me getting in there, building an organization, having a feud with Tito Ortiz to help build those numbers, along with Dana White and the corporation and the company to shoot that feud," he continued. "And also to have Tito there, who was a great villain -- to have someone going against me. And that's how we did those numbers. Because we all got involved and did it."Shamrock said his issue with fighter pay was based upon his belief that the UFC will not let anyone look at their financials to see what ratio of profit the fighters are earning. He says even in his own case where White said he made $2.5 million, how can anyone be sure? "They will never let you get in there and see the books," he said. "It's not open. So then they make statements like that, and it doesn't make sense."Shamrock noted that when Zuffa first brought him back, the promotion was averaging around 40,000 pay-per-view buys. But in his first fight back against Ortiz, they generated 150,000 buys, a massive increase.His participation in the ESPN piece was simply to offer his side of an issue that is frequently discussed, and not part of a larger campaign against his former employer."I set up deals, I agreed to them, so I’m not going to look back on it now and say look how much money they made and how much money I made. It's not fair. I'm not going to say that because I did a contract. I made a deal. It is what it is. But when I hear things like this where it sounds like he did all these things for me and I did nothing for them, it kind of stirs up a little fire because I'm thinking to myself, 'Where would they be if that feud didn't happen?' They were getting ready to shut the doors, from my understanding. Whether it's true or not true, that's just what I heard, that they weren't doing well. And I came in, and the numbers changed."
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, shamrock, didnt
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseDana White on UFC in Japan: There’s No More Pride Events
UFC president Dana White recently explained the UFC's place in Japan, as well as going in depth about the state of mixed martial arts in the country.
Posted in: ufc, dana, japan, art, ufcs place
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Vlog: Behind The Scenes In Japan, Australia
UFC President Dana White gives us a look backstage at UFC 144 in Japan and UFC on FX in Australia.
Posted in: ufc, fx, dana, japan, australia
Read the full article at Heavy MMACheck out this brand spanking new vlog from Dana White
Its time again for another edition of the Dana White vlog. The title of this one, "TUF Live FX Vlog" is a little misleading because there is only a small serving of TUF talk on this video. The TUF talk is like a side dish of steamed veggies compared to the main course meat and potatoes behind the scenes footage Dana serves up in this video from UFC Japan and UFC Australia. As always there are some candid moments with Dana and the fighters and some fun behind the scenes type moments. There's even some exclusive footage of the backstage talks Dana has with Ian McCall and Demetrious Johnson to inform them of the judges scoring mishap and you can see some of the fighters like Rampage and Edgar getting worked on post fight. Check it out:
Posted in: dana, tuf, vlog, fx vlog, side dish
Read the full article at Middle EasyQuinton 'Rampage' Jackson Vs. Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua Planned For 2012
Quinton Jackson has been in the news a lot lately with his talk of using testosterone replacement therapy and, more recently, his talk that he wants to be released from the UFC. With everything that was going on it seemed that Jackson may be kept on the sidelines for a bit, but Dana White was on TV tonight to announce Rampage's next fight.
From UFC.com:
As reported on Fuel TV's UFC Tonight, UFC President Dana White has revealed that disgruntled former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will face another former champ, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.
There has not been a date announced for the bout.
Rampage has stated that he only has one fight left on his deal and was told by Dana previously that the UFC would "allow" him to go elsewhere when the deal is up. So, this fight represents his last in the Octagon unless things change.
Knowing how quickly Rampage can seem to change his tune, it's not crazy to assume that this all could change in the coming months.
Posted in: ufc, rampage, jackson, dana, bout rampage
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White TUF Live FX Vlog day 1
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: fx, day, dana, vlog, mattyblayze
Read the full article at RedditDana White TUF Live Video Blog
UFC President Dana White gives an update on the new Ultimate Fighter as well as going behind the scenes for UFC 144 and UFC on FX 2 in Australia.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, fx, dana, australia
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White TUF Live Video Blog
UFC President Dana White gives an update on the new Ultimate Fighter as well as going behind the scenes for UFC 144 and UFC on FX 2 in Australia.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, fx, dana, australia
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyAnderson Silva Calls Out Dana White: Fan Reaction (Yahoo! Contributor Network)
Unlike the Ultimate Fighting Championship's president Dana White, UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva has never really liked the concept of friends fighting friends inside the cage. And he had a few things to say about the subject in a recent interview.
Posted in: silva, dana, anderson silva, anderson, friend
Read the full article at Yahoo! SportsDana White vs Anderson Silva: Should friends fight friends in the UFC?
This isn't the first time this debate has come up nor will it be the last.
That's because there's such a wide divide between fighter and employer, martial artist and promoter. UFC President Dana White has made it clear throughout his years at the helm of the world's largest fight promotion that friends should be fighting friends.
This is a sport, after all, and fond feelings for each other shouldn't get in the way of that.
He's met with many detractors in this, the latest being the man he considers the pound-for-pound greatest fighter who ever lived, Anderson Silva. "The Spider" talked to SporTV recently and came hard at his boss.
Here's what he had to say (translation via Bloody Elbow):
"(Dana saying that teammates should fight each other), It's funny to say that, right? If that was the case, I would like to ask him if he'd like to split the UFC with Lorenzo, each would have their own show fighting for audience and sponsorship and everything else that involves their business. They're friends, partners... What I think is that friends shouldn't fight. Dana doesn't fight. He sells well the fight, he's a good promoter, but he isn't a fighter. I have nothing against Dana, I admire him, but he doesn't know what this is, and he can't say that two friends should fight. We spend more time together than with our own families. We share the pains, the frustrations, and just because he wants to sell a fight that he thinks it would be cool and that the public would like to see two companions fighting. He wants to match a fight with two friends? That's impossible, it only happens with people who aren't real friends. We have a philosophy in our team that, regardless of two being from the same weight class and the same objective of being UFC Champions, we know that this won't happen. MMA is not a collective sport. It's not normal for me to fight a guy that I live with everyday. It's natural to him, because he doesn't fight and hasn't even got pinched once."
Cue Cody McKenzie run up .gif cause shit just got real.
Indeed, it's hard not to sympathize with Silva, at least a little bit. I have three brothers and while they drive me completely nuts at times, I would hate the idea of climbing inside a cage with them and physically hurting them.
Never one to give up the last word, White came quick with a rebuttal:
"This isn't baseball or football. They aren't a team. They train together, go out together, but they aren't a team that plays together. I'd like for Anderson to tell me if I'm wrong: he has the belt, the fame, the money, and it is because of that, that there are many guys who'd like to be Anderson Silva, especially those inside his gym and are friends of his. Many friends of his would love to have that belt and they should fight for it. If they have to fight, it doesn't mean that they don't like each other, that they can't be friends. It's business, it's what they do for a living. If this was something I and Lorenzo would have to fight, we would. If Lorenzo has the title and I'd have to fight him, it's what would happen. It's not personal, it's only to see who's best. Imagine two famous teams in Brazil, such as Flamengo and Corinthians. Imagine if they would refuse to play against each other because they're friends, because they like each other. "We don't want to play you, we'd hurt your feelings." Oh Anderson, come on... Vitor used to train with him. Did you see what he did to his friend? I guarantee you that the guys that are his friends want to be like him. Your friends want your belt, and they won't pay your bills when you're done fighting, Anderson."
Says the guy who has "never even got pinched once."
What do you think, Maniacs? Would you fight your friends? And who has the better argument here? Are you Team Dana or Team Silva?
Posted in: fight, team, dana, anderson, friend
Read the full article at MMA ManiaAnderson Silva And Dana White Battle Over Idea Of Teammates Fighting Each Other
The subject of teammates not fighting each other has been a long standing source of debate among the MMA community. It also is a major annoyance to UFC president Dana White. White would like to not be hamstrung in making potentially huge fights just because guys train together, but many fighters honor that agreement to the end.
The subject came up with middleweight champion Anderson Silva and he had this to say to SporTV (translation via Orcus):
(Dana saying that teammates should fight each other), It's funny to say that, right? If that was the case, I would like to ask him if he'd like to split the UFC with Lorenzo, each would have their own show fighting for audience and sponsorship and everything else that involves their business. They're friends, partners... What I think is that friends shouldn't fight. Dana doesn't fight. He sells well the fight, he's a good promoter, but he isn't a fighter. I have nothing against Dana, I admire him, but he doesn't know what this is, and he can't say that two friends should fight. We spend more time together than with our own families. We share the pains, the frustrations, and just because he wants to sell a fight that he thinks it would be cool and that the public would like to see two companions fighting. He wants to match a fight with two friends? That's impossible, it only happens with people who aren't real friends. We have a philosophy in our team that, regardless of two being from the same weight class and the same objective of being UFC Champions, we know that this won't happen. MMA is not a collective sport. It's not normal for me to fight a guy that I live with everyday. It's natural to him, because he doesn't fight and hasn't even got pinched once.
Follow after the jump for Dana's response...
Dana did respond to Silva's statement, including the idea that he and Lorenzo wouldn't fight:
This isn't baseball or football. They aren't a team. They train together, go out together, but they aren't a team that plays together. I'd like for Anderson to tell me if I'm wrong: he has the belt, the fame, the money, and it is because of that, that there are many guys who'd like to be Anderson Silva, especially those inside his gym and are friends of his. Many friends of his would love to have that belt and they should fight for it. If they have to fight, it doesn't mean that they don't like each other, that they can't be friends. It's business, it's what they do for a living.If this was something I and Lorenzo would have to fight, we would. If Lorenzo has the title and I'd have to fight him, it's what would happen. It's not personal, it's only to see who's best. Imagine two famous teams in Brazil, such as Flamengo and Corinthians. Imagine if they would refuse to play against each other because they're friends, because they like each other. "We don't want to play you, we'd hurt your feelings." Oh Anderson, come on...
Vitor used to train with him. Did you see what he did to his friend? I guarantee you that the guys that are his friends want to be like him. Your friends want your belt, and they won't pay your bills when you're done fighting, Anderson.
Posted in: fight, dana, anderson silva, anderson, friend
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana "something bad has already happened on TUF"
submitted by Avertr [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: dana, tuf, something, avertr, dana something
Read the full article at RedditTUF Live 1 Premiere Notes: Dana White Pleased With ‘Perfect Debut’, Cast List, Tuck’s Dislocated Toe Pic
The next evolution of “The Ultimate Fighter” premiered on FX Friday night in it’s new live format.
Whenever you do something new, there’s always the possibility that it won’t go quite how you planned it. Dana White was certainly aware of that fact going into the premiere, but was pleased to say after it was over that everything went “perfectly.”
“Going into this thing … you’re always nervous when you do something new and do something different,” he told MMAjunkie.com. “We worked long and hard on this show to make sure this came off with no hitches. I’m very happy to with how it came off. It was perfect. Everything went according to plan. There were literally no hiccups whatsoever.
“It’s not easy doing this live. Nobody’s even done this before, and it could have gone any more perfect.”
As I noted in the comments of our recap, my only gripe with the premiere was the somewhat awkward silence at certain points. Allowing the audience to hear Dana White, Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber commenting on the fighters and the fights helped, but I think it would have been better if Jon Anik had more of a presence calling the fights. That’s not as big of a concern moving forward in the season since there’s only one fight at the end of each show, but hopefully it’s something they consider for future season premieres.
The full cast list
Joe Proctor
Cristiano Marcello
Sam Sicilia
Chris Tickle
Andy Ogle
Vinc Pichel
John Cofer
Chris Saunders
James Vick
Michael Chiesa
Mike Rio
Justin Lawrence
Daron Cruickshank
Jeremy Larsen
Al Iaqinta
Myles Jury
It’s also worth noting that Jon Tuck dislocated his toe pretty badly in his loss to Al Iaquinta. Lucky for us, Urijah Faber tweeted a picture!
Posted in: fight, dana, premiere, something, toe pic
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Sees a UFC Future Without Pay-Per-View
UFC president Dana White sees a day, and it may be sooner than you think, where the UFC will thrive without pay-per-view.
Posted in: ufc, dana, future, payperview, ufc future
Read the full article at MMA WeeklySince Dana White says he'll probably sign Hector Lombard when his Bellator contract is up, we believe him
Someone once told me every 'coming of age' teen movie could abruptly come to an end if Hector Lombard demanded it. Following that logic, one can only come to the conclusion that Hector Lombard is a fan of movies like Almost Famous, The Outsiders and Stand By Me. Just imagine that -- Hector Lombard snuggled comfortably in the corner of his sofa while he has a box of Snackwell Devil's Food Cake cookies to fuel him through a weekend marathon of 'My So Called Life.' Dana White can appreciate the dedication it takes to watch Claire Danes act in an overly dramatic high school setting, so that's probably why he's looking to sign Hector Lombard to UFC as soon as possible. Check out this clip a fan captured on his cellular device of Dana White stating that once his Bellator contract is up, he'll most likely peg Hector Lombard into the UFC middleweight roster -- or light heavyweight, we're not picky, Dana.
Posted in: lombard, hector, dana, hector lombard, bellator contract
Read the full article at Middle EasyFrankie Edgar will fight at 145 pounds one day, but he's going to do it on his own terms
On Feb. 25, 2012, former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar was unsuccessful in his title defense against Ben Henderson at UFC 144 in Saitama, Japan. The bout was a five-round battle that should certainly go down as one of the most exciting fights of 2012, but a loss is a loss, regardless.
After Edgar fell short, many, including UFC President Dana White, felt that "The Answer" was for Edgar to move down to featherweight. White even went so far as to guarantee that he'd get an immediate title shot opposite current Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo.
Edgar appeared on Spike TV's "MMA Uncensored," where he admitted that a move to 145 pounds is inevitable, just not yet:
"I got nothin' against 145 (pounds). Will I make it there one day? Probably. You know? That's the truth. But, I just don't wanna go out on these terms. I felt like the fight was too close for me to just be like, 'Alright, I'm going down to 45,' you know?"
Edgar went on to talk more about his history as a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and his choice to compete as a lightweight:
"You know, the reality is that when I first got into this, there was not 45, there was only 55. Actually, when I first started fighting, UFC didn't even have 55. So, when 55 came, that's where I fought. Then, I started doing well, and my record kinda speaks for itself. It is the plan, to eventually go down one day, just not now."
He hasn't made the move to featherweight yet, but in the event that he does, eventually, he'll probably be faced with having to go through Aldo. He expressed his thoughts on the current ruler of the 145-pound weight class, as well as how he thought a fight with "Scarface" would go down:
"I don't even know, especially since I have Ben, looming here, in the distance. Forty-five is a ways away. But, he's (Aldo is) tough. Just because you go down a weight class doesn't mean it gets any easier, especially when you're fighting a guy like Jose Aldo. He's got the power on these guys, but he's got the speed also. He presents a lot of problems."
For now, all of that is merely speculation and conjecture, as it was announced recently that Edgar would, in fact, get his rematch against Henderson. Edgar spoke about the process and conversations that went into getting the fight secured:
"Well, I had a meeting with Dana (White) again, yesterday in the city an that's when he told me I was getting the rematch. The process was that I expressed how I felt, that I felt I deserved the rematch. I wanted the rematch. I let Dana know and then I guess a lot of fans, a lot of supporters backed me up on Twitter, getting at Dana and Lorenzo (Fertitta) and they made the right choice."
Now that UFC 144 is in his rear view mirror, Edgar has had time to reflect on where he can improve. According to him, he's got a lot of work to do:
"You know, I'm just gonna do what I think worked for me, during the fight. I got months to prepare. I'm gonna go back to the drawing board and watch the fight with my team. They're more the game planners than I am. But, I'm sure they'll be some things we can pick apart, work on and get better. He did a good job of gettin' up. Obviously those are some things I can get better at and work on, but I don't wanna take anything away from him. He fought a good fight too. So, we'll see what comes around, next time."
During the interview, Edgar also said that he believes the fight will take place sometime in August of this year an that he hopes it will take place somewhere in the "lower 48."
What say you, Maniacs? Will Edgar fare better the second time around? Or are we likely to see a repeat of the original fight, ending with Henderson having his hand raised?
Sound off!
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, edgar, he
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana hurls more genitalia inspired insults at reporters
A lot of people have been wondering what impact Dana White publicly disowning Strikeforce will have on the future of the promotion. And while it doesn't sound like Dana White is exactly backing down from his opinion that Showtime is 'letting a D-level producer run the organization', he told MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani that he never meant for those opinions to make it out to the general population:
I would like to say that the story that came out recently about things that were said was supposed to be a private conversation and not said in front of the whole world. On a different site. On MMA Junkie. MMA Junkie wrote a story that was supposed to be a private conversation between me and the gentleman who wrote it. And despite our creative differences between me and Showtime, the guys over there I do not dislike. I don't hate these guys, I don't have any ill will towards them. I would never say anything publicly like that to embarrass the network or embarrass them. What happens between a bunch of men behind the scenes when they're doing business needs to be left behind the scenes sometimes. And that was never meant to be public. So right here right now I'd like to publicly apologize for that stuff being printed for the whole world to read. And it was never meant to be. Those were private conversations that I'd had, no way in hell should they have ever been published. Those weren't quotes from me, those weren't something that you know the way this normally works when you work with a journalist is you sit down and you have a topic that you're being interviewed about, 'Can I quote you on that, is that a quote?' That was never done. It was never done that way, it was never meant to be a story, and the guy who wrote it knows it.
This was MMA Junkie's John Morgan, who'd be a shoe-in for MMA Reporter of the Year if Ariel Helwani wasn't always hogging all the awesome. So what do you think is more likely: Dana White is backtracking from some controversial comments by trying to throw a reporter under the bus, or one of the most ethical reporters in the biz from one of the most reputable MMA sites on the net purposefully skeezed these clearly off-record comments for fun and pageviews? Morgan wasn't the only reporter who took some sh*t from El Baldo Presidente. Dana recounted how he learned of Quinton Jackson's testosterone adventures in Australia from a prick reporter:
read more
Posted in: mma, dana, reporter, conversation, disowning strikeforce
Read the full article at FightlinkerTUF Live 1 Coach Urijah Faber & Dana White Weigh-In On Dakota Cochrane’s Controversial Past
Neither Urijah Faber nor Dana White have a problem with Dakota Cochrane’s controversial past in gay pornography as they explain in these interviews with MMA Weekly and ESPN Radio. Faber doesn’t mind coaching him if he makes it into the house and Dana White matter-of-factly says you’re an “idiot” if you have a problem with it.
Posted in: dana, faber, urijah faber, urijah, dakota
Read the full article at MMA ConvertThe Peoples Prez: Henderson/Edgar Rematch Highlights The Hectic Benevolence Of Dana White
As soon as I saw the press release regarding the UFC on FOX 3 press conference that took place yesterday, I knew Frankie Edgar was going to get his rematch.
Why?
Well, the press conference took place in New York, which is a stone's throw from Toms River, New Jersey. Toms River of course, is Frankie's hometown.
In my short time writing about MMA there are two things I've learned about Dana White that I can say I'm sure of:
The first is that he's the hardest working sports executive on the planet, bar none. The second (and this is almost surely a product of the first), is that he is more connected and more responsive to his fan base than any of his aforementioned peers.
Since the calender turned over to 2012, the UFC has held shows in Brazil, Tennessee, Las Vegas, Nebraska, Japan and Australia. In straight air travel from one destination to the next, that's over 34,000 miles, or an average of 500 miles of travel per day. When you factor in the travel to and from the UFC's Las Vegas headquarters, as well as the various other cities White goes to in his on-going promotional efforts the distance traveled by White in just over two months reaches well above 40,000 miles. For some perspective on that, the average NHL team travels about 40,000 miles in a single eight month season. The average major league baseball team travels less than that.
On top of the travel, Dana is in charge of a roster of over 300 individual fighters that is constantly in flux. Of the rest of the professional sports leagues in North America, NFL general managers have the biggest roster to deal with, beginning each season with 80 players, but by the time the games count for real they will have whittled it down to 53.
Finally, each of the other professional sports leagues have a designated off-season lasting between three and six months. The UFC meanwhile, is open for business 365 days a year.
Considering this unforgiving travel schedule, White doesn't have the luxury of taking much time mulling over decisions. His position demands that he make decisions quickly and move on.
More following the jump.
Like any good promoter, Dana doesn't just travel to every event, he shows up days in advance to hit the pavement and promote his show. From press conferences to interviews with local radio, TV, and newsprint media, he's extremely hands on. Anyone who follows White on twitter (at just under two million, there are a lot of us), or has seen his video blogs will be familiar with the hunt for tickets ritual that he puts on a few days before every show: White tweets his location in the host city and moments later, fans come running, hoping to score one of a handful of free tickets to the event. It's not uncommon for White to spend an hour or two after every media event hanging out with fans, signing autographs, taking pictures and yes, talking fights.
The UFC president is a fight fan first and foremost. He has said it over and over again that his job is to put the fights on that fans want to see. And he has always shown himself to be responsive to the fans, even if it means making some strange decisions. When Nick Diaz was dropped from his championship fight against Georges St. Pierre, Dana responded to a legion of disappointed Diaz fans by putting him back on the card against B.J. Penn later that same night. When Alistair Overeem dropped out of the Strikeforce Grand Prix in the middle of a contract dispute with Zuffa, Dana forgave, forgot and brought him straight into the UFC to face Brock Lesnar in one of the most anticipated heavyweight fights in recent memory. He constantly delivers the fights that we want to see.
In fact, I'd go so far as to say that for a guy in his position, Dana seems to me to actually be a real sweetheart, with a pretty big heart. The only other fight promoter in modern history with as much sway as Dana White was Don King. For just a little insight into the scumbag that King was, have a glance at his wikipedia entry. Dana isn't perfect but he's certainly no Don King.
This finally brings me back to my original statement that I knew Edgar was going to get a rematch with Ben Henderson when I saw that the UFC was coming to New York. Dana was going to the former champions backyard and he was sure to spend the day hearing passionate pleas from Edgar supporters that their guy be given another chance. After all, Edgar had to fight his last two challengers twice, so why shouldn't he get another chance?
You can be sure that Dana didn't want to make this fight. He has long stated that he prefers to have Frankie fight at 145 pounds, a more natural weight class for Edgar, who does not cut weight to make 155. He was very vocal about it during the pre-fight press conference for last week's UFC on FX 2 event and again at yesterday press conference. Frankie hasn't really been much of a draw as champion either; according to the MMAPayout.com Blue Book, the two cards that Edgar headlined in 2011 had the two lowest buy-rates of the year.
Yet, with all the reasons in the world to not book a rematch, there he was on twitter last night announcing that Frankie "Two Times" (credit to bloody elbow member joe_mama for my new favorite fighter nickname) would indeed get another fight against Henderson in the summer and in the process making the fans that he had just spent the morning with incredibly happy. It's exactly what I expected to happen, although I didn't think it would be as quickly as that evening.
Not everyone is happy about the decision and with good reason. The deepest division in the sport is going to have it's third consecutive title re-match, all of which have involved Edgar. Why not throw someone else in?
But those questions are not of any concern to Dana White any more. After all, tomorrow is another day, another plane to catch, another group of fans asking to see their favorite fighter get their shot. And you know what?
Something tells me the UFC president is going to make it happen for them.
He always does.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, fan, edgar
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White Talks UFC Lightweight Title, Showtime, Ronda Rousey, Rampage Jackson & More
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White following today’s UFC on FOX 3 press conference to talk to him about a lot of hot topics around the sport including the UFC lightweight title picture, Rampage Jackson’s Twitter comments, his situation with Showtime and more. Here’s a few notes from the interview.
— At the time of the interview, Dana White pretty much said that he wasn’t sure what exactly was going on with the UFC lightweight picture yet because he hadn’t spoken to the people he needed to yet. However, he must have talked to them after the interview because Dana has since confirmed that Frankie Edgar will get his rematch against Ben Henderson this summer.
— Dana says the disparaging comments he made about Showtime in the MMA Junkie story were never meant to be made public. He’s clearly not happy with the story’s writer and offered a public apology to Showtime for those comments making print. Dana says he has no ill will or problem with anyone at Showtime and would never say anything publicly to embarrass them. They merely have “creative differences.”
— Dana White thinks Ronda Rousey is going to be a “big star” and there some big one-off fights every now and then like Tate-Rousey, but it doesn’t change the fact that there aren’t enough good women to create a whole division with.
— Neo-Nazi tattooed/sex offender Brandon Saling who slipped under everyone’s radar at last weekend’s Strikeforce show will never fight for Zuffa again. He also may never compete as a licensed fighter in the US, at least not for the time being, since he falsified information on his applications with the Ohio and New Jersey athletic commissions. Both commissions have revoked his licenses.
— Dana is aware of Rampage Jackson’s tweets about fighting elsewhere after his next UFC fight. Dana confirmed he talked to Rampage before he sent those tweets yesterday, but didn’t say what was discussed exactly. All he would say is he thinks Rampage is just taking this latest loss to Ryan Bader hard like he takes most of his losses. Dana clarified that he has no beef with Rampage.
— Dana says Rampage denied that he ever said a “UFC doctor” told him to take testosterone and basically blamed the whole thing on the reporter who did the interview. Dana said that particular reporter has tried to put words in his mouth before and that’s what he believes happened with Rampage.
— Dana White says Dakota Cochrane was 100% upfront with the UFC and FX about his past history with gay pornography and they’re “cool with it.”
— Not from the interview per se, but Dana said today that a rumored summertime event in Calgary is “not done but it’s going to happen.”
— Also not from the interview, but it’s worth noting that the UFC has officially confirmed Junior dos Santos vs. Alistair Overeem for UFC 146 on May 26 in Las Vegas.
Posted in: ufc, rampage, dana, showtime, interview
Read the full article at MMA ConvertBen Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar 2 Is Happening Sometime This Summer
Well that was quick.
Only hours after Dana White told Ariel Helwani this afternoon that he had no idea what was going on with the next UFC lightweight title shot yet comes word from Frankie Edgar that the UFC has granted him his immediate rematch against Ben Henderson.
Rematch anyone??…….it’s on!! Thanks to @danawhite @lorenzofertitta. Me and Henderson 2. Here we go!!
Dana White then announced moments later that the rematch would happen sometime this summer.
It’s unclear where the news leaves Anthony Pettis in the title picture, especially since Dana confirmed today that the Nate Diaz vs. Jim Miller winner would get a title shot, but clearly he’s going to have to fight at least once more before getting his chance.
Thoughts?
Posted in: title shot, dana, ariel helwani, frankie edgar, title picture
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC on Fox 3: The Press Conference Experience
Last year, a week before Jon Jones beat Mauricio Rua for the Light Heavyweight belt, the UFC had a press conference at Radio City Music Hall in my hometown of New York, NY. With MMA still not legal, I jumped at the opportunity to get in some free UFC stuff, even if it was just yakkin' back and forth. That press conference as just a fan was kind of what you'd expect, I think. The media asked some questions, the public got maybe half a dozen questions in, and then everyone booked out of there. Very few people stuck around long, Shogun and Jones stayed a bit, as did Dana for a brief time, but mostly everyone involved got in, got done and got out.
Today was much, much different.
For starters, thanks to much begging on my part, I was able to get a press pass to the event, and as such, couldn't really applaud or yell out wisecracks like many of the fans in attendance were. Quite frankly, that was a perfectly acceptable tradeoff, because at this press conference, everyone stuck around for hours and both us in the media as well as the fans in attendance got to interact with everyone for some time.
I won't bore you with the details of what you can watch the video below the jump - if you truly wish to hear the sounds of my lovely baritone, I'm the guy who asks Dana and Alan Belcher where the winner of this stands in reference to the title and then later asks Barry about his grappling rematch with Cro Cop. The video starts at about 10 minutes in, btw.
Some of the real juicy bits of news and notes came after the public eyes were on the fighters signing autographs and Dana rapped to us in the media scrum. Ariel Helwani beat a lot of us to the punch, but that's to be expected when you're dealing with him - he asks great questions and gets first crack, so the rest of us just had to wait for a mini-scrum to get our two cents answered. Credit to Dana, man, he sat around and with like, eight of us shoving mics at him, he answered mostly everything we asked with honesty and aplomb. Here are some of the highlights from our little Q&A.
Part of the reason Dana White wants Frankie Edgar to drop down is because he takes a lot of damage. To quote Dana referencing the wars Frank has had at 155 and why he should fight guys his own size
"When you get hit by a jab and your whole left side of your face doesn't swell up in the first punch thrown in the fight."
I brought up Scott Smith as an example of someone who was in a lot of wars and it's taken a toll on him, and Dana countered right back with an even better example - Chuck Liddell - who he famously pushed into retirement because of all the KO's he was taking. He feels that's one of the nice things about being the only game in town, even if some people complain about it - he gets to be the final arbiter. He also referenced Joe Benavidez and how Joe mentioned that he feels much stronger at 125 now. Joe said that post-fight from the Australia card that he was hitting guys at 135 and maybe they'd wobble, but here at 125, they go down, so he's happy.
One of the first things I did actually ask was an update on everyone's favorite neo-nazi pedophile, Brandon Saling. As it turns out, he lied to the commissions in New Jersey and Ohio on his application, and he's suspended now. He'll obviously never fight in the UFC or Strikeforce ever again, and there's a good chance he'll never fight in any state ever again. While I doubt he'll be gone forever - there are plenty of non-commission states as well as the fact that perhaps he gets his suspension down to say a year or whatever - he's certainly not going to be televised again, which I'm pretty OK about. MMA Fighting has a more in depth piece about this.
The report about Dana dumping his involvement with Strikeforce was way, WAY overblown. What happened was Dana was having an off-the-record conversation with the Junkie reporter and just kind of venting a bit, but what got said was really just him bitching and getting some gripes off his chest. In reality the only problem is creative differences with the production staff. Dana explicitly stated that he likes the guy, the only issue is creative differences. For one of the very first times, White specifically stated that he's sorry for that getting out, because that wasn't what he wanted to say for public consumption at all. It made both him and Showtime look bad, when the only real issue is that Dana wants a few things done his way and Showtime's people wants it done their way. Dana isn't going to be hands off on all of SF, the only thing was creative differences, not something deep seated, that's a huge problem.
The issues with Rampage are in part because he takes his losses hard and he doesn't take criticism very well. Rampage was upset about Dana stating that he wasn't sure that Jackson was taking things as serious as he could be. Quinton obviously took that poorly, but Dana also spoke with him for 90 minutes and while the conversation started out poorly, they ended it in a pretty good frame of mind. Long story short, he's not sure how Rampage feels, and they'll have to see how it goes.
Much more after the jump including the UFC 144 Gate, Tim Sylvia, Rampage, and questions with Johny Hendricks and Josh Koscheck.
UFC 144 might have done the largest gate - money wise - in Japan's history. He didn't have the exact numbers and didn't want to say it at the time and he just forgot about it in all the travel. Because he was here now in New York, he still didn't have the numbers, but he looked me straight in my doubting face and said he thinks that what they did was the biggest ever; beating out the three million that PRIDE had ever done.
There will be more Fight For The Troops events and figuring out how to best promote that with the new Fox deal.
I believe it was Mike Chiappetta who started out the question as follows
Mike: "Tim Sylvia's been"
Dana: "HELL NO"
The interview with Rampage regarding TRT and Tito Ortiz may have been a bit shady, as the same reporter had a bad experience with Dana, and Dana called him a "weasel" multiple times. Dana feels that the reporter put words in White's mouth and he feels there's a chance that something could've happened with Rampage as well.
Dana thinks that the east coast fans still haven't caught up to the west coast fans. As the most knowledgeable and awesome east coast fan around, I would respectfully disagree, but hey.
The UFC did not apparently switch promotion departments or PR firms, despite my suspicions otherwise. I commented on the new Jon Jones ad that came out and how their style of advertising seemed to completely change starting with the awesome Find Your Rhythm promo that came out for the first Edgar/Maynard title fight, and how that was so different than what they used to have. Apparently that was all in-house, they just went with new ideas. There will be a four-minute video of that Jones ad coming out soon, too, which I am very much looking forward to.
I ask Johny Hendricks how long he thought it was for Fitch to fall after the first punch, it felt like five seconds, when in reality it was like a second, because it was so slow in his mind at the time. Hendricks expects a decision in the Koscheck fight because they're both tough. They're going to gameplan later, they haven't done too much yet. He's going to be spending a lot of time with the Oklahoma State wrestlers just as they get done with nationals, so he's got a bunch of dudes who want to see how they can fare against a former champion wrestler, so they push him real hard.
He weighs about 210 right now, diets to 195 and cuts the rest of the way down to 170. I asked him about the Alves situation, and he confirmed that's actually about right. He doesn't know the science of it, but he told me he goes to sleep that night at 195. It's dangerous and you have to be careful about it, but that is how it goes.
Josh Koscheck told me that he thinks that Hendricks will stand at first but
"after he gets cracked a couple of time, he's not going to want to stand, so I fell he's going to try to wrestle and I'll be ready."
Posted in: ufc, time, dana, fan, he
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White Interview
Strikeforce TV Ratings Continue to Flounder; Can it Survive Dana White’s Exodus?
Strikeforce continues to flounder in TV ratings, at least compared to its elder sibling. Now that UFC president Dana White has withdrawn his support, can Strikeforce survive?
Posted in: strikeforce, dana, rating, tv, tv ratings
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyFour Things Dana White Can Do During His Six Week UFC Vacation
No matter how passionate you are about something, there comes a time when you need a break. As the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder -- a phrase not associated with MMA these days with an event nearly every single weekend.
Those who strictly follow the UFC will get a break from shows for the next six weeks, the longest consecutive gap since a five week stretch from the July 2nd UFC 132 to the August 6th UFC 133 last year. Sure, we'll have The Ultimate Fighter on Friday nights but when it comes to what brings in the money, it's vacation time.
Say what you will about UFC president Dana White, but even the most anti-White zealot would be hard pressed to call him lazy. Seemingly traveling way more than he's actually home in Las Vegas, White is on a mission powered by energy drinks, fanfare and all that comes with being a celebrity in pro sports.
But a lot can get done in the next six weeks that will make the following 30 weeks even better. To save the big guy some time from making a to-do list, I went ahead and came up with four things I want to see him to do.
Take a week off from everything
While this is as realistic as Tim Sylvia fighting Brock Lesnar in a UFC main event, White should grab the family, board the jet and go on a vacation where no one can reach them. The business needs him at his freshest and if that means a week off Twitter and dealing with the day-to-day of the UFC, he should do it.
I don't care who it is: the grind of this schedule and pace will get everyone at some point. He's done remarkably well so far, but there have been a few signs of cracking, notably not coming out for the UFC On Fox 2 post-event presser because he didn't want to deal with criticism of the fights.
Like him or hate him, MMA is better with Dana White at 100%. Take a break, boss man. Lorenzo and the rest of the all-star team has got your back.
Figure out what's going on with one Henderson...
After fighting in an instant classic against Mauricio Rua last November, we've been asking the same question: what's next for Dan Henderson? The answer seems obvious: a UFC light heavyweight title shot. However, there hasn't been a ton of movement in any direction. Hendo wants big fights and it makes sense to have him fight the winner of April's Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans clash in Atlanta. Here's hoping White can confirm that prior to the event, so we immediately have another big fight to look forward to this summer.
What two other things did I add to Dana's list? One might surprise you, but it's something I bet you'll agree with. Find out after the jump.
...and then decide what's going on with the other Henderson.
Was White's enhanced interest in Frankie Edgar dropping to 145 pounds to help make his No. 1 contender decision that much easier? Not likely, but it certainly would help. New UFC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson has two great options in front of him: a rematch with the surging Anthony Pettis or a rematch with Edgar. Either way, it's a great fight. Either way, someone's left out in the cold for now.
I am flipping back and forth on this, but am leaning toward Bendo/Pettis II on a Fox show later this summer as the smart move. I get why Edgar doesn't want to move down to 145, but a title match against Jose Aldo would be a hell of a lot of fun, wouldn't it? It's a good problem to have, but White needs to figure this one out so all of us can start talking about it.
Fix UFC Countdown
This is a personal gripe of mine and now that White is done worrying about Strikeforce, I'm making a personal plea to blow up and rebuild the approach to the Countdown specials. Designed to get people hyped to buy the pay-per-views, they are ridiculously formulaic. They use the same music, always feature the challenger first, have plenty of Bruce Buffer announcing names, Joe Rogan being emotionless explaining things, a trainer saying, "He's in the best shape of his life," etc. I think I could predict the layout before I even see each show.
Fight promotions live on hype and these shows are dreadful at doing their job. I'd actually be fine with them giving the production to Fox and treating them as real sports shows. Talk about guys losing and be honest. Fans get into the reality of situations rather than having smoke blown up their butts by pretending fighters are what they aren't. Create drama and create emotion filled hours that make you feel dumb if you don't hit 'Buy'.
What else should Dana work on during the next six weeks? Comment below and let's grow his list.
Posted in: ufc, fight, week, dana, henderson
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowGilbert Melendez Says He’s Fighting May 19, But Doesn’t Know Who His Opponent Is
According to Gilbert Melendez, his next title defense is scheduled for Strikeforce’s upcoming Heavyweight Grand Prix Finals show on May 19. Don’t ask him who he’s fighting though, because he doesn’t know.
What he does know however is that he doesn’t think it should be a rubber match with Josh Thomson. In fact, from what he told Heavy.com in a recent interview, he thinks Pat Healy is more deserving of a title shot based on their performances at Strikeforce “Tate vs. Rousey.”
“I know that’s what he said, and he can try,” Melendez told HeavyMMA after the event. “I think he was trying to make me laugh. It was a good fight, but I wasn’t super impressed. Josh Thomson said it himself – that he looked like sh*t, and I don’t know if he was complete sh*t, but those were his words and I’ll let him be the one to say it.”
“I thought (Pat) ‘Bam Bam’ Healy looked really good, and he might be more deserving of a title shot than Josh, in my opinion,” Melendez said. “Josh was losing in his fight against Healy, and he got a Hail Mary rear naked choke at the end. But it’s whatever to me. K.J. and Josh both lost to the last two guys I beat. I just smashed (Tatsuya) Kawajiri, and he beat Josh Thomson in his fight before this and (Jorge) Masvidal beat Noons. It is what it is, and I’ll fight whoever they bring me.”
Ultimately though, Melendez says he really doesn’t care who Strikeforce matches him up against. He is holding out hope however that Dana White brings him a top five opponent.
“I’m fighting May 19,” Melendez said. “I don’t know against who yet but I don’t care – I’m fighting May 19 in San Jose (Calif.). I need to stay busy and I’m going to be on that card. We’ll see, and I have to keep faith they will deliver. It would be nice if they could bring over some Top 5 competition, and hopefully there is something in the works. I talked to (UFC president) Dana (White), and he told me he would do me justice – and I have to have faith in what he says.”
But did Melendez talk to Dana before or after he basically washed his hands of everything Strikeforce? Because prior to Saturday Dana was all gung-ho about getting his hands on Strikeforce and turning it into a promotion that would be loved by fans and fighters alike, but basically did a 180° once Showtime decided they didn’t want his input after all. Dana may have had every intention of bringing over a top five opponent for Melendez before, but is that still the case now that he wants nothing to do with Strikeforce? Dana has surprised me before so maybe so, but I can’t say I’m not skeptical.
Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime
Posted in: strikeforce, dana, josh, melendez, josh thomson
Read the full article at MMA ConvertWell, that's interesting. I tweeted Dana angrily about the racist jagoff they had on Strikeforce...
Well, that's interesting. I tweeted Dana angrily about the racist jagoff they had on Strikeforce tonight, Brandon Saling, and he tweeted me back. As it turns out, he's also convicted sex offender. Lotta fail in SF's direction. Props to Dana for responding, though.
Full size of the image is at http://i39.tinypic.com/24mhtv9.jpg
Posted in: strikeforce, dana, that, tweeted, brandon saling
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White Says Demetrious Johnson Vs. Ian McCall Was A Draw, Commission Botched Scores
The controversy surrounding the Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall fight seemed ready to die down as everyone came to terms with the extremely entertaining fight being close and there being a clear way that Johnson could have taken the decision on the judge's cards. Personally, I thought that McCall had done enough in the third round to earn a 10-8 and at least get the "sudden victory" round.
The initial way the scores were read had the Johnson winning 29-28 on two cards and losing 29-28 on the other. It was then revealed that Johnson won a majority, not split, decision because one judge had the fight 29-29 and the other two had him winning 29-28. Now, UFC president Dana White is dropping this bit of unbelievable information on us:
@danawhiteDana White Commission screwed up scorecards Johnson vs. McCall was a draw. Should have been a 4th rd. BRUTAL Mar 03 via web Favorite Retweet Reply
So there you have it, the fight between Johnson and McCall should have gone to round four. It's unfortunate that the first ever flyweight fight in UFC history has this taint and that the tournament to crown the first champion is marred by a commission error.
Technically, the actual scores are all that matter, not what was read. If what Dana said is correct and the scores were just tallied incorrectly, the fight actually is a draw, regardless of what was announced.
Update: Dana White now said that the fight will result in a rematch in April to determine the true winner. That is great news as we determine the rightful person to challenge Joseph Benavidez for the title.
SBN coverage of UFC on FX 2
Posted in: fight, score, dana, johnson, mccall
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: Frankie Edgar Deserves A Rematch But I Want Him To Move Down And Fight Aldo
UFC president Dana White made no secret of the fact that he and matchmaker Joe Silva both thought that Frankie Edgar beat Ben Henderson at UFC 144. He's also making no secret that Frankie Edgar "deserves" a rematch after he gave B.J. Penn an immediate rematch at UFC 118 after beating Penn at UFC 112.
Edgar also gave Gray Maynard an immediate rematch at UFC 136 after the two men fought to a draw at UFC 125.
But Dana is also a businessman and just as I predicted he isn't going to be giving Edgar an immediate rematch. Instead he is offering Edgar an immediate title shot against UFC featherweight champ Jose Aldo at 145lbs. Here's Dana in his own words from last night's UFC on FX 2 press conference in Australia:
"I feel like Frankie Edgar absolutely deserves a rematch [against Ben Henderson], seeing as how every time this guy has fought, he's given everyone else a rematch," he said. "Yet, I don't want him to fight at 155 pounds, I want him to go to 145 and fight for that title. And if we do give him a rematch, it clogs up [the division] -- there are other guys that are in line waiting and it's just a big mess."
Transcribed by MMA Mania.
SBN coverage of UFC 144: Edgar vs. Henderson
Posted in: ufc, dana, rematch, edgar, frankie edgar
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC 144 Post-Fight News & Notes: Ben Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis 2 Next? Frankie Edgar To Featherweight?
Rundown of UFC 144 post-fight news and notes…
— Anthony Pettis picked up a $65,000 Knockout of the Night bonus check for starching Joe Lauzon with a nasty head kick. Vaughn Lee earned Submission of the Night honors for finishing Kid Yamamoto with an armbar. And Frankie Edgar and Ben Henderson were awarded Fight of the Night honors for their thrilling five-round main event.
— Now that Ben Henderson is the proud owner of the UFC lightweight championship, everyone wants to know who he’ll fight next. There’s two clear options: a rematch with Frankie Edgar or a rematch with Anthony Pettis. Henderson says it doesn’t matter who they put in front of them because he plans to beat them all and one up Anderson Silva’s unprecedented title reign.
“[Fighting Pettis or Edgar], it doesn’t really matter to me. I want to defend [my title] as many times as Anderson Silva defends his, plus one,” said Henderson. “Whoever it is, I’m OK with it. There is a long list of guys: Nate [Diaz], Jim [Miller], Frankie, Anthony. Let’s do every single one of them.”
While you could argue that Edgar deserves an immediate rematch considering he had to give BJ Penn and Gray Maynard immediate rematches, it’s looking like it’s going to be Anthony Pettis. At the post-fight press conference, Dana White said that he “thinks” it will be Pettis, but later backtracked and said he doesn’t like to make those type of decisions immediately after an event.
“I think he’s going to get it,” White said when asked if Pettis had earn a shot at the belt.
“We’ll see what happens,” White told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I hate to do this the night of the fights, and you guys know that, but you always ask me.
“We’ll see what happens. I guess I’ll leave you guys in suspense.”
As you can imagine, Edgar was less than thrilled when he showed up to the press conference and learned of the plans to give Pettis the next shot. He didn’t complain, but it was pretty clear that it irritated him.
“I’m not trying to shoot anybody out of anything they deserve, but I had to do two immediate rematches, so what’s fair?” Edgar asked.
Pettis, of course, was much more thrilled with the news than Edgar was.
“I’m the last guy to beat him so it makes sense for us to have a rematch,” Pettis said. “I’m the last guy to beat him in the WEC, took his belt there, and it looks like I’m bound to do it again.”
I don’t know how Henderson-Pettis 2 could possibly top the first one, but if even if it’s only half as good it’s still going to be a hell of a fight.
— It seems like everybody thinks Frankie Edgar should move down to featherweight. Well, everyone except Frankie Edgar. He was asked about it a hundred times last night in various forms if that was something he would consider and each time his answer was the same.
“It’s not something I’m thinking about now, to be honest with you,” he said in his typically understated style.
Perhaps he’ll consider it after the dust settles, but last night he was understandably focused on the championship fight he just lost. That didn’t stop Dana White from offering his thoughts on the situation though.
“I’ve been asking him to go to 145 for a long time,” White said. “I would love to see him move to 145. I think he’d a force to be reckoned with there, and I think he’ll be a great challenge for Jose Aldo.”
Dana may want him to, but he later clarified that the decision will ultimately be up to Edgar.
“At the end of the day, it’s his decision,” White said. “If you’ll look at what he’s accomplished, for me to come in – like before when I was telling him, he was a world champion and had beat B.J. Penn twice and everybody else in that division. His only loss ever was to Gray Maynard, which he avenged big time.
“It’s going to be up to him, but I’d love to see him do it. A fight between him and Jose Aldo would be fun.”
Edgar doesn’t seem too interested in it, but it would make sense. He said he literally only cuts like one pound to make 155. He’s obviously found ways to overcome the size deficit at lightweight, but he’s always going to be fighting with a handicap so to speak at 155. It would only make sense to cut down where he wouldn’t be smaller than his opponents.
— The only thing epic about Rampage Jackson’s return to Japan was his walkout to the PRIDE music. Everything else was mostly forgettable. He badly missed weight, appeared out of shape and turned in one of the worst performance of his career (sans that epic slam in the second round). It made everyone, including Dana White, question if he really wants to do this anymore, however Rampage assured everyone at the post-fight press conference that he does and a knee injury was to blame for the terrible showing.
“If I’m going to be critically honest, I’m not surprised that I lost the fight,” Jackson told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
“I almost didn’t make it to the fight, but I didn’t want to pull out for the Japanese fans,” Jackson said. “I injured my knee pretty bad, and my doctor told me not to fight. But it wasn’t real serious. I didn’t need surgery or nothing, but he told me it wasn’t a good idea to fight. I decided to fight anyway.”
“I know I’m getting to the end of my career because I said I didn’t want to fight past 35,” Jackson said. “But honestly, before I hurt me knee, you guys should have seen the way that I was training. I’ve got really good sparring partners, and I’ve got this really good wrestler names Tyson Jeffries that kicks my butt, and in this camp, I was kicking his butt. I was taking him down and wrestling got real competitive. That’s how I hurt me knee because he’s one of the best wrestlers I know.
“I was sparring really good, and I was looking like a superstar, then I hurt me knee. That made me think, ‘Oh, man, I’ve got a lot more time to fight.’ When I got hurt, it was just unfortunate, but now, I know what I can do if I come in 100 percent.”
Was it just a fluke? Time will tell.
— On the flip side, Ryan Bader scored what was easily the biggest win of his career. Bader called it his “favorite win” after the fight.
“This is my favorite win of all time. Coming in winning the Ultimate Fighter, it’s really not in the UFC, you start over right when you get into the UFC. That is what I learned real quick. You know I had a couple of losses last year and I’m starting this year off right. Getting a win over Rampage, he’s up there, he just fought for the title, he’s top five in the division so I couldn’t ask for more. He got that good slam, you know , I knew he was waiting for something because he was a little to relaxed right there with his hands and he was just waiting for me to knee the head and he caught me, he’s a strong dude, so he picked me up and slammed me right on my head and I was out of it honestly for a little bit. But, I just recovered and that’s what it’s about, just staying in there and battling and that’s what happened.”
Bader said his arm was fine after he awkwardly landed on it when Rampage slammed him on his head. The only thing that hurt was his head. He conceded that the fall rocked him quite a bit.
— How about Tim Boetsch’s epic third round comeback against Yushin Okami? Dana White wishes more fighters would do that when they’re down two rounds to none in the third.
“Everybody knows how much respect I have for Yushin Okami,” White said. “But I say it all the time. What I tweeted tonight, and what I told Tim backstage, was when a fighter is down two rounds to nothing, that’s exactly what you’re supposed to do in the third round.
“I wish more guys would do that. When you’re down like that, what do you have to lose? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain to go out there and go balls to the wall and go after it and try and win, try to finish. That’s exactly what he did, and that’s what everybody should do when their down two rounds in a three-round fight. It was awesome.”
It was pretty awesome.
— Yoshihiro Akiyama has now lost four in a row in the UFC which makes him a prime candidate for release. Dana White said he would be talking to Lorenzo Fertitta and Joe Silva to make a decision on Akiyama’s future with the organization, but said he really likes Akiyama and how he fights, so don’t be too surprised if they keep him.
— Dana White said he has a ton of respect for Mark Hunt for coming in at 37 years old and winning three straight in the UFC. Dana said they offered to pay Hunt to just go away when they inherited his contract from the PRIDE acquisition, but Hunt wanted to fight and earn his money, and for that Dana has nothing but respect for him. What’s crazy is Hunt is actually beginning to emerge as a possible contender. Dana says he’s “in the mix.”
— A lot of people thought Takeya Mizugaki got robbed against Chris Cariaso. Fortunately for Mizugaki, one of those people was the person who signs his checks. Dana White confirmed that he awarded him his win bonus even though he technically lost.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: fight, time, petti, dana, edgar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White: I scored the fight for Frankie Edgar
UFC President Dana White looked back at the Ultimate Fighting Championship's long-awaited return to Japan, and the main event clash between Frankie Edgar and Ben Henderson. White admitted he scored the bout in favor of Frankie Edgar, but still agreed that the fight was too close to call. Another thing discussed in Dana White's interview is Frankie Edgar's potential move down to Featherweight, and the future contender in the UFC Lightweight division.
Further Reading: Full UFC 144
Posted in: ufc, dana, edgar, frankie edgar, frankie
Read the full article at Low KickDana White UFC 144 Post-Fight Interview
Posted in: ufc, dana, interview, postfight
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseUFC 144 Post-Fight Press Conference Highlights
$65,000 for Fight of the Night to Frankie Edgar/Ben Henderson, Anthony Pettis for KO and Vaughan Lee for Sub (he had the only one).
Pettis is PROBABLY going to get the next title shot, but Dana doesn't know for sure.
Quinton Jackson reveals he had a knee injury and wasn't terribly surprised that he lost because of it. He re-injured it on Ryan Bader's slam and had a hard time cutting weight because of it.
Rampage mentioned that his wrestling training with Tyson Jeffries was going very well and that's where he dinged up his knee. He also said he won't be retiring.
Pettis looking forward to getting a shot at the title.
Dana gives props to Mark Hunt and what he's done. and giving a sarcastic "in the mix". A reporter brings up the size disadvantage for Frank and gets the standard answer of "it's up to him, I'd love to see him do it."
Ryan Bader talking about putting the PRIDE music and other distractions away. Confirmed that he got hurt on the slam.
Tim Boetsch being really glad about getting the win - a reporter mentions the high ranking of Okami - and Dana gives props for Tim going for broke down two rounds. After all, what do you have to lose?
Dana has no news for the Brazilian reporter about where the event will be and the problems with the soccer stadium. Same reporter asked a very awkward question about the Japanese guys fighting home and hearing the boos and the cheers. Riki Fukuda takes it first and says it was the "memory of his life". Takanori Gomi was thrilled as well and wants the UFC to keep coming back. Issei Tamura and Hatsu Hioki echo this. Takeya Mizugaki chimes in as well with the same.
Mark Hunt wanted to fight on next week's card in Australia, lol.
Dana gives another almost "in the mix" about Hioki's possible shot against Jose Aldo.
Frankie Edgar shows up to applause.
Rampage wanted to please his fans by using the PRIDE entrance music. Cheer them up for all the problems Japans faced last year.
Edgar feels like he won the fight still, would like a rematch, since he had to give rematches to Penn and Maynard. Doesn't want to think about 145 right now, which elicits a sarcastic "I knew that was coming" from Dana. Frank confirms that he doesn't cut any weight - zero pounds, he works hard, but he doesn't diet particularly much.
Jake Shields says he feels mixed about his performance, but he's happy about the win.
Mizugaki not satisfied. Vaughan Lee happy with his blow-for-blow fight and knew he had the sub when it hit the ground.
Posted in: mark hunt, dana, reporter, doesnt, vaughan lee
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White’s UFC 144 Video Blog: Part Two
Behind the scenes of the UFC 144 pre-fight press conference in this second edition of Dana White’s UFC 144 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, conference, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 144 Video: Dana White Video Blog Episode 2
Here's Dana White's second video blog for UFC 144. He takes us with him as he goes shopping in a Japanese MMA shop. Dana rhapsodizes about the Asian origins of martial arts and how fitting it is to bring modern MMA back to its homeland. We go behind the scenes for the UFC 144 press conference. Dana admits that "I'm not too popular over here."
Dana chats with Frankie Edgar and Rampage Jackson backstage before the press conference.
UFC 144 features a lightweight title fight between champion Frankie Edgar and challenger Ben Henderson. The co-main event is a light heavyweight contenders bout between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Ryan Bader. Former Pride and K-1 star Mark Hunt takes on Cheick Kongo in heavyweight action. Multiple Japanese fighters including Yoshihiro Akiyama, Yushin Okami, Hatsu Hioki, Takanori Gomi, Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, Riki Fukuda, Takeya Mizugaki and Issei Tamura.
SBN coverage of UFC 144: Edgar vs. Henderson
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, edgar, heavyweight action
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowThe UFC has officially landed in Japan
The Dana White Vlog finally lands in Japan and we get to watch Dana and the fighters frolicking in the Land of the Rising Sun. Dana hits up a fight equipment store, finds out he "doesn't want to know" how much Rampage currently weighs, and teaches the Japanese crowd at a press conference how to pronounce his name properly. And shockingly enough, no ninja from the Yakuza have busted in through the skylight to disembowel him yet. How about that?
Posted in: press conference, dana, japan, land, japanese crowd
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White UFC 144 Video Blog, Day Two
Go behind the scenes at the UFC 144 press conference with president Dana White, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and more in Tokyo, Japan.
Posted in: ufc, conference, dana, tokyo, president dana
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White UFC 144 Video Blog – Day 2
UFC President Dana White presents the 2nd day of his UFC 144 blog as he gets ready for the UFC's return to Japan.
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, blog, ufcs return
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 144: Dana White Wants You To Know The UFC Didn't Kill PRIDE
It says something about PRIDE's impact on the sport that there are still UFC vs. PRIDE debates after all this time. With the UFC set to return to Japan for the first time since UFC 29, UFC president Dana White has shared some of his thoughts on what it's going to be like at the event. He also touches on the idea that the UFC killed PRIDE.
Via 5th Round:
"[Fans might boo me after they] see my face on the screen? Oh, I see. You're saying I'm not very popular over here," White said in response to a local reporter who suggested the UFC's brash boss might not get the favorable reception he's grown accustomed to. "Listen, I can take some boos. I can handle it. I'm pretty thick skinned.
"We didn't kill Pride. I've said this many times, Pride is the only other organization that I've ever respected. Pride was an organization here in Japan that did huge sell-out shows. There were tons of Pride fans in the United States. There are a lot of big stars, not just out of Japan, but worldwide that came from Pride. It's the only other organization that I have ever respected or given credit to."
Of course, that last bit ignores stuff like when Dana said "Have you heard me say a bad word about Strikeforce? I wish them all the luck in the world. I have nothing bad to say about guys who are running the right promotion." before Strikeforce's debut on CBS. But, Dana is a promoter and promoters change narratives based on what is best for promotion at that time (and that's not a bad thing, before someone gets all upset).
That being said, Dana is saying the right things about leaving PRIDE in the past. There have been constant questions about running a "PRIDE style show" somewhere in the future and Dana was very clear that they'll bring more UFC events to Japan, but there are no more PRIDE events.
We'll get our first glimpse Saturday of just how well the modern UFC will do with the Japanese fans.
SBN coverage of UFC 144: Edgar vs. Henderson
Posted in: ufc, time, dana, pride, japan
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White UFC 144 Vlog day 2
submitted by hblaze66 [link] [comment]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, vlog, hblaze
Read the full article at RedditDana White Talks UFC 144, Japan, PRIDE, Nate Marquardt, International TUF, More
Rundown of news and notes from Dana White’s chat with the press at yesterday’s UFC 144 pre-fight conference. Also, be sure to check out Ariel Helwani’s video interview with Dana above.
— There was a lot of concern over how the UFC would do at the gate this weekend when UFC 144 was first announced. They certainly had a lot going against them coming into what has been perceived as enemy territory for nearly the last decade. The early morning Japan start time was concerning as well. Well, it seems all that worrying was all for naught because according to Dana White, the event is practically a sell-out.
“This is the first show back in 12 years. You heard ‘Rampage’ and [a reporter] saying the UFC isn’t as big as PRIDE was here, and for us to come in and do an event and sell out the way we have, we’re very happy with the results. I know what we’re going to do on Sunday and what kind of show we’re going to put on for the Japanese fans. I think they’re going to be very excited and this is going to help spread the word in Japan.”
As for hard numbers, Dana White says their somewhere in the 20,000 tickets sold range. It’s a strong enough of a start that UFC Asia’s Mark Fischer is cautiously optimistic that they’ll do well enough to at least come back annually.
“I think it’s a little bit wait-and-see but certainly we do feel based on the strength of what we’ve seen so far leading into the event – the buzz, the ticket sales so far – that I think it’s a market we’d love to come back to with a big event at least annually,” Fischer said. “Whether or not we complement that with maybe one or two smaller events – perhaps ‘Fight Nights’ – and we think there’s quite good potential for an ‘Ultimate Fighter,’ maybe in a slightly different format here.
“That’s a little bit wait-and-see, but I do think that in some shape or form, we will be coming back on probably a semi-annual basis – a big event and, ideally, a second event, whether that be a ‘Fight Night’ event or ‘Ultimate Fighter’ format.”
It’s far too early to say it now, but it would be something if the UFC managed to revive the Japanese MMA scene considering everything that’s happened there in the past 10 years.
— The inevitable PRIDE questions came up at the press conference yesterday. Dana immediately addressed the perception in Japan that Zuffa killed PRIDE.
“Oh, you’re saying I’m not very popular over here,” White responded, a smile on his face. “I don’t know. Listen, I can take some boos. We didn’t kill PRIDE. I’ve said this many times. PRIDE is the only other organization that I’ve ever respected. PRIDE was an organization here in Japan that did huge sellout shows. They had tons of fans in the U.S., and a lot of the big stars not just in Japan but worldwide came form Japan. It’s the only other organization I’ve given respect or credit to. If I get some boos, I can handle it. I’m pretty thick-skinned.”
Just because Zuffa owns the PRIDE brand and they’re finding in success in Japan though doesn’t mean they’re thinking about running another PRIDE show. PRIDE is dead and that’s probably for the best.
— Dana opened up a little bit about the Nate Marquardt-Strikeforce signing. He certainly hasn’t forgotten what went down last year, but he’s at least now willing to give Marquardt a chance to “get his sh*t together.”
“Right when he was first exiled, or kicked out of the UFC, whatever you want to call it, cut from the UFC, MC Hammer is in his team. He called me up and asked me if we could meet in [Los Angeles], so I met him there, we had dinner. He was lobbying to get Marquardt back in and I said, ‘Ya know, I love you man, but he’s gotta get out there and fight in other shows.’ He opted to not fight in any other shows. He wanted to sit out and he wanted to be back in the UFC. So we talked, we’re putting him back in Strikeforce and we’ll see what happens. I like Nate Marquardt, he’s a really good guy. But professionally, he needs to get his shit together. He needs to come into Strikeforce and he needs to make weight, he needs to pass all the tests and do all the other shit, so we’ll see how it goes.”
A shot in Strikeforce is better than nothing. If things go smoothly and Nate wins, perhaps will see him back in the UFC before too long.
— Below Dana White talks to reporters about international versions of TUF following TUF Brazil, plus his comments from the press conference. Videos via MMA Weekly.
Posted in: ufc, event, dana, pride, japan
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Declares UFC Japan A Success (UFC 144 Pre-Fight Video)
Dana was confident and satisfied at the UFC 144 press conference in Tokyo, Japan with the buzz that has been generated by the UFC in Japan event.
Posted in: ufc, dana, japan, ufc japan, tokyo japan
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 144 Dana White Interview
Posted in: ufc, dana, interview
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseFloyd Mayweather's manager fires back at Dana White for 'ignorant outburst'
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White blasted boxing big mouth Floyd Mayweather Jr. on "UFC Tonight" last Tuesday (Feb. 22, 2012), calling the pesky pugilist "racist" for comments he made towards NBA star Jeremy Lin.
Mayweather claimed the breakout star, who was born in California to Taiwanese parents, is only getting praised by the media because he's Asian, and that "black people do the same thing he does every night and don't get the same praise."
Said White:
"First of all, what he said I think was racist. He's made a couple of racist comments and, yes, Floyd, you're racist with the stuff that you've said."
Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's manager, quickly fired back at the UFC boss and told him he should mind his own business, even threatening to hold a fee seminar for ZUFFA employees on how to get a better cut of the promotion's pay-per-view (PPV) revenue.
Those comments (via Yahoo! Sports) after the jump.
"He needs to shut the [expletive] up and mind his own business, stay in his own lane and keep on taking advantage of the UFC fighters, while underpaying them. If he keeps on running his mouth, we may decide to give a free seminar to all of the UFC fighters on how the pay-per-view revenue should be distributed. This is typical Dana, who is always prone to ignorant outbursts. He should be the last person to try to judge someone else."
Mayweather is expected to trade blows with Miguel Cotto on May 5, 2012, before turning himself over to authorities to serve 90-days in the clink for domestic violence.
After that, expect the Mayweater headlines to be the same. When is he fighting Manny Pacquiao? In the meantime, fight fans will have to settle for him fighting Dana White.
More on White's Mayweather rant here and here.
Posted in: ufc, mayweather, floyd, dana, ufc fighters
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White Rips Into Floyd Mayweather Jr. For ‘Racist’ Comments
Dana White goes off on Floyd Mayweather Jr. in this video from FUEL TV for “racist” comments Floyd recently made about the New York Knicks’ Jeremy Lin and fellow boxer Manny Pacquiao.
Posted in: mayweather, floyd, dana, fuel tv, jr
Read the full article at MMA ConvertVideo: UFCs Dana White blasts 'racist' Floyd Mayweather Jr. for Jeremy Lin comments, among others
"Yes Floyd, you're racist."
Here it is, the video footage of FUEL TV's "UFC Tonight," which aired tonight (Feb. 21, 2012), during which Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White went ballistic on Floyd Mayweather Jr. and his history of racially-charged sentiments.
White was fuming over Mayweather's recent attack on New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin, who is of Taiwanese decent. In addition to calling perhaps the best boxer on the planet a "racist," White also referred to "Pretty Boy" as a "knucklehead" and a "dummy."
Don't hold back, Dana.
He then challenged Mayweather to "shut up" and to finally make the fight that all the boxing fans want to see, which is against Manny Pacquaio. That's going to be hard, considering Mayweather opted to instead fight Miguel Cotto instead on May 5, 2012, and then surrendering himself four weeks later to serve a 90-day jail sentence in Las Vegas, Nevada, for domestic violence.
Ho-hum.
Read all about who said what and when, including a partial transcript of White's comments, right here.
Posted in: mayweather, floyd, dana, video footage, raciallycharged sentiments
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White UFC 144 Video Blog – Day 1
UFC President Dana White presents the first installment of his UFC 144 video blog with behind the scenes access to UFC 143 a couple of weeks back.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, scenes access
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 144 Video Blog: Day One
Go behind the scenes of UFC 143 as UFC president Dana White gears up for the company's return to Japan for UFC 144 in his latest video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, companys return
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White UFC 144 Video Blog (Episode 1)
UFC President Dana White debuts with the UFC 144 edition of his video blog, this time showing the behind the scenes of UFC 143: Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit event in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Further Reading: Make sure to submit your picks for UFC
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, video blog, blog
Read the full article at Low KickDana White UFC 144 Vlog day 1
submitted by Martyn3024 [link] [8 comments]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, vlog, martyn
Read the full article at RedditDana White’s UFC 144 Video Blog: Part One
Dana White takes you behind the scenes of UFC 143 in this first installment of his UFC 144 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, installment
Read the full article at MMA ConvertJason ‘Mayhem’ Miller vs. CB Dollaway Set For UFC 146
Jason “Mayhem” Miller is going to get another shot in the UFC.
The UFC announced today that Mayhem will take on CB Dollaway at UFC 146 following what Dana White deemed to be an awful performance against Michael Bisping at the TUF 14 Finale.
UFC president Dana White today confirmed the first fight – one between fan favorites – officially set for UFC 146, set to take place over Memorial Day weekend.
“Ultimate Fighter runner-up C.B. ‘The Doberman’ Dollaway has verbally agreed to face recent Ultimate Fighter coach Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller in a middleweight bout at UFC 146 this May in Las Vegas,” he said.
This could very well be a loser leaves town match. Dollaway is coming off back-to-back losses and well, we all know how Dana felt about Mayhem’s last performance. Mayhem’s overwhelming fan support is probably the only reason he still has a job in the UFC, but that will only take him so far. They both need this win and they both need it pretty bad.
UFC 146 will take place on Memorial Day weekend in Las Vegas and is expected to feature a heavyweight championship bout between champion Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem.
Image via Dave Mandel for Sherdog
Posted in: ufc, dana, mayhem, dollaway, fan support
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Says Nick Diaz Situation Frustrating, but Doubts He’ll Retire
UFC president Dana White has long pleaded with Nick Diaz to play the game just "this much." The fighter from the 209 is now facing a drug test failure, but White doesn't think it's the final straw.
Posted in: diaz, nick diaz, nick, fighter, dana
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDan Henderson Says He Was Never Offered Lyoto Machida
It seems Dana White and Dan Henderson are not on the same page.
First, Dana said Hendo wanted to the wait for the Jones-Evans winner, but Hendo said no, that’s not true, he wants to fight. Well, then Dana came out the other day and specifically said Hendo doesn’t want to fight Lyoto Machida or anyone else besides Jon Jones or Anderson Silva. And guess what? Hendo says that’s not true either.
Was never offered machida. And even though he has lost 3 out of his last 4, I’m sure it would be entertaining. RT @Shawn91111: @danhendo Dana said this “He doesn’t want to fight Machida He doesn’t want to wait. He’s going to have to wait. Who does he want to fight.
I’m not sure where the disconnect is, but Dana and Hendo should probably hop on the phone and at least get their stories straight.
As for a potential Hendo-Machida match-up, it would be an interesting fight, but it would also be a big gamble for the UFC. Case in point, what if Jon Jones beats Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida were to beat Dan Henderson? Then what? Jones-Machida II right after Jones just dropped Machida’s lifeless body on the canvas? That wouldn’t make much sense. I’m sure Dana White knows that too. Perhaps that’s why he said Hendo doesn’t want to fight him.
Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime
Posted in: fight, dana, dan henderson, hendo, machida
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White: The only thing consistent about the NSAC is that they’re inconsistent #ufc @MMASupremacy
Dana White sounds off on the way the Nevada State Athletic Commission treats certain fighters and other fighters.
Posted in: fighter, dana, mmasupremacy, nevada state, commission
Read the full article at Fight OpinionDana White responds to Tim Sylvia's YouTube plea to return to the UFC
Dana White often has a way with words that politicians envy. Imagine if a political debate could be trimmed down to a series of four letter words that clearly identified how they really felt about the issues that concern our economy, taxation, and military intervention. While it might cost them votes in the grand scheme of things, I, for one, would applaud their honesty and integrity for speaking their minds -- instead of 'pussyfooting' around the topics with politically correct nonsense that does little to satisfy the debate at hand. I’ve always waned to use the word 'pussyfooting' in an article.
Earlier this week, Tim Sylvia took to YouTube, pleading with fans to help him get re-instated into the UFC because he felt that he could beat 80% of the guys in the division. Since his 8-second KO loss to Ray Mercer, the former UFC heavyweight champion has gone on to build a 6-1 record between heavyweight and super-heavyweight fights. He has returned to 265lbs and really wants to end his MMA career where he built a name for himself. According to MMA Junkie, Dana issued this brief response earlier today:
"No"
There you have it folks. That’s pretty much everything that Dana has to say about that. Nobody knows how Tim Sylvia would actually perform against some of the best heavyweights in today's UFC hardest hitting division, and chances are, we never will. I regret to inform the MMA community that you have let down Tim Sylvia, but he’s thankful of your efforts nonetheless.
Posted in: ufc, dana, tim, sylvia, tim sylvia
Read the full article at Middle EasyUFC on Fuel TV 1 postfight: Dana White hammers himself and the NSAC (Yahoo! Sports)
Dana White always says what's on his mind. He's not afraid to call someone out even if it's himself. Seconds after Jake Ellenberger crawled across the finish line to win his three-round fight against Diego Sanchez, fans began asking "what … Continue reading →
Posted in: jake ellenberger, dana, sanchez, threeround fight, mind hes
Read the full article at Yahoo! SportsDana White says 'we blew it' by not letting Diego Sanchez vs. Jake Ellenberger go five rounds
As of now, only main events on PPV and FOX cards span the duration of five rounds. If you're expecting Shogun Rua vs. Dan Henderson levels of five-round epicness, FX and Fuel TV are not viable options. For reasons unbeknownst to us, ZUFFA decided not to implement five-round main events for the sister stations of FOX. Dana White also agreed that he will never use the word 'unbeknownst' because it's a really cheesy way of saying 'unknown.' This just in, Zeus at MiddleEasy.com did not come to a similar agreement, so expect the term 'unbeknownst' to show up on the site even more in 2012.
After UFC on Fuel TV's inaugural event, Ariel Helwani interviewed the most famous person with the first name 'Dana' and he admitted the UFC 'blew it' by not letting Diego Sanchez vs. Jake Ellenberger go five rounds. [Source]
Posted in: round, vs, dana, fuel tvs, name dana
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Says All Main Events Will Be Five Rounds From Now On
'We blew it'. It was as simple as that according to UFC President Dana White, who said after an exciting three round war between Jake Ellenberger and Diego Sanchez, that it should have been a five round fight.
Posted in: jake ellenberger, round, diego sanchez, dana, round war
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyWould /r/MMA be interested in a June White (Dana's Mom) Q&A?
I've gotten to know Dana's mom over the past two months and she's actually a really cool lady who loves MMA. Her book, Dana White: King of MMA an unauthorized biography has landed her on Zuffa's shitlist and they are hitting her with C&D letters. She has an awesome insight and some incredible knowledge about Dana and what happens behind the scenes that some of you redditors just wouldn't believe. Would there be any interest in a Q&A with her on /r/MMA? Last time I spoke with her a week or so ago she was wanting to sit down for an hour or so tell-all after her book tour is over, but I'm sure I could get 30 mins from her to do a reddit Q&A if the interest was there. submitted by DamnSevern [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: dana, time i, book dana, zuffas shitlist, reddit qampa
Read the full article at RedditDana White: Roger Gracie is NOT signed with the UFC
submitted by 4760 [link] [comment]
Posted in: ufc, dana, roger, gracie, roger gracie
Read the full article at RedditDana White Predicts TUF Brazil will be ‘Huge’
Production for The Ultimate Fighter Brazil began this week and UFC president Dana White believes the reality show's first trip outside of the U.S. is going to be 'huge.'
Posted in: dana, brazil, tuf brazil, fighter brazil, ’ production
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Calls For Judging/Referee Reformations, NSAC Taking Suggestions
In the wake of UFC 143, we were all left with yet another decision which half of the population disagrees. Dana White and The Nevada State Athletic Commission have acknowledged the need for reformation. Dana White, the proverbial Martin Luther if you will, is blowing his whistle by enumerating instances of poor refereeing and judging. Dana says it drives him nuts; he also indicates the issue as a major crux in the evolution of the sport.
“I’ve said it many times. In the evolution of this sport right now, one of the big problems we’re having right now is judging and reffing. It’s one of the things that drives me crazy and attention needs to be paid to scoring and reffing. First of all, it affects guys careers as far as legacies go. Jon Jones? Jon Jones should be undefeated right now but he’s not, he’s got a loss on his record and there’s tons of guys in the UFC that have those. There’s guys who’ve absolutely, clearly won fights and lost on the judges’ scorecards. Nobody’s perfect. There’s always gonna be problems. But the judging and the reffing is so bad in mixed martial arts, it drives me crazy. The fans hate it too and it hurts the sport. These athletic commissions really need to tighten up and start working on educating their refs and judges.”
On a positive note, Keith Kizer, executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, has indicated that there will be an “open mic night” that will allow anybody interested in the sport to come and vocalize his opinion on rule changes and reformations to the Unified Rules. Only time will tell how serious the commission is about making actual changes, but if history repeats itself, we may be more likely to see rule changes actually be implemented sooner rather than later. Nevada’s Athletic Commission is as good as any when it comes to keeping up with change.
Image via ESPN
Posted in: sport, dana, commission, change, rule changes
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC Pres Dana White Issues Nick Diaz Statement
UFC president Dana White on Tuesday night believed he had put the Condit vs. Diaz rematch together, but on Thursday he found himself commenting on Diaz's failed drug test instead.
Posted in: ufc, diaz, dana, drug test, tuesday night
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Opines On MMA Judging And Refereeing
UFC President Dana White states his case for better refereeing and judging in mixed martial arts in this quick video. Do you agree?
Posted in: ufc, dana, case, art, refereeing
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White Says St-Pierre Far From Being Ready
Georges St-Pierre sits on the sidelines recovering from knee surgery while the 170-pound division moves on without him. UFC president Dana White recently updated his champion's recovery progress.
Posted in: dana, division, knee surgery, georges stpierre, stpierre
Read the full article at MMA WeeklySteve Mazzagatti talks bitch slaps, sh*t-talking and Dana White hate.
submitted by ArghZombies [link] [7 comments]
Posted in: dana, steve, arghzombie, shttalking, bitch
Read the full article at RedditUFC president Dana White talks about his love for Pride and the UFC's return to Japan at...
UFC president Dana White talks about his love for Pride and the UFC's return to Japan at UFC 144.
Posted in: ufc, dana, return, love, ufcs return
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowTim Kennedy & Mayhem Miller Want Fights
Strikeforce may have survived a contract renegotiation with Showtime after it’s top stars left last year, but the once emerging promotion has just been puttering along ever since.
It’s a fact that hasn’t been lost on Dana White. He believes he can turn it around if and when he convinces Showtime to give him full control over it.
He later addressed his goals to improve the Strikeforce brand saying, “why not the UFC’s level? If you talk to anybody they will tell you that Gilbert Melendez is one of the best fighters in the world. There’s a ton of guys. Now you got Rockhold over there. Yes, these guys are great. I just want to do things that I want to do things over there. We’ll see what happens. You guys know how I am. If I take this Strikeforce thing then I will dive into this thing 100% because I have so much free time. [laughter] I’m looking for a side project. Honestly, I will dive into this thing and I will make it right and I will make it good. I will make the fighters who fight over there not worry about what’s going on in the UFC.”
Well, one Strikeforce fighter who would probably love to see Dana get his hands on it is Tim Kennedy. He told MiddleEasy recently that he’s sick and tired of waiting around for fights.
I’m getting real sick of this MMA scene right now. Waiting around for fights and the politics between Strikeforce and Showtime and the UFC and Zuffa. I’m just kind of getting over it, man. I miss the simplicity of life as a soldier. So, I don’t know. I don’t know what I want to do. I have some extreme survival and athlete type shows possibly going and, so, I don’t know, man, I don’t know. It’s going to be a curious year. I haven’t fought in… months. Now it will be a year before my next fight. A year lay off, and not by choice. I was out two weeks with an injury in a twelve month time frame? It’s shenanigans. If my job is to fight and I only get a fight once every twelve months I can’t afford to keep fighting. I gotta do something else, I have to figure it out.
Kennedy has grown so discouraged over the situation that he’s actually thinking about retiring. He’s expected to fight Strikeforce middleweight champ Luke Rockhold next and says that even if he were to beat Rockhold, he would probably call it a career after that unless he were to be offered a big fight in the UFC. Yeah, so much for all the Strikeforce fighters being pumped about staying in Strikeforce.
Tim Kennedy isn’t the only middleweight looking for a fight. Jason “Mayhem” Miller, fresh off one of the more disappointing performances of his career at the TUF 14 Finale, wants to get back in action as well.
Mayhem’s problem is quite different than Kennedy’s dilemma though. He’s in the UFC where there are plenty of cards to fight on, but the problem is Dana White was so disappointed in his performance against Michael Bisping he was actually thinking about letting him go.
On The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani yesterday, Miller said that he was given a “nod” that he would be given another chance, but they haven’t offered him another fight as of yet. To fix that, he implored fans to bomb Dana White’s Twitter feed with requests to give him a fight.
“You guys tweet Dana that you want to see me fight,” Miller said. “I want to fight as soon as possible. So the more pressure that anybody who wants to see me fight, the more pressure they put on the brass, well, guess what? I’ll fight sooner.”
“Whenever — I’ll fight next weekend,” Miller said. “I’m sick of sitting on the couch,” he said. “I’m a fighter. I need to fight.”
Fighters need to fight. Hopefully both Kennedy and Mayhem gets fights sooner than later.
Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime
Posted in: fight, strikeforce, fighter, dana, kennedy
Read the full article at MMA ConvertJason Mayhem Miller Wants A Fight, Tells Fans To Tweet Dana White
Jason "Mayhem" Miller wants to get back inside the Octagon, and he's hoping his fans can help him.
Miller said on The MMA Hour that he's ready to return to the UFC following his loss to Michael Bisping at December's Ultimate Fighter Finale. And he said he believes his fans could help him get into the Octagon by pressuring UFC President Dana White to book him for another fight.
"You guys tweet Dana that you want to see me fight," Miller said. "I want to fight as soon as possible. So the more pressure that anybody who wants to see me fight, the more pressure they put on the brass, well, guess what? I'll fight sooner."
White was extremely critical of Miller's performance in his loss to Bisping, to the point that some fans wondered if White would cut Miller. Miller said, however, that the UFC has indicated to him that he'll be given another fight.
"I've gotten a head nod, but nothing official," Miller said.
Miller didn't name any particular opponent or any particular event he'd like next.
"Whenever -- I'll fight next weekend," Miller said. "I'm sick of sitting on the couch," he said. "I'm a fighter. I need to fight."
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, miller, fan
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseDana will make Strikeforce good
MMA bloggers love Dana White because every time he opens his mouth several posts worth of news items fall out. Lost in the shuffle of all the Diaz vs Condit craziness was Dana's spontaneous declaration at a press conference that he wants to fix Strikeforce. This isn't the first time he's brought it up, and you gotta wonder what Dana's angle is sitting down with a scrum of reporters and saying he's not impressed with Showtime's performance.
"I'm working on Melendez. Melendez is all over my ass." He added, "I think he's a great fighter and I've said this a million times and I want to say it again. I want to get my hands on Strikeforce. I want to dive into this thing and I want to do it the way that it should be done. And the way that I think it should be done. We'll see what happens."He later addressed his goals to improve the Strikeforce brand saying, "why not the UFC's level? If you talk to anybody they will tell you that Gilbert Melendez is one of the best fighters in the world. There's a ton of guys. Now you got Rockhold over there. Yes, these guys are great. I just want to do things that I want to do things over there. We'll see what happens. You guys know how I am. If I take this Strikeforce thing then I will dive into this thing 100% because I have so much free time. [laughter] I'm looking for a side project. Honestly, I will dive into this thing and I will make it right and I will make it good. I will make the fighters who fight over there not worry about what's going on in the UFC."
OMG HE WANTS TO LOBOTOMIZE STRIKEFORCE FIGHTERS! What else is going to make them magically forget about that much more prestigious and financially lucrative promotion under Zuffa's ownership? Tickle me intrigued as to how Dana would turn Strikeforce around. Considering it's worrisome ratings / tickets / existential crisis, it might not even be possible. Which is why I wonder if this kinda talk is a prelude to the UFC pulling the plug on Strikeforce all together. If only they had been able to get the control they needed!
Posted in: time, strikeforce, fighter, dana, thing
Read the full article at FightlinkerUFC 143 Post-Fight News & Notes: Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen II Agreed For June In Brazil
Rundown of UFC 143 post-fight news and notes…
— 10,040 attendees filled the Mandalay Bay Events Center for a $2.3 million live gate.
— Stephen Thompson picked up a $65,000 KO of the Night bonus in his UFC debut for that sneaky head kick he used to put Dan Stittgen’s lights out. Dustin Poirier was awarded the Submission of the Night bonus for his sweet mounted triangle/armbar. And Fabricio Werdum and Roy Nelson earned Fight of the Night for their bloody battle.
— It’s been quite awhile since I remember fans so passionately split about a decision like they are with Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit. Honestly, when the fight was over I felt like Condit had won it and I really wanted Nick Diaz to win. I wasn’t actively scoring it as the fight progressed though, so perhaps I’ll change my mind when I go back and watch it again.
For what it’s worth, Dana White thought Carlos Condit won the fight as well and I’m sure he was internally hoping Diaz would win given the magnitude of GSP vs. Diaz.
“Carlos Condit won,” White said following the evening’s post-event press conference. “He went in there, and he fought a great fight. He stuck to his gameplan and didn’t fall in Nick Diaz’s (style of fight).”
“Nick Diaz is the master of getting you to fight his type of fight,” White said. “Fighters have egos, and millions of people are watching. When you start getting open-hand slapped by the other guy and he’s calling you names – ‘Alright, you want to do this?’ – they step in, and they do it. Carlos Condit kept his cool tonight, fought a perfect fight. He started early, chopping those legs, and that did make a big difference toward the end of the fight. It slowed Nick down a lot – body shots, too.”
Even though Dana felt Condit won the fight, he thought it was close enough to warrant a rematch if both fighters wanted it.
“It’s crazy, but … I was thinking about it after the fight,” White said. “People are bitching, and people think that was close, we could do that fight again before GSP comes back.”
“It depends on Carlos, too. Carlos has got to say – and Nick’s got to say, ‘I want to fight him again,’ too.”
That would certainly be one way of handling it. Condit said he was leaning towards waiting for GSP in his post-fight interview with Ariel Helwani, however Dana was pretty adamant that he wanted Condit to fight again if GSP is going to be out for too long. Nevertheless, I seriously doubt Condit would want to fight Diaz again, so we’ll have to see what happens. Dana also thought Josh Koscheck vs. Nick Diaz would be a good match-up.
— Of course, that’s all assuming Nick Diaz doesn’t actually retire. But I doubt he will and so does Dana White.
“You never know with Nick Diaz,” White said. “You never know. I think he’s just upset right now, and I think he’s emotional, but who knows?”
“I think once he goes home and realizes and calms downs – look, Nick Diaz is a fighter,” he said. “I don’t see Nick Diaz retiring, but who knows? This isn’t one of those sports where you want to be half in, half out.
“If that’s how you feel, maybe you should retire.”
Nick Diaz didn’t comment on it past his post-fight interview, but I’m sure Cesar Gracie will address it this week.
— Carlos Condit’s comments on the fight and moving forward as the interim welterweight champion:
“He was talking. I was landing punches,” Condit told UFC.com after his title-winning performance. “I think I was winning. No matter how much he talked, I was hitting hard and I was hitting him solid. That’s what I came here to do. I didn’t come here to talk.”
“[This win] is huge. This is just another step toward my ultimate goal of being among the best mixed martial artists in the world,” said Condit. “I’ve got a lot of work to do and a lot more improvements to make. Georges is a true champion, and he’s the best in the world.”
“I have the best fans in the world. I get so much support and respect from people all over the world who I don’t even know,” said Condit. “I want you guys to know how much it f—ing means to me. This isn’t always fun, and it’s not always easy, but hearing from fans and getting support from you guys gives me motivation.”
— Roy Nelson didn’t win last night, but he showed once again just how darn tough he is. Even one of his biggest critics, Dana White, was impressed with how Big Country kept fighting after taking so much punishment. He’s not sure what’s next for Nelson, but he hopes Nelson will continue to take his training and diet more seriously.
“I don’t know,” UFC president Dana White told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “We’ll see what happens. I mean the guy brings it. He comes to fight. I just – you wonder what he could do if he really, really trained and got into it.”
“I’ve been telling Roy forever if Roy took himself serious – for instance, Roy had moments there,” White said. “He rocked Werdum once with a couple of shots. If he was in good enough shape to keep that kind of a pace, he would win more fights.”
“I don’t know,” White said. “He’s tough though. He’s so tough. He’s one of the toughest guys I’ve ever seen.”
Here’s a pic of that nasty cut Fabricio Werdum opened up over his eye if you don’t mind seeing a little forehead flesh.
— Here’s some interesting news. Josh Koscheck revealed after the fight that he has split from AKA.
“I’ll be training out of Fresno for now,” Koscheck told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I’m no longer affiliated with some of the people at the gym that I’ve been training at.”
“It was a tough camp,” Koscheck said. “This is my last camp there. I’m going to do my own thing.”
So does that mean he and Jon Fitch will finally fight? Koscheck says “good luck with that.”
“That’s what I whispered to him,” White told MMAjunkie.com. “I said, ‘Now I’m doing the Jon Fitch fight.’ That’s what I said to him. He said, ‘Good luck with that.’”
Dana said he “wouldn’t do it just to do it,” but if the fight made sense he would push for it. I’m not sure how many people are really clamoring for that one though.
— And last but not least, Dana White confirmed that Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen have verbally agreed to meet in June in Brazil and bout agreements should be finalized soon. It’s still unclear exactly where in Brazil the fight will happen. They wanted to do it at a soccer stadium in San Paulo, but apparently noise ordinances are making that difficult to book.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: fight, diaz, nick, dana, condit
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 143 Results Video: Dana White Talks Condit Vs. Diaz, Koscheck Vs. Fitch, More At Post-Fight Scrum
Bloody Elbow's Matt Roth was at the post post-fight press conference "scrum" where Dana White spoke to the assembled MMA media for a good 20 minutes. The first installment is above, parts 2 and 3 are after the jump.
Highlights include:
Dana's response to fans and media complaining about Carlos Condit's game plan against Nick Diaz.
Dana's assessment of Josh Koscheck's performance against Mike Pierce.
The possibility of the UFC booking Koscheck vs. Jon Fitch now that Koscheck has left the American Kickboxing Academy.
Dana's continuing wish that Roy Nelson would cut down to light heavyweight.
Stephen Thompson's KO of the Night performance and Joe Rogan's excitement over Thompson as a prospect.
Dana discusses the new The Ultimate Fighter format on FX with live fights.
Dana talks about international expansion and indicates that India will likely be the next country to get its own version of The Ultimate Fighter.
SBN coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit
Part 2
Part 3
Posted in: diaz, vs, koscheck, dana, condit
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White UFC 143 Post-Fight Interview
Posted in: ufc, dana, interview, postfight
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseDana White finds Nick Diaz fascinating
Finally Dana, you get it. Now that you enlightened and understand the enigma that is Nick Diaz, we implore you to read fascinating articles about Nick Diaz. We're sure you'll enjoy fine reading such as The Top Ten Most Awkward Nick Diaz Interviews, The Top Ten Curiously Interesting Videos Nick Diaz Favorited On Youtube and of course, The Top Ten Nick Diaz Moments.
That's thirty great moments total. I was counting the entire time. Due to time constraints I'm not even going to list the countless great Photoshop job's of Nick Diaz like Homey Smacks™.
We're glad you get it now, Dana. You have joined our strange little club, and this video from MMAWeekly is evidence.
[Source]
Posted in: diaz, nick diaz, nick, dana, photoshop jobs
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Talks UFC 143, UFC on FOX 2, Nick Diaz, FTC Investigation, Strikeforce, Gladiator, More
Highlights of Dana White’s interview with reporters following the UFC 143 pre-fight press conference via MMA Fighting. Dana White comments on everything from UFC 143 to the FTC investigation that just concluded to retiring the gladiator.
Posted in: ufc, dana, gladiator, ftc investigation, ftc
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 143: Dana White 'No One Knew GSP At One Time Either'
Following the UFC 143 pre-fight press conference, Dana White held a scrum with the media in attendance. Bloody Elbow's Matthew Roth was in attendance and shot video of the entire scrum. Dana White was hit with a ton of topics from all angles from the surrounding media.
In part one of a four part series, Dana White talks the UFC on Fox 2 event in Chicago and if he thought it was a good event. The UFC president had words for the naysayers, saying "ratings were awesome. I'm happy with the ratings. It was good."
He added, "the funny thing about that is. The chatter that you get about fights. First of all there was so much hype about that fight. Sonnen vs Bisping. The Maia fight. Even after the change people were like it's even more exciting now. And then after, everyone was like 'they set themselves up for these boring fights'. Shut up. People who come out after, you're a liar. You're a liar. You're an idiot. You sound like an idiot when you say that. These fights all looked exciting. You just never know what's gonna happen. Anything can happen on any given night. You can have three fights go to decision or you can put on a fight that you think's gonna go longer and it lasts 60 seconds. It's fighting. The hardest part of this whole thing is figuring out production. How many fights can you schedule? The commercial load that we've got and all the other things that you have to do. We did a pretty good job at getting this thing dialed in after the first fight going 60 seconds. As this thing evolves it's gonna be more about fighting. Fox has a system that they use for sports and you come into a big desk. What people are used to with the UFC are Goldie and Rogan on camera for two seconds and we get right into fights."
He also addressed the current slide the pay per view business without Georges St. Pierre, stating "GSP is a monster. I say it all the time that he's the pay per view king of this sport. It hurts without him but this is what we do. We put on guys like Condit and Diaz. No one knew GSP at one time either. You have to build guys."
SBN coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, thing, liar youre
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White UFC 143 Press Conference Scrum
Posted in: ufc, conference, dana, press, scrum
Read the full article at AOL FanhouseUFC 143 Pre-Fight News & Notes: Diaz-Condit Respect, Jones-Evans-Hendo, Overeem Legal Trouble, Silva-Sonnen II, More
Rundown of UFC 143 pre-fight news and notes…
— If Nick Diaz needs to hate his opponent to fight them, he’s certainly not showing it for his big fight against Carlos Condit this weekend. As you can see from the photo above, Nick actually shook Condit’s hand instead of butting heads or flipping him off (though that could easily happen at tomorrow’s weigh-ins). Not only that, Nick actually went to bat for Condit during the press conference when he was asked if he thinks all the talk about him and Georges St. Pierre is fair to Condit.
“Yeah, I think it makes me sick,” he said. “This is Carlos’ time to be here, and to be a part of this main event. This is … half of the show is built up around me fighting Georges St-Pierre. But that’s not [right]. I’m fighting Carlos Condit. So, I don’t like it.”
Nick later followed it up with a quote that embodies what he thinks about GSP and Carlos Condit as fighters.
“You’re more in danger of losing a decision to Georges St-Pierre. I think you’re more in danger of losing your teeth if you’re fighting Condit here.”
Nick Diaz telling it like it is…
— You may want to exercise a little patience if you’re hoping to see Jon Jones fight at heavyweight because it’s not going to happen anytime soon. At the pre-fight press conference today, Dana White said Jones will fight at heavyweight eventually, but it won’t happen anytime soon.
“It’s going to happen eventually, but I don’t think it’ll be happening this year,” White said.
“There are still guys there to fight him,” White said. “He’s still young … so I’m not interested in him fighting at heavyweight this year.”
There’s really no reason to rush Jones’ progression to the heavyweight division. He still has challenges left in Rashad Evans and Dan Henderson to take of and it’s always possible that other contenders will rise while he’s fighting them. I’d like to see how Jones does at heavyweight, but I’m more in favor of that move happening naturally.
— Speaking of the light heavyweight title triangle, Dan Henderson plans to wait to fight the winner of Jones vs. Evans, according to Dana White.
“Dan Henderson’s in a position right now where it looks like he wants to wait for Jon Jones. We’ll see what happens with this Rashad fight.”
That’s probably the smart move. It would tough to recover from a loss and climb back up the ladder at Hendo’s age.
— Dana White doesn’t think Alistair Overeem’s most recent trouble with the law will affect his upcoming title shot against Junior dos Santos. Dana also offered some details about what transpired the night he allegedly shoved a woman.
“I don’t think he’s in that much trouble,” White said. “This isn’t a situation where he beat somebody up; I don’t think that’s the case.”
“He had to use the restroom – this is my knowledge of what happened – (and) security was going to take him,” White said. “He said, ‘I don’t need security,’ and sure enough he goes over there, and his side of the story is some lady started yelling at him and swinging at him and everything else.”
— Dana White has no patience for you if you were critical of how the fights went at UFC on FOX 2.
“There was so much hype for (Chael) Sonnen vs. (Michael) Bisping and the (Demian) Maia fight,” he told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “Even after it changed, people were like, ‘It’s even more exciting now.’ And then after, everybody’s like, ‘Aww, they set themselves up for these boring fights.’ Shut up. People who come out after and say, ‘Oh, we knew (this was going to happen),’ you’re a liar. You’re a liar, you’re an idiot, and you sound like an idiot when you say that. These fights all looked exciting. You just never know what’s going to happen. Anything can happen on any given night.”
“You could have three fights go to decisions, or you could have three fights that you think are going to go longer and it lasts 60 seconds,” he said. “It’s fighting. The hardest part of the whole thing is figuring out production. How many fights can you schedule with the commercial load that you’ve got and all the other things that you have to do? We did a pretty good job of getting this thing dialed in after that first fight going 60 seconds.”
“Would I have turned off the show the other night and said that sucked? No, it didn’t suck. The Bisping-Chael Sonnen fight was awesome.”
— Hackers may have stopped hacking the UFC’s websites, but as far as Dana is concerned, the war is “still on.” Oy vey.
— Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen II hasn’t been signed yet, but Dana still “guarantees” it’s going to happen. Silva is apparently flying in to Las Vegas this weekend presumably to put pen to paper.
— Apparently there are rumors floating around of Gilbert Melendez and BJ Penn fighting. Well, wherever they came from, they’re not true. according to Dana. He promises Melendez will still get a big fight though.
— This is pretty cool. Harley-Davidson is giving a new motorcycle to the Diaz-Condit winner.
— And last but not least, Nick Diaz only missed three flights this week to get to Vegas!
Image via the UFC
Posted in: fight, nick, heavyweight, dana, condit
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White's Feud With Anonymous May Have Cost Cop His Job
UFC president Dana White has been feuding with the hacker collective Anonymous since last week when the UFC web site was hacked over their support of the controversial SOPA legislation. White challenged the "internet cowards" to do more and they have.
The latest casualty of the conflict is apparently a Richmond, CA police officer who tweeted in support of White:
Anonymous noticed the tweet a few days later and flooded the Richmond PD with complaints.
The San Jose Mercury News has more:
"In his tweet, he expresses his desire to use firearms to deal with problematic people," several posters wrote on the Contra Costa Times' Facebook page, apparently copying a form letter. "I fear for the safety of the citizens of Richmond after seeing such irresponsible action displayed by one of its very own police officers."
Richmond police Capt. Mark Gagan would not confirm the identity of the officer, citing state privacy protections, or discuss particulars of the case. He said the department received a flood of complaints beginning Monday evening."We are well aware of the response people have had to the situation," Gagan said. "We are opening an investigation, and we will get to the bottom of it. If there were policy violations, we will deal with it appropriately."
More on Dana White vs. Anonymous:
Dana White Challenges Hackers, Hackers Release White's Personal Information
#OpUFC: Anonymous Answers Dana White's Challenge, Hacks UFC.tv
Dana White And UFC Fail To See Big Picture With SOPA Support
#OpUFC: Dana White's Attitude Toward Attacks Is Irresponsible And Dangerous
UFC Issues Formal Statement Regarding Website Hack
UFC Website Hacked, Possibly As Retaliation For SOPA Support
UFC's Dana White Apologizes To Woman Harassed By Hackers
Posted in: ufc, dana, support, hacker, richmond
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Hackers Got it Wrong? UFC President Apologizes to Innocent Woman
UFC president Dana White made a personal visit to a Las Vegas woman recently to apologize for her getting caught up in the web of who he refers to as "online terrorists."
Posted in: ufc, dana, ufc president, president, woman
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyMemo to the UFC/Dana White: Try Solving Piracy Instead of Just Fighting It
I know, I know. It’s silly to ask a fight promoter not to fight.
Let’s be clear here up front: I understand why Dana White and Zuffa would support legal action like SOPA & PIPA, and were I in their place I’d be concerned about piracy too. They have a company whose foundation is built upon their customers paying to see events live, so anything that undermines that business is clearly going to have an impact on profits.
That being said, SOPA is not the way to stop piracy. In fact I’d be very surprised if our government was able to introduce any kind of legislation that effectively stamps out piracy in all its forms. Fighting a war on piracy is similar to fighting wars on drugs and terrorism; they may be noble causes but ultimately they will prove to be futile. Religious and social divides will always cause cultures to hate each other, some people will always look for a way to alter their consciousness, and there will always be people on the internet with more free time than money.
Another thing that won’t help fight piracy is angering the hacker community. After taunting hackers on Thursday,the UFC President had his site hacked again in addition to having his personal information compromised. I have no desire to know what Dana’s social security number is, but the fact that it’s now available for viewing on the internet should be a clear sign that mistakes have been made. Maybe Dana can shrug off this invasion of privacy and claim it’s no big deal. After all, he can change his phone numbers, hire private security for his home, and pursue legal action against anyone taking advantage of his personal information. His customers, however, may not be so lucky.
On Friday another member of the hacker group Anonymous (the very group White provoked on Twitter on Thursday) announced that he had hacked both UFC.com as well as the company’s live streaming site UFC.tv. This hacker also claims to have retrieved data from customer’s who have used UFC.tv to purchase PPVs. Anonymous made headlines this past Christmas when they used stolen credit card data to make donations to charity, and they have vowed to release the data acquired from the UFC if Dana provokes them again.
I know Dana has taken a carefree attitude towards this hacking situation, and at the start he wasn’t really out of line to do so. The initial attack just took down UFC.com for a few hours, which is roughly equivalent to taking down some advertisements. Had he left it at that things may not have gone any further.
By provoking the hackers (and specifically Anonymous) and equating their actions to terrorism, Dana brought unnecessary grief upon himself, his family, and his business. Anonymous doesn’t deal in the business of pirating PPVs, they are hackers acting as social activists. Whether or not you agree with their methods and their message is up to you, but there’s no reason to invite action from them against you and your business, particularly when your website is storing credit card information from your customers. It’s also worth noting that Anonymous is (by their very nature) a decentralized organization, with no control over their individual members’ actions. There’s been no action yet with any stolen information (at least that we know of) but this entire chain of events could lead to serious ramifications for the UFC and their online businesses. They have essentially broken the trust necessary in a capitalist society, wherein the consumer willingly supplies his financial information to a corporation with the implied understanding that it will be used in a responsible manner and not abused in any way. Obviously the UFC will be working with law enforcement agencies to find those responsible for this intrusion, but by inviting the attacks White may have implicated himself in any civil action that takes place in the future. It’s certainly too early to know exactly what will happen as a result of these hacks, but for now we can’t rule out the worst scenarios coming to pass.
So if the UFC and White are unable to completely stamp out piracy and stop the actions of hackers, what’s the solution?
One way to solve the problem is to give people a reason to buy your product online. Those who watch pirated streams are obviously willing to sit in front of their computer to watch a UFC event, so Dana White and Zuffa should be working to convert those people into paying customers. The easiest way to do this is to make PPVs less expensive. It seems like such an easy thing to do coming from somebody like me (you know, a consumer) but it really does make sense.
Whenever the price of his product is brought up, Dana dismisses the issue by stating that people can buy the program in groups, go to their local bar or restaurant, or if all else fails, just don’t watch it. What about those UFC fans like myself who usually watch the events alone? Not everyone has friends that watch the UFC and would be willing to pitch in for buying a PPV every single month. What about people under the age of 21, or those members of society who don’t drink? It’s hard to justify spending $45-55 for something that’s just for me, especially when that money could be used for food or clothing for my family. Dana would say that that’s too bad and I’ll just have to deal with not watching the UFC events, but is that any way to grow your business?
If the UFC really wants to get more people to purchase their streams online (especially in the wake of a possible violation on consumers’ private information), lower the price for the streaming version of the event. Since the UFC doesn’t have to share that $45 or $55 with cable and satellite providers for their online stream, perhaps they could pass some of those savings on to their consumer. Cut the price for a streaming event to $25 or $30 and I can practically guarantee that you’ll have a lot more people buying a reliable, quality stream over a sketchy pirated one.
This doesn’t have to be a permanent price change either; they could offer it on some of their events and reserve the higher price point for bigger cards. Flexible pricing is one idea that could be implemented for the streams as well as the regular PPV broadcast, and it allows the UFC to be more aggressive with cards that lack a blockbuster main event. As the sport’s biggest stars start heading towards the end of their career (and some are already there, see Lesnar, Brock and Liddell, Chuck) the UFC is going to be putting more and more fresh faces at the top of their cards, and having a lower price point for shows not anchored by proven draws allows these events to be seen by more people; which in turn gives these newer fighters a better chance to gain fans.
Let’s also consider the first time buyer. The whole point of getting their product on broadcast television with Fox is to create new fans who will in turn purchase the PPVs, right? If you had your first MMA experience this past Saturday night would you want to put down $45-55 to watch this weekend’s event? Make the first PPV after a Fox show lower priced and you’ll assure yourself a better chance of hooking those new fans.
The UFC will never be able to wipe out piracy completely. As their own employee Joe Rogan likes to state, “you can’t stop the internet.” Provide a product that’s both affordable as well as attractive, and back it up with great customer service, and you’ll please the customers you have while adding new ones all the time. It’s worked wonders for online businesses like Amazon.com, iTunes, and Steam, and there’s no reason why it can’t work for the UFC as well. They can continue their anti-piracy efforts by working with law enforcement to take down sites illegally streaming their shows, but at the same time they can be proactive and offer a more appealing product that people want to pay for.
PHOTO CREDIT – UFC
Posted in: ufc, ’t, event, dana, people
Read the full article at Five Ounces of PainVideo: UFC's Dana White Apologizes To Woman Harassed By Hackers
Las Vegas TV station Fox 5 Vegas has a cute little story about UFC president Dana White making a personal visit to one Julie Breeler. Breeler is the unfortunate woman whose phone number was posted by hackers as Dana's information last week after White challenged hackers to attack him and the UFC again. That challenge followed hacker attacks on UFC.com in retaliation for their support of the defeated SOPA/PIPA legislation.
From the Fox 5 Vegas story:
Julie Breeler had already endured countless phone calls and emails after her personal information was posted online by hackers targeting Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White.
So when she got a knock at her door Sunday, she was understandably paranoid.
"I get my gun before answering the door," Breeler told FOX5 Monday. "I crack the door and say ‘Yes?' He says ‘Julie Breeler?' and I'm like ‘Yes.' He says ‘Hi, I'm Dana White!'"
This is Dana White at his best, personable, approachable, decent and real. Unfortunately the whole mess could have been avoided had he not challenged the hackers in the first place.
Video after the jump.
More Bloody Elbow coverage of Dana White's war with Anonymous over SOPA:
Dana White Challenges Hackers, Hackers Release White's Personal Information
#OpUFC: Anonymous Answers Dana White's Challenge, Hacks UFC.tv
Dana White And UFC Fail To See Big Picture With SOPA Support
#OpUFC: Dana White's Attitude Toward Attacks Is Irresponsible And Dangerous
UFC Issues Formal Statement Regarding Website Hack
UFC Website Hacked, Possibly As Retaliation For SOPA Support
Posted in: ufc, dana, white, hacker, breeler
Read the full article at Bloody Elbow'Anonymous' hackers reveal wrong info, UFCs Dana White visits innocent victim to apologize for 'online terrorists'
On Jan. 22, 2012, UFC.com -- the Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) website -- was hacked by the "Anonymous" band of online pirates in retaliation for the mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion's support of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA).
After a Twitter war erupted between UFC President Dana White and "Anonymous" hackers, the group threatened to keep going after the promotion and White himself. True to its word, the group made White's personal information available, including his telephone and social security numbers, as well as his home address, for the world to see online.
Or so it appeared.
According to Fox 5 News in Las Vegas, it wasn't the UFC head honcho's information that was plastered all over the Internet, but rather an innocent Las Vegas woman who got caught in the crossfire.
Check out complete details of the mistaken identity after the jump:
Julie Breeler, the woman whose personal information was leaked online instead of White's, says she is enduring non-stop calls to her phone from people asking for jobs or simply wanting a call back from the UFC President:
"It's my phone number and my address. There's no Dana White here folks. "
Breeler also provided a potential explanation as to how the hackers mistook her information with Dana White's. It was through the previous homeowner who has not lived in the residence in more than 20 years, but was named Dana and owned a white cat.
Seriously:
"Her name was Dana and she was a white cat. So that is how he determined where junk mail was coming in."
To say the messy ordeal has been an inconvenience to the innocent woman's daily life, is an understatement:
"It makes me paranoid when I hear things outside. I can't sleep. "
Hearing of the woman's unfortunate ordeal, Dana White took it upon himself to visit the woman unannounced at her home to apologize for the trouble she has been put through because of the mistaken identity and the "online terrorists" failure:
"[I] went over and apologized for all the trouble caused by the online terrorists."
Breeler said when she heard the knock on her door from White, she was very paranoid, and rightfully so:
"I get my gun before answering the door. I crack the door and say ‘Yes?' He says ‘Julie Breeler?' and I'm like ‘Yes.' He says ‘Hi, I'm Dana White!'"
In a battle that does not seem to have an end in sight, White said has stated in the past that he has no plans on backing down or be intimidated by the hacker group.
At the expense of innocent victims, the online battle will, apparently, get worse before it gets better.
To watch a quick video clip of Julie Breeler's bizarre story click here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, woman, hacker, breeler
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White’s UFC 143 Video Blog: Part One
Dana White gives fans a behind the scenes look at UFC on FOX 2 in this first installment of his UFC 143 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, installment
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 143 Video Blog with Dana White (Episode 1)
UFC President Dana White is back with his first video blog for Saturday’s UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condig event featuring a behind the scenes look from UFC on Fox 2 this past weekend.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, video blog, blog
Read the full article at MMA FrenzyDana White UFC 143 vlog day 1
submitted by Avertr [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, vlog, avertr
Read the full article at RedditHacker Update: Dana White Apologizes To Harassed Las Vegas Woman, Hacker 13-Years Old
FOX 5 has an update on the UFC.com hacker story that eventually led to an innocent Las Vegas woman being harassed by people thinking they were contacting Dana White.
According to the report, Dana isn’t going to back down from the hackers but he did at least stop by Julie Wheeler’s residence to offer a personal apology for all the trouble.
“I get my gun before answering the door,” Breeler told FOX5 Monday. “I crack the door and say ‘Yes?’ He says ‘Julie Breeler?’ and I’m like ‘Yes.’ He says ‘Hi, I’m Dana White!’”
“[I] went over and apologized for all the trouble caused by the online terrorists,” White told FOX5′s Claudine Grant.
Breeler said she and White had a “pleasant little chat” at her home and she was looking forward to putting the case of mistaken identity behind her.
In another interesting update to this story, it turns out the second hacker who “defaced” UFC.com and UFC.tv is only 13-years old. In an interview with Softpedia.com, the hacker who goes by the name S3rver.exe said he’s “probably the youngest good hacker at the moment” and hopes his hacking skills will one day lead to a good job as an “Ethical Hacker” in a big company. One thing’s for sure. That company won’t be the UFC.
Posted in: fox, dana, hacker, breeler, julie
Read the full article at MMA Convert
Following mistaken identity, UFC boss Dana White apologizes to harassment victim
UFC president Dana White was looking to offer an apology but nearly found himself in unpleasant situation.
"I get my gun before answering the door," Julie Breeler told Las Vegas'
FOX 5. "I crack the door and say, 'Yes?' He says, 'Julie Breeler?' and
I'm like, 'Yes.' He says, 'Hi, I'm Dana White.'"
White visited Breeler's home to offer a personal apology for hundreds of
harassing phone calls she received after her information was mistakenly
released by hackers who were trying to attack White.
Posted in: dana, breeler, julie breeler, situation i, breelers home
Read the full article at MMA JunkieDana White Cuts The Gladiator, New Intro at UFC 143
The UFC is set to debut a new video intro this weekend at the opening of its UFC 143 pay-per-view broadcast. In other words, the cheesy, low-budget gladiator is out!
Dana White confirmed the news with The UG:
Tonight, UFC President Dana White revealed exclusively to the Underground that the opening sequence for it’s PPV broadcast has been redone and the new introduction will be revealed this Saturday for UFC 143. The event will feature Nick Diaz fighting Carlos Condit for the interim welterweight championship in the main event.
The opening sequence, which has shown a Roman gladiator preparing for battle has often been critiqued by fans and although the sequence hasn’t been used by the UFC on it’s FOX and Fuel TV broadcasts, it had been present as most recent as this past UFC 142.
To quote the UFC President directly: “He’s been cut.”
Hallelujah!
Posted in: ufc, dana, welterweight championship, gladiator, opening sequence
Read the full article at MMA ConvertMatt Hughes wants to fight again but his wife says no, UFC President Dana White breaks the tie
Women, right?
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion Matt Hughes has not been heard from since losing to Josh Koscheck at UFC 135 via first round knockout in Sept. 2011.
After the bout, which marked his second loss in a row, Hughes didn't quite commit to retirement, but stated he would be on the shelf for a long while and would only come back if the UFC felt they needed him to compete.
And now, the UFC Hall of Famer is ready.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani in a UFC on Fuel TV interview, Hughes says that despite his wife's wishes, he is ready to mix it up once again and is just waiting for UFC head honcho Dana White's say so.
"I want to fight again, my wife tells me I'm going to retire, so Dana is the deciding vote. We will talk to him and see what happens. I'd like to talk to him tonight, but I have not seen him yet. I don't know yet to be honest. I think Dana can be the final decision-maker. My wife is a great lady, but she is not going to tell me when Matt Hughes retires. I'm just hoping I can fight next, we will see what happens. I am not scouting any one out, I'm just hoping the opportunity is till there for me. As soon as this old body can get back into shape I'd love to jump back in there, so, that's another that he'll (White) answer for me."
After ruling the UFC welterweight division for years, Hughes feels he still has enough to get back inside the Octagon and go toe-to toe with the rest of the 170-pound field.
However, after competing for so many years and doing pretty much all you can do in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), is it wise for Hughes to return to action and risk another loss? And would that tarnish his legacy?
One thing is for sure: should Dana White give Hughes the green light to return to action, it will be interesting to see just who he and UFC matchmaker Joe Silva put the country boy up against.
Any suggestions?
Posted in: ufc, matt hughes, hughe, dana, wife
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White video blog for UFC on FOX 2 (Episode three)
To get you ready for tonight's (Sat., Jan. 28, 2012) UFC on Fox 2: "Evans vs. Davis" broadcast, starting at 9 p.m. ET on FOX, UFC President Dana White has released his latest video blog.
In this installment, Dana visits the Bozo the Clown studio and turns into a starstruck fan when he sees the WGN studio set. After bagging on his cameraman for crashing out and pulling a Jesse Holland being lazy on the job, we get to the weigh-ins with all the up close versions of the staredowns.
Nothing special here but it's enough to whet your beak until tonight's event.
To watch the first two episodes of Dana White's UFC on FOX 2 video blog click here and here.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, video blog, staredowns nothing
Read the full article at MMA Mania#OpUFC: Dana White's Attitude Toward Attacks Is Irresponsible And Dangerous
There's no denying that Dana White's confidence (cockiness?) has played a big role in the UFC's explosion, and given that we're seeing the UFC's second effort on Fox tonight it's impossible to say that he hasn't been a part of great things for the sport. But his attitude over this past week has been inexcusably irresponsible and dangerous for the UFC brand and customers who have given the UFC website any personal information.
When the UFC's support of SOPA led to a website redirect that took people to a picture of an anime version of Hitler, White took to Twitter to repeatedly tell people that he did not care about the attack and said "I'm in the fight biz not the website biz. Who gives a ****?"
Many quickly took the UFC president to task, explaining that the website is more than an advertising tool it is a site to which customers provide their name, address, phone number and credit card information. To treat any attack on the website as an insignificant moment is not what the very vocal face of the company needed to do.
To make matters worse, after the company issued a proper statement explaining that there was no evidence that confidential information was compromised, Dana went to Ariel Helwani and openly invited more attacks when he said "I'm not afraid of you, you don't f*****g scare me, you come in and do your thing, you don't scare me."
From a business standpoint, to invite attacks to a group which loves to be challenged, is incredibly dangerous. There is a time to just shut up. That means not insulting, provoking or joking about a group that presents a risk to your customers. Yet, as recently as last night (Friday) Dana was continuing to call the group involved "terrorists" despite that label being what set off the second round of attacks.
It is the job of a corporation to instill a sense of security and prove to customers that they can trust to do business with them. When Dana is openly inviting attacks he is sending a message, intentional or not, that macho posturing and "not being beaten by nerds" is more important than customer data security.
So far the attacks have been limited to Dana's personal information and some minor attacks on the UFC site (as well as the data of Jason Miller being released) but insulting the attackers and daring them to continue is begging for someone to take it to the next level and attempt to access customer data as in the Sony attacks or what happened with Zappos.
What Dana and the UFC's focus in these situations should be is to focus on making sure that customers feel completely confident in doing business with them, not in trying to win a war of words in what is ultimately a losing game.
While no one is denying Dana's role in building the UFC to the force that it is now, but this was a disappointing moment where he didn't know when to turn off the personality that works so well in fight promotion.
White would do well to keep the words of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh in mind and how seriously they treated the effect that an attack can have on your brand. "We've spent over 12 years building our reputation, brand and trust with our customers...It's painful to see us take so many steps back due to a single incident."
The UFC didn't have to take much of a step back with the initial attack, but the chosen response by White has already started a chain of customer confidence issues with recommendations floating around the internet that fans not order UFC 143 or any merchandise from the website.
While it may not be time for Dana the fight promoter to grow up, it's certainly time for Dana the businessman to up his game.
Posted in: ufc, dana, website, customer, attack
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowLas Vegas Lady Bombarded With Phone Calls For Dana White After Hackers Released His Personal Info
So it turns out not all of Dana White’s personal information (if any) that hackers released the other day was legit. His phone number definitely wasn’t at least. Unfortunately for one Las Vegas resident however it was a working phone number, and not surprisingly people have been calling it non-stop looking for Dana.
Local FOX affiliate FOX 5 picked up on the story and aired the report seen above. The lady’s name is Julie Breeler and she is understandably pissed as people have been trying to get in touch with Dana wanting everything from tickets to a job.
The funny part is how the number and address of her residence are connected to the name “Dana White.” A previous owner used the pseudonym “Dana White” for junk mail based on his white cat whose name was “Dana.”
On a more serious note, Fighters Only Magazine is reporting that S3rver.exe, the hacker who answered Dana White’s challenge yesterday, claims he was able to obtain customer data from the UFC’s website and plans to release it on PirateBay if Dana continues to taunt the hackers. However, I was unable to find where he specifically stated that he obtained sensitive information such as credit card numbers as the report claims.
Also, Mayhem Miller’s official website was hacked by Anonymous yesterday for some odd reason. Mayhem hasn’t spoken out on the story that I’m aware of, so I’m not sure why he was targeted.
Posted in: dana, number, hacker, phone number, report claims
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White video blog for UFC on FOX 2 (Episode two)
Fight week!
That means it's blog week, too, and UFC President Dana White has released his second video for your viewing pleasure. This one is fairly straight forward. White shows up at a local news station to promote the UFC on Fox 2 event he's in town for going down this Sat., Jan. 28, 2012, at the United Center in Chicago.
Then it's off to the press conference, where everyone is late and acting goofy. Of course they make sure to cut in Chael Sonnen's silly antics before showing the staredowns.
And that's all she wrote ... for now. Weigh-ins still to follow, folks. Follow along with that live right here. To watch episode one of Dana White's UFC on FOX 2 video blog click here.
Posted in: ufc, press conference, dana, news station, blog week
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC Boss Dana White Comments on Gun Ban
UFC president Dana White confirmed on Thursday that Guns and Ammo – and any gun-related brand – will no longer be allowed to sponsor UFC fighters.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, gun, ammo –
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyAnonymous Accepts Dana White’s Challenge To Hack UFC Websites
Answering @danawhite's challenge today, UFC's site has been hacked - stay tuned, we hear moar lulz are on the way. #OpUFCabout 10 hours ago via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite@YourAnonNewsAnonymous
Dana White really stirred up the hornet’s nest yesterday when he challenged the hacker community to target the UFC’s website again.
The same group that hacked the UFC’s website last weekend decided to target Dana White personally and release what appeared to be Dana White’s personal information, however the info has not been confirmed as legit.
The bigger story however is Dana also got the attention of the infamous hacking group Anonymous. They confronted him on Twitter after hearing his remarks and in true Dana fashion, he didn’t back down.
Not surprisingly, Anonymous responded by launching an attack on the UFC’s websites. In what they called “round one,” Anonymous “defaced” UFC.com and UFC.tv last night while most of us were sleeping.
This morning, S3rver.exe, the hacker who not long ago breached Sony Pictures and who’s currently helping out Anonymous hackers, along with others, breached UFC.com and UFC.tv, defacing some of their webpages.
“I hacked those 2 sites this morning. One of them has 60+ vulnerabilities and ufc.tv has XSS, BlindSQL Injection and other vulnerabilities,” the hacker said.
When asked about the reasons for hacking UFC, S3rver.exe said that the operation took place after Zuffa’s president called them terrorists and unlike the first attack, this time he claims that they also managed to obtain data from their servers.
Anonymous later posted a video of the attack (seen below) which included the following message.
H@X by S3rver.exe. We are anoymous. We are legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Dana White, you should have expected us. #OpUFC Stage 1 complete.
It remains to be seen if there will be a stage two and what it will entail.
The people I really feel for in this situation is the team that runs UFC.com and UFC.tv. I can only imagine they’re in their offices muttering “Dana, STFU!” under their breath and I don’t blame them. Those of you that have been following us for awhile may remember how we were hacked a couple years back. Let me tell you, dealing with that was an absolute f-ing nightmare. I definitely have sympathy for anyone who has ever had to deal with a hacked website. It’s no fun.
Posted in: ufc, dana, website, ufctv, hacker
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White uses 9/11 analogy for @youranonnews, says they’ll get “Bin Laden’d” @LBSports @darrenrovell @MMASupremacy
Dana White says that if Anonymous wants to pick a fight with him, then he's ready to go to war with them.
Posted in: dana, mmasupremacy, lbsport, “ bin, bin
Read the full article at Fight OpinionDana White calls out Internet hackers, they respond by releasing his personal info
submitted by OscarRose [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: dana, info, hacker, internet hackers, oscarrose
Read the full article at Reddit#OpUFC: Anonymous Answers Dana White's Challenge, Hacks UFC.tv
UFC president Dana White responded to last weekend's hacking of UFC.com by hackers apparently unrelated to Anonymous by calling out the hacker organization and daring them to attack the UFC again. Careful what you wish for. We posted last night on Dana White's personal information being posted on the Internet by hackers. The attacks were ramped up over night with UFC.tv being defaced after White's Twitter beef with Anonymous members.
Anonymous members @YourAnonNews announced the attacks on Twitter and followed up with taunts:
@YourAnonNewsAnonymous Answering @danawhite's challenge today, UFC's site has been hacked - stay tuned, we hear moar lulz are on the way. #OpUFC Jan 27 via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet Reply
@YourAnonNewsAnonymous We will call that round one.... more to come. #OpUFC Jan 27 via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet Reply
They also posted a video summarizing last night's attacks, that's after the jump.
From Softpedia via MMA Mania:
This morning, S3rver.exe, the hacker who not long ago breached Sony Pictures and who's currently helping out Anonymous hackers, along with others, breached UFC.com and UFC.tv, defacing some of their webpages.
"I hacked those 2 sites this morning. One of them has 60+ vulnerabilities and ufc.tv has XSS, BlindSQL Injection and other vulnerabilities," the hacker said.
Posted in: dana, attack, ufctv, hacker, hacker organization
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Addresses New PED’s Policy; Tells Those Who Test Positive to Own Up to It
UFC President Dana White addresses the company's new policy for drug testing, and also tells those who have tested positive to own up to their mistakes.
Posted in: dana, drug testing, address, testing, policy
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyFYI re: the ugNazi vs Dana White Business - he's still posting on MMAUG, so if you're interested you can head over there and read the things he has to say
Here are the threads: UGnAzi releases Dana whites personal info on... I am worried about Dana White tldr: Dana claiming most of the information that went up isn't his, including the phone numbers. Also: " standing up for your rights and your freedom of speech is what everyone should do. acting like a terrorist is a whole different story." submitted by red1392 [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: dana, phone numbers, fyi re, tldr dana, business hes
Read the full article at RedditHackers Attack UFC President Dana White
The hackers that claimed responsibility for re-directing the UFC’s website a few days ago took aim at company president Dana White on Thursday, releasing his personal information on the web.
Posted in: ufc, dana, president, website, hacker
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDANA IS BEING ATTACKED BY ANONYMOUS, SHIT JUST GOT REAL
submitted by stevo292 [link] [2 comments]
Read the full article at Reddit
Dana White Challenges Hackers, Hackers Release White's Personal Information
It's been an interesting night in Twitterland with Dana White being challenged about the UFC's support of SOPA and responding with the same old statements about people stealing from the business he helped grow. The situation went south quickly with "Josh The God" (the guy from UGNazi who carried out the attack on the UFC.com website) saying that they were now going after Dana himself rather than the website.
As Dana continued to talk about terrorist hackers and pirates (including a line of "I'm rite here"), there were continued suggestions that something big was about to happen. And then a tweet went out with a link sharing all of Dana White's personal information. That means his social security number, addresses dating back to 1997 and criminal record.
This is an ugly battle and the more you do to try to fight back against them, the more it entices the rest of their "community" to come at you. This was a major shot by this group and Dana can not be pleased.
Note: Any sharing of the link with his information will result in an immediate and permanent ban. This is being reported as a news story, not as an excuse to help people get Dana's personal information.
Posted in: dana, information, hacker, im rite, news story
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Speaks Out About SOPA, Says Hackers Are Helping to Revive the Bill
The controversial SOPA bill may be shelved for now, but for the first time UFC President Dana White decided to speak out about why the UFC has supported the movement.
Posted in: ufc, dana, bill, sopa, sopa bill
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Talks UFC on FOX 2, Chael Sonnen’s Belt, UFC.com Hack, Tainted Supplements, Nate Marquardt, More
Dana White sat down with the media following today’s UFC on FOX 2 pre-fight press conference to talk about all the hot topics in MMA. We’ve got a rundown of news and notes coming out of that Q&A session along with Ariel Helwani’s interview with Dana and some other notes from the press conference below.
— As you would expect, Chael Sonnen garnered most of the attention at today’s press conference with his fake UFC championship belt. While it’s hard to fathom that he actually believes it’s the real belt, he certainly played it off like it was.
“This is the world championship title of which I took from Anderson Silva,” Sonnen explained of the belt in front of him. “In this country, possession is nine-tenths of the law. Finders keepers, losers weepers, and if he wants it back, he knows where to find me.”
“I believe that I am the true champion,” Sonnen said. “This is the true UFC belt. This was Anderson Silva’s belt. I took his belt like a gangster in the night … If he wants his belt back, he can come and get it. But as far as I’m concerned, he’s as irrelevant as Mike Tyson. The only thing he hasn’t done is announce his retirement. He sound paint his face, gain a hundred pounds, sit in the third row and hope somebody remembers who they are because neither of those guys matter anymore.”
Dana of course had to chime in and set the record straight for anyone who didn’t know any better.
“Chael’s nuts,” White said. “He says all kinds of crazy things. He’s [claims he's] champion … Listen to me. Okay? Listen to me. He’s not the champion. He will fight Anderson Silva if he wins. He will not fight for the heavyweight championship or Jon Bones Jones.”
Some other choice quotes from Sonnen:
“You’re looking at the reflection of perfection. You’re looking at the man who gets all your attention. You’re looking at the man with the biggest arm. At the man, with the greatest charm, the man in Chicago who will do harm to the guy three doors down.”
“Whatcha gonna do, when you know who? Howya gonna deal, with the man of steel? How ya gonna react to Sonnen’s attack? Tune in on the 28th! 8 p.m. Eastern Time! You’ll find out who the real champion is.”
Michael Bisping tried to spark a litlle back-and-forth between him and Chael with this, but Sonnen never bit.
“He can keep his fake belt and shove it up his ass,” Bisping said. “He ain’t fighting Anderson Silva.”
— Sonnen and Bisping may not have got into it too much, but Rashad Evans and Phil Davis definitely did. They went at it several times, but this was the highlight.
“If I wrestled you in college, I guarantee I would have beaten you,” Evans said. “If you wrestled right now, I guarantee I’d beat you right now.”
“That’s interesting. … How many years were you an All-American?” Davis pondered.
“You used trash to win,” Evans shot back. “You could not win a world competition, man. You could not win on an international stage because you have trash technique.”
“Really? You are believing your own hype, my friend,” said Davis. “Who tells you these stories?”
“I watch the way you move,” said Evans. “You have trash technique.”
“What have you been watching?” an incredulous Davis asked.
Evans later capped it off with perhaps the funniest statement of the day, saying “Phil lookin’ like Arsenio Hall and John Salley had a baby.” Davis even laughed at that one, probably because it’s kinda true.
— Dana White finally commented on the UFC.com hacking from last weekend beyond the “I don’t give a sh*t” that he put out on Twitter. Staying true to himself, Dana basically challenged hackers to try it again.
Is SOPA the perfect bill? No, it’s not.
The only thing that we’re focused on is piracy. Piracy is stealing. You walk into a store and you steal a (freaking) gold watch, it’s the same as stealing a pay-per-view.
I don’t care what your twisted, demented idea of stealing is. These kids that grew upon the Internet have never had to pay for anything, so they think you shouldn’t have to.
Keep hacking our site. Do it again. Do it tonight.
You know what’s happening is? These guys look like terrorists now, and a bill that was about to die is about to come back. …
I’m not afraid of the Internet. I love the Internet. It’s fun to get on there and cruise around and stuff. I’m not afraid of you.
You want to keep hacking our site, go for it. Watch what happens. You’re hurting yourself.
Call me crazy, but taunting a community of anonymous hackers is probably not the smartest idea when you have people’s credit card information stored for online pay-per-views and merchandise. Just saying.
— Dana White confirmed again that Anthony Johnson is no longer with the UFC, but he at least left the door open for him to return if he can start acting like a professional.
“He needs to go fight somewhere else, get some wins, come in on weight,” White said of Johnson. “He needs to prove to me that he can be a professional, show up on weight and do the things he needs to do. If he does, we can talk.”
Interestingly enough, Dana did ease up on his stance on Nate Marquardt, saying “I don’t dislike Nate. I like Nate very much. We’ll see what happens.” Marquardt has not fought since Dana booted him out for screwing up the UFC on Versus 4 main event last year. Perhaps his next fight will be in the UFC after all.
— It sounds like Dana White is as sick of the tainted supplement excuse as everyone else. In response to a question about King Mo claiming his positive test was the result of a bad supplement, Dana says he doesn’t buy it.
“If you get caught doing something, admit you did it,” White said. “The whole ‘Somebody put something in my system that I didn’t know about?’ I mean, who here lets someone put s–t inside them that you don’t know what it is? If you go to the doctor and he gives you a pill, ‘Doc, what am I taking this for?’”
“I don’t buy that s–t,” White said. “Own up to what you did. Listen, it’s out there, it happens, and sometimes everybody makes mistakes.”
“I don’t buy it,” White said. “Anybody that’s ever said that they didn’t know what’s being put in their body is full of s–t.”
— Photos of the face-offs from the press conference below via Dana’s Twitter.
Posted in: ufc, belt, dana, sonnen, man
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White issued a challenge to hackers, and they happily accepted
I'm happy we can all mutually agree that the hottest incarnation of Angelina Jolie was the one portrayed in the 90s cult-classic, Hackers. It's 2012 and I'm still trying to find a chick that can pull off short hair while effortlessly rocking a motorcycle jacket. Once that happens, you won't be hearing much from me -- regardless of an impending 2012 apocalypse on civilization.
Today during the press junket for UFC on FOX 2, Dana White clarified his stance on SOPA and discussed the recent hacking of UFC.com which occurred last weekend. Jokes on you, UGNazi (the hacker group that attacked UFC). Dana White doesn't even care that you hacked UFC.com. In fact, he challenged hackers to do it again. USA Today has the transcript of today's statement:
Is SOPA the perfect bill? No, it's not.
The only thing that we're focused on is piracy. Piracy is stealing. You walk into a store and you steal a (freaking) gold watch, it's the same as stealing a pay-per-view.
I don't care what your twisted, demented idea of stealing is. These kids that grew upon the Internet have never had to pay for anything, so they think you shouldn't have to.
Keep hacking our site. Do it again. Do it tonight.
You know what's happening is? These guys look like terrorists now, and a bill that was about to die is about to come back. ...
I'm not afraid of the Internet. I love the Internet. It's fun to get on there and cruise around and stuff. I'm not afraid of you.
You want to keep hacking our site, go for it. Watch what happens. You're hurting yourself.
Well, when you challenge a group of individuals that hacked the FBI and the Department of Justice's website all within two weeks, of course they're going to respond. Here's what JoshTheGod stated just a few minutes ago regarding Dana White's digital invite.
If anything does go down tonight, we'll be sure to keep you informed of any l33t shenanigans. Those UGNazis are tough -- they must use Gibsons.
Update: Now it appears that Dana White and Anonymous are having a debate about piracy on Twitter. Intense night!
Posted in: dana, today, im, internet, hacker
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Reveals UFC Championship Road Map
Breaking with tradition, UFC president Dana White already has a public road map laying wide open for two of his marquee divisions.
Posted in: ufc, dana, road, road map, map
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC on Fox 2 Video Blog – Day 1
It's UFC on Fox 2 week and here is the latest installment of Dana White's video blog, including a prediction on the main event from light heavyweight champ Jon Jones.
Posted in: ufc, fox, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Says GSP Could Return This Summer; Jon Jones Hints At April Return In Atlanta
Georges St. Pierre could be back in action a lot sooner than anyone expected, says UFC president Dana White.
Dana told FUEL TV’s Ariel Helwani last night that GSP’s rehab “could not be going better” and thinks he’ll be ready to go “sooner than doctors anticpated.”
“GSP’s rehab could not be going better,” White said. “He was texting me pictures of him kicking, doing everything. … I think he’s going to be back sooner than doctors anticipated.”
It sounds like wishful thinking to me considering the nature of the injury. The last thing GSP wants to do is rush things when he’s recovering from a torn ACL. Furthermore, St. Pierre told Inside MMA just last week that he won’t be ready to fight until November.
Regardless of when he returns though, GSP really hopes Nick Diaz is the fighter standing across from him when he does get back in the Octagon.
“He says, ‘I am praying every night when I go to bed that Nick Diaz wins this fight,’” White said. “I have never seen Georges St. Pierre hate somebody. He hates Nick Diaz. I’ve never seen him so motivated to fight somebody and to beat somebody like Nick Diaz.”
While we’re still a ways away from seeing St. Pierre back in the Octagon, it’s looking like we could see UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones back in action before the start of the summer. Jones hinted during last night’s UFC on FX 1 post-fight show that he could headline UFC 145 on April 21 in Atlanta. As we’ve already covered ad nauseam, Jones will likely end up facing either Rashad Evans or Dan Henderson, depending on the outcome of Evans’ headlining bout against Phil Davis next weekend at UFC on FOX 2.
Check out Dana White’s full interview with Ariel Helwani below.
Posted in: ufc, nick, gsp, st, dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Talks UFC on FX 1 and UFC on FOX 2
Video: UFC on FUEL: Dana White
In this interview with FUEL TV’s Ariel Helwani, Dana White shares his thoughts on UFC on FX 1 and talks about the title implications involved in next weekend’s UFC on FOX 2 fights.
Posted in: ufc, dana, talks ufc, title implications, fuel dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertKen Shamrock's response to Dana White
submitted by MMAfan9000 [link] [7 comments]
Posted in: dana, shamrock, ken, mmafan, response
Read the full article at RedditDana White Responds to ESPN’s Fighter Pay Piece
ESPN's 'Outside the Lines" looked into the UFC's pay structure, and now UFC President Dana White has posted his response.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, espn, dana, piece espns
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyThe Sunday Morning Rumor Mill
Another Sunday morning, and 2012 is already off to a running, flying knee start. You may not be a fan of Dana White, it's impossible not to admit that since UFC 139, ZUFFA has been offering the renaissance of MMA delivered directly to your television. Shogun vs. Hendo set the bar astronomically high at the end of 2011, and since then our brains have ignited, reformed, and then ignited yet again by the MMA we've been seeing. We are living in the Golden Era of MMA. Now that you are self-aware, enjoy it. While you're at it, read our Sunday Morning Rumor Mill.
It appears Urijah Faber and Alpha Male have completely cut ties with Miesha Tate. The reason for the split was due to Tate and her significant other supporting Dominic Cruz in his upcoming title defense against Urijah Faber. As far as Miesha Tate's upcoming fight, Urijah Faber is now a huge fan of Ronda Rousey.
Pretty crazy item, but Dana White's bodyguard (the guy that usually hands out tickets for the #Hunt4UFC Twitter contest) is literally being 'hunted' by fans. Apparently he's had eager fans follow him around town and 'stalk' his hotel room during fight weekends. A few have even called his home phone in the middle of the week asking for tickets.
Jose Aldo was warned not to run into the crowd again following his actions at UFC 142.
Nate Marquardt has severed ties with BAMMA UK.
Dana White appears to be actively pushing the issue of 'instant replay' to athletic commissions. It's rumored that he commented on it again after UFC 142.
It's rumored Gina Carano is gauging the success of her new movie 'Haywire' and using it to determine if she should come back to MMA.
The premiere of MTV's 'Caged' rated higher than analysts expected, however we'll have to wait a few more weeks to see if the trend maintains.
Ken Shamrock seems to be forming a rebuttal due to Dana White's criticism of ESPN's 'Outside the Lines' piece.
Posted in: mma, dana, fan, faber, urijah faber
Read the full article at Middle EasyDespite UFC 142 exception, Dana White not adding fight-night weights to broadcasts
RIO DE JANEIRO - UFC 142 was a special situation, according to UFC president Dana White.
Following a weigh-in debacle that ultimately cost event co-headliner Anthony Johnson his job, UFC president Dana White told MMAjunkie.com the organization doesn't plan to make fight-night weights available in the future.
Extenuating circumstances simply developed for UFC 142.
Posted in: ufc, dana, fightnight weights, weighin debacle, broadcasts rio
Read the full article at MMA JunkieDana White says UFC will recognize Erick Silva's victory, supports use of instant replay
Looks like we can put away our torches and pitchforks - at least for now, anyway. That's according to UFC President Dana White, who says that, although Mario Yamasaki may have made the wrong call when disqualifying Erick Silva, we should probably hold off on forming a lynch mob...
Posted in: ufc, dana, mario yamasaki, erick, instant replay
Read the full article at Low KickDana White: Anthony Johnson Will ‘Probably’ Be Cut Following UFC 142 Loss To Vitor Belfort
What looked to be a very promising future in the UFC’s middleweight division just days ago turned out to be unmitigated disaster for Anthony Johnson this weekend in Rio.
It all started yesterday when Johnson grossly missed weight by 11 pounds. He and his camp blamed it on a “medical issue” but that wasn’t enough of an explanation to keep him off Dana White’s sh*t list in the hours leading up to his fight with Vitor Belfort this evening. Dana stated before the fight that Johnson’s job was “on the line, win or lose,” basically implying that Johnson needed to perform spectacularly tonight to keep his job. Well, he didn’t and it sounds like Dana is going to keep his word.
“To be honest, we’re probably going to cut him after this event,” UFC president Dana White said. “Three strikes and you’re out. This is his third time that he hasn’t made weight. He’s the co-main event in a huge fight down here in Brazil. This one was a bad one.”
“Rumble Johnson did the damage to himself,” White said. “To be that unprofessional, and not come in on weight and be that far off when you used to fight at 170. Now you went to 185 pounds so you wouldn’t have trouble making weight and this is your worst weight cut ever? That’s a detriment to himself.”
Considering this is his third time missing weight, I don’t see any problems with cutting him, but if they don’t, they at least should force him to fight at light heavyweight and be done with this weight fiasco. Nearly every other fighter on the UFC roster makes weight on a very consistent basis. There’s no reason Johnson shouldn’t be able to too.
Image via MMA Junkie
Posted in: fight, dana, johnson, vitor belfort, weight
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 142: Dana White Video Blog, Part 2
UFC president Dana White just tweeted the newest version of his video blog, which covers the events of the UFC 142 weigh-ins. Of course, much of the footage is centered around the Anthony Johnson vs. Vitor Belfort fight, because Johnson was unable to make weight. It also covers a few other things, which I'll briefly go over below.
After taking a helicopter over to the arena for the weigh-ins (and pointing out beaches and favelas along the way) and doing some production stuff, Dana brings Vitor in and explains the situation to him while he's chewing on a towel full of ice. He was given the option of not making weight and starting to rehydrate right then, but he wouldn't get 20% of Johnson's purse. As we all know by now, he opted to be a professional and make weight.
Joe Rogan was almost a no-show and Mike Goldberg was on standby to fill in, but Rogan made it at the last second. Closeups of most of the faceoffs followed, with AJ trying to make sure Dana knew what happened to him and Dana apparently being in the dark about it at the time. The blog ends with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones making his picks for the top two fights on the card. Check it out.
Posted in: ufc, dana, johnson, blog, weight
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White UFC 142 Rio Video Blog Day 2 – Behind the Weigh-in Debalce
UFC president Dana White's second UFC 142 Rio video blog goes behind the scenes at the weigh-ins. Watch as Dana breaks the news of Anthony Johnson being overweight to Vitor Belfort.
Posted in: ufc, rio, anthony johnson, dana, dana breaks
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 142 Vlog Day 2
submitted by killzy707 [link] [6 comments]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditVia the UFC TwitterDana just announced on @FUELTV - Rumble can't make MIDDLEWEIGHT - Vitor says...
Via the UFC Twitter
Dana just announced on @FUELTV - Rumble can't make MIDDLEWEIGHT - Vitor says he'll still fight him IF AJ's not more than 205 tomorrow
Belfort/Johnson fight on IF Johnson weighs less than 205 tomorrow; Belfort will get 20% of his purse, Dana calls AJ "total unprofessional"
https://twitter.com/#!/ufc
Posted in: dana, twitter, middleweight vitor, purse dana, aj
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White fires back at ESPN over the latest Josh Gross article. Luke Thomas has Dana's whole...
Dana White fires back at ESPN over the latest Josh Gross article. Luke Thomas has Dana's whole tweet stream at MMA Nation.
Posted in: espn, luke, dana, fire, tweet stream
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: ‘I Think Brock’s Done’
For as competitive as Brock Lesnar has always been, Dana White believes the former champion really is done with MMA once and for all.
Posted in: dana, brock lesnar, brock, ‘ i, brock ’s
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White: Brock Lesnar Said Alistair Overeem Was ‘That Much Better Than Him’
According to Dana White, Brock Lesnar never made any excuses for his loss to Alistair Overeem. During an appearance on The Jim Rome Show yesterday, Dana said Lesnar told him after the fight that he’s “never felt so good in his life” after surgery and had “the best camp he has ever had,” but Overeem was just “that much better than him.”
HT: MiddleEasy
Posted in: overeem, dana, alistair overeem, brock lesnar, lesnar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White promises New York for 2012
I'd gotten kinda tired of Dana White promising every season of TUF has the best fights ever, but I'll never fault him on his optomism for New York legalization:
MMAFightCorner.com: How close are you getting to having MMA sanctioned in New York?Dana White: Real close. It’s going to happen and I guarantee it’s going to happen this year.
The UFC's line is that a Vegas union has put it's political power against passing the bill, which has kept it from being called to the floor for a voite. It's something that's not too hard to imagine considering this Union also sent out a press release calling the UFC homophobic leading up to their FOX debut. And then there's that website they made devoted to Dana White's potty mouth. Basically, the UFC has a troll ... a well connected and very dedicated troll. Sorry, two trolls.It has been three years now that the UFC has been playing this legislative game, and three years the bill has timed out somewhere short of the finish line. They have been getting closer and closer every year though, and you figure after this many years of finagling they've finally figured out how to butter enough bureaucrats up to get this done.
Posted in: ufc, dana, year, yorkdana whitenbsp, vegas union
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White’s UFC 141 Video Blog: Part One
Dana White gives a behind the scenes look at UFC 141 in this first installment of his UFC 142 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, installment
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Talks Strikeforce’s Future on Showtime
Zuffa president Dana White talked with Showtime play-by-play man Mauro Ranallo on Saturday about the future of Strikeforce on the premium cable channel.
Posted in: strikeforce, dana, showtime, future, playbyplay
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White – Expect UFC Action from Strikeforce
"Everything you've come to expect from the UFC, you can expect from Strikeforce on Showtime," says UFC president Dana White in an exclusive interview with Mauro Ranallo.
Posted in: ufc, strikeforce, dana, showtime, ufc action
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyFastest knockout in UFC, Duane Ludwig thrilled to be recognized by Dana White
After five long years of waiting and pleading, Duane Ludwig has finally received what he felt was his:
Recognition as the true record holder of the fastest knockout in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) history.
On Jan., 16, 2006, at UFC Fight Night 3, "Bang" knocked out Jonathan Goulet 11 seconds into the first round of their welterweight fight. However, it appeared to have been stopped much sooner, with the time keeper seeming to have had a lapse in concentration and not stopping the clock until a few seconds after, prompting the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) to record the official time at 11 seconds.
Not much attention was paid to the official time until former UFC heavyweight contender Todd Duffee knocked out Tim Hague at UFC 102 back on Aug., 29, 2009, in a record-breaking seven seconds of the very first round.
A year and a half later on Dec. 10., 2011, at UFC 140, Chan Sung Jung equaled Duffee's efforts as he knocked out stand-up specialist Mark Hominick in seven seconds, too.
After some lobbying from MMAFightings.com's Ariel Helwani during an interview at UFC 140, UFC President Dana White said, "I'm on it."
A man of his word, White did a little time keeping of his own in one of his UFC 141 video blogs and concluded that Ludwig was indeed the rightful owner of the UFC's fastest knock out, which he timed at 6.26 seconds, enough to best both "The Korean Zombie" and Duffee.
Needles to say, Ludwig was thrilled at the news:
"It was very cool. Definitely a little bit unexpected. It's been about five years. It's definitely cool to have it credited to me finally. That's more than enough because Dana White and the UFC and the fans, they're all my brothers and my family. That means more to me than a government employee in a suit. I'm definitely happy with the UFC stepping in and Dana White being a man of his word. It separates me from everybody past, present and possibly future on the planet Earth. It's definitely cool to stand out from every other human being. It's definitely cool to be known for that because that's some ninja stuff there. Also, the way that it went down, the technical precision, the setup and stepping off to the side -- it wasn't just like I closed my eyes and got a lucky punch. There was some thought process into that."
Though the NSAC won't alter the record books in favor of Ludwig, "Bang" says that as long as Dana White and the UFC brass acknowledge it, that's all that matters to him.
Now the official owner of the record, Ludwig will now set his sights on keeping his win streak alive as he takes on Josh Neer at UFC on FX 1 on Jan., 20, 2012, who is currently riding a five-fight win streak. UFC on FX 1 will take place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., and will be headlined by an exciting lightweight match up between Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller.
What say you Maniacs, will Ludwig's record ever be broken? Is it truly his until its recognized by the NSAC?
Posted in: ufc, dana, record, second, ludwig
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana: [Cyborg's] getting stripped of the title
submitted by alphahouse44 [link] [comment]
Posted in: title, dana, cyborg, alphahouse, dana cyborgs
Read the full article at RedditDana White on TMZ: Fedor still sucks
submitted by CerBB [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: dana, fedor, cerbb, tmz, tmz fedor
Read the full article at RedditEven Dana White can party like a rockstar in Hollywood
Normally I associate Jack Daniels with the liquor, but the other day I met a mechanic also named Jack Daniels. So now when people say 'Hey Zeus, do want some Jack Daniels and Coke?' I have to think, 'Well maybe they are referring to that mechanic that I met the other day'. In that case, 'No, I don't need my car fixed, but I will take a soda. No need to wake up Jack tonight'. I've never shared a drink with Dana White, but I have done a variety of adult activities with Joe Rogan. Apparently Dana White was kicking it in my territory a few days ago and he didn't tell me. Bummer. He just missed out on his opportunity to talk to a guy that will undoubtedly convince him that Josh Barnett should so obviously be in the UFC that it's hilarious. Check out this clip of a very joyous Dana White answering questions from a guy that has no idea what to say other than to flub up his words. [Source]
Posted in: day, dana, day i, daniel, coke i
Read the full article at Middle EasyDrunk Dana White Says Brock Lesnar Has His Permission To Return To The WWE
Well, that was easy. If you want to get straight-forward answers out of Dana White, just ask him questions when he’s drunk. PopCandies TV caught Dana leaving a Hollywood bar and asked him if he’d let Brock Lesnar return to the WWE now that he’s done with the UFC. At the UFC 141 post-fight press conference, Dana said “I don’t know, we’ll figure it out” in response to the same question. After a few drinks though, the answer was simply “yes.”
I don’t know if that means Brock will return to the WWE in some capacity, but apparently he has Dana’s permission if he wants to.
HT: MMA Mania
Posted in: dana, brock lesnar, wwe, brock, hollywood bar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertVideo: Tipsy Dana White says Brock Lesnar can go back to WWE
UFC President Dana White had himself a good, good time in Hollywood recently, where cameras caught up to him to ask a few questions. The Octagon boss admits to being tipsy and having a little too much to drink, which may or may not make his answers more or less reliable, but when asked if Brock Lesnar can go back to WWE White simply said, "Yes."
Initially, White was hesitant to comment on Lesnar's future and whether or not he would be heading back to pro wrestling, simply telling media at the UFC 141 post-fight press conference, "we'll figure it out."
WWE announcer Jim Ross recently said that it's just not happening but rumors have been floating around for no less than a year now that Lesnar has been thinking of making a return, if only for one big match.
From the sounds of it, he's got White's blessing. Or he doesn't and this was just a case of a tipsy Dana having a bit too much to drink right before he started getting hit with questions from all sides.
We shall see.
Posted in: dana, brock lesnar, lesnar, drink right, lesnars future
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White Tells TMZ That Fedor Emelianenko ‘Sucks’
video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player
Ahh, some things never change. TMZ ran into Dana White outside of Mastro’s in LA and asked him if Fedor was ever coming to the UFC. Dana’s response? “Fedor sucks…” If it makes any of you Fedor fans feel better, Fedor wouldn’t “suck” if he were actually in the UFC… just like Kimbo!
Posted in: dana, fedor, fedor fans, change tmz, tmz
Read the full article at MMA ConvertHe loves me, he loves me not: the saga of Dana and Kimbo
The rules of love, relationships and marriages usually follow the order of love, infatuation and admiration first-and then later on down the road deteriorate into a sort of resentful burning hatred. When you have spent day after day with this person washing their dirty socks and underwear, listening to them complain to waiters about cucumbers on their salad and too much ice in their tea, nag you about laying on a couch instead of sitting because couches are only made for sitting afterall, and enduring hour long instructional lectures from them on the order in which the kitchen should be cleaned for maximum time saving efficiency--that's just the way your feelings will naturally progress.
Dana White's love doesn't work that way though. He's an anomaly of sorts when it comes to how he falls in love with you. Take for example, his short lived love affair with Kimbo Slice. Dana hated Kimbo for a very long time but one day his eyes fell upon Kimbo filled with a new admiration and affection. Suddenly Dana was in love with Kimbo like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle loves pizza.
This Dana love for Kimbo lasted for an entire season of TUF 10 from episode one all the way to the finale. Dana was sprung on Kimbo like a real life version of Usher's song 'you got it bad'. He couldn't miss a day without his friend or his whole life would be off track and now thanks to the genius of notlookoutwhale we can go back and relive the progression of this tumultuous sorrid love hate relationship Dana had with Kimbo on one heartwarming youtube video. Grab some popcorn, candy and a can of your favorited carbonated drink and enjoy the show.
Posted in: day, dana, kimbo, love, life version
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Kicks Off "UFC Tonight"
submitted by NewUploader1 [link] [comment]
Posted in: ufc, dana, newuploader
Read the full article at RedditDana and Ariel...Dana calls Fitch "boring"
submitted by NewUploader1 [link] [5 comments]
Posted in: dana, fitch, newuploader, arieldana
Read the full article at RedditDana White on Torres rehire: “Your opinions don’t mean [expletive] to me”
Dana White wants you to shut up when it comes to any criticism about rehiring Miguel Torres three weeks after firing him.
Posted in: week, dana, torre, criticism, ” dana
Read the full article at Fight OpinionDana White Talks UFC 141, Miguel Torres, Diaz-Cerrone Staredown, Fitch, Ludwig & More
A few notes from Dana White’s interview with Ariel Helwani and the media following the UFC 141 pre-fight press conference…
— Many have criticized the UFC of not having any kind of social media policy in place for its fighters following the Miguel Torres firing-rehiring incident. Dana White however has no plans to implement one.
“Social media is real,” White said. “It’s not going anywhere. It’s the future. It’s going to be the biggest thing the world has ever seen. It’s only getting bigger, and everybody is getting into it. There’s always going to be somebody who’s offended or has an agenda and is going to say something, but I think we do a pretty good job of siphoning out the [expletive] and what’s real.”
“Things are going to happen, and things are going to be said in the heat of the moment,” White said. “It’s going to happen. … But when you;re sitting home on your couch, eating [expletive] Fritos and [expletive] around on Twitter, I want you to really think – think – about what you’re going to say and you’re going to Tweet.”
— The Nate Diaz-Donald Cerrone staredown incident may help hype the fight and show, but Dana White wasn’t happy that they actually laid hands on each other.
“There’s going to be times when heated stuff happens,” he said. “I’m not happy that Nate slapped Cerrone’s hat off today. I don’t like the guys touching each other [before the fight]. That’s why I’m standing there. I’m not there to mug up into the camera. I’m there to make sure that [expletive] doesn’t happen. I didn’t do my job today, apparently.”
— Dana White revealed today that Frank Mir was in fact on standby in case Alistair Overeem didn’t pass his drug tests.
“Mir was our backup plan,” he said. “And sometimes, yeah, I have to lie to you.”
“Lie is a big word,” White said. “You never know. You know how I am. You ask me questions, and I’ll tell you the answers. But there are some times that I have to do what I have to do.”
— Jon Fitch is officially back “in the mix” if he beats Johny Hendricks at UFC 141.
“Jon Fitch is back at the top of the 170-pound division,” White said today. “We’ve got some fights to make for GSP, and Fitch is in there.”
“I have no problem with Jon Fitch; he’s a nice guy. He’s a good guy, he’s a great fighter, I’ve got no problem with him whatsoever.”
When talking to Ariel Helwani though, Dana added that Jon Fitch needs to be honest with himself and have a “reality check” when he complains about not getting the kind of opportunities or attention that other fighters do with inferior records. Bottom line, people have to want to see him fight and not many people do.
— Below, video of Dana White and Miguel Torres talking about his reinstatement via MMA Fighting.
Posted in: ufc, jon, dana, fitch, expletive
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White UFC 141 Video Blog (Episode 2)
UFC President Dana White is back with his second video blog ahead of Friday’s UFC 141 event, which is headlined by a five-round showdown between heavyweight contenders Brock Lesnar and Alistair Overeem.
However, the brief video doesn’t focus on the impending event and instead details why Duane “Bang” Ludwig now holds the UFC record for fastest knockout, including timed video White hopes the Nevada State Athletic Commission will use to change their official records.
Click here to check out the first Dana White UFC 141 video blog, check out our UFC 141 category for complete UFC 141 coverage, and stop back to MMAFrenzy.com on Friday for live UFC 141 results.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, ufc record
Read the full article at MMA FrenzyDana White UFC 141 Video Blog – Day 2
UFC President Dana White is back for the second edition of his UFC 141 video blog, and this one is all about Duane 'Bang' Ludwig.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, duane
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 141 Video Blog (Episode 2)
UFC President Dana White continues his customary fight week video blog ahead of UFC 141 by bringing viewers behind the scenes as he tests and times each of the top three "fastest knockout in promotion history" candidates. Among those clocked are Duane Ludwig, Todd Duffee, and "The Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung. Check out both the results, and the record's true owner, below:
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, jung check
Read the full article at Low KickNo one is ready for the type of emotion Dana White's UFC 141 vlog evokes
This afternoon I placed a bowl of Fruit Loops near my computer, grabbed my most colorful spoon and pushed play on Dana White's newly released UFC 141 vlog. What I expected was a light-hearted backstage look at the personalities within the UFC. Instead, I'm feeling all depressed right now and I don't even want to go out tonight. I'm so bummed. Maybe I should take a visit to Eddie Bravo's pad and ask what he does whenever he gets sad. I wonder what sort of medication Eddie Bravo uses since he always seems like a chipper guy. Hmph, maybe I should ask Joe Rogan. He may know.
Check out Dana White's new UFC 141 vlog and remember, men can cry too. Just don't let anyone see you. [Source]
Posted in: ufc, dana, fruit loops, white, dana whites
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White’s UFC 141 Video Blog, Day 1
Dana White gets UFC 141 fight week kicked off in style with the first episode of his video blog.
Posted in: ufc, week, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White’s UFC 141 Video Blog: Part One
Behind the scenes at UFC 140 in this first installment of Dana White’s UFC 141 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, installment
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White UFC 141 Vlog Day 1
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Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditOne of Dana White's Ferraris. Damn... he so ALPHA
submitted by saku-39 [link] [comment]
Posted in: dana, white, saku, ferrari
Read the full article at RedditHow do I report Dana White to the FBI?
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Posted in: dana, report, saku, fbi
Read the full article at RedditMayhem Miller: ‘Dana White was right’
Vowing to learn from the experience, Jason "Mayhem" Miller said Dana White was right about his performance when he said it was the worst standup he'd ever seen.
Posted in: right, dana, miller, mayhem, right ’
Read the full article at Heavy MMAThe Four Things on Dana White’s Santa List
What's on Dana White's imaginary 2012 list to Santa? Scott Neumyer takes a look in his latest.
Posted in: dana, list, santa, dana whites, neumyer
Read the full article at Heavy MMAJason Miller: “Dana White was right.”
It didn’t take long for critics to voice their opinions after Jason “Mayhem” Miller fell miserably short against Michael Bisping earlier this month at the Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale. While many of Miller’s detractors were of the anonymous internet or media variety, the biggest in the bunch was none other than his boss – UFC President Dana White.
White’s assessment of the 30-year old’s showing against Bisping was harsh to say the least, labeling Miller with possessing the worst stand-up he’d ever seen and calling it an incredibly “lopsided” bout.
While some fighters might get defensive about White’s comments or make excuses for a lackluster display it appears Miller actually agrees with his employer’s take, writing about it recently on his blog.
“I am very disappointed about (the loss), but have used the past couple weeks to reflect on everything and have come to some conclusions,” Miller began before frankly stating, “Dana White was right. He made some disparaging comments about my performance, and I agree with him. I displayed the worst of everything that night in the Octagon. I was tense in round one and I locked up after that. I didn’t perform to my potential, and I take full responsibility for it. That wasn’t a UFC caliber performance, and I’m not happy about it”
Miller continued on to urge his fans to live and learn, talking about his own journey thus far in both MMA and the bigger picture.
“I made a lot of mistakes in this story – during the camp, during the fight- but the key to living life is learning from your mistakes and making positive change. I feel very positive right now, and I hope you feel the same way, I would be absolutely nothing without persistence and positive thinking…”
The colorful competitor didn’t elaborate on when he expected to fight again, only explaining he was in Holland training with Golden Glory (renowned for their striking as coincidence would have it). Miller’s loss to Bisping dropped his record to 23-8 and 2-2 in his last four fights with an additional defeat to Jake Shields and victories over Tim Stout/Kazushi Sakuraba.
PHOTO CREDIT – UFC
Posted in: ’t, dana, miller, bisping, media variety
Read the full article at Five Ounces of PainMayhem Miller As Disappointed In His TUF 14 Finale Performance As Dana White
As someone who goes to my website, you are well aware that I lost my recent fight. I am very disappointed about it, but have used the past couple weeks to reflect on everything and have come to some conclusions. Dana White was right. He made some disparaging comments about my performance, and I agree with him. I displayed the worst of everything that night in the octagon. I was tense in round one and I locked up after that. I didn’t perform to my potential, and I take full responsibility for it. That wasn’t a UFC caliber performance, and I’m not happy about it- I won’t, however, write a worthless diatribe on myself, because that is not constructive. I elect instead to take this misstep and make something positive out of it… I made a lot of mistakes in this story- during the camp, during the fight- but the key to living life is learning from your mistakes and making positive change. I feel very positive right now, and I hope you feel the same way, I would be absolutely nothing without persistence and positive thinking, and if there is anything i want you to take from my blog it is that mentality. I will continue on this amazing journey, looking to make the most epic stories that I can.
— Jason “Mayhem” Miller on his official website expressing his disappointment in his performance at the TUF 14 Finale
Mayhem Miller certainly didn’t have the best showing against Michael Bisping at the TUF 14 Finale, but man, I really didn’t think it was as bad as Dana White have made it out to be. I mean we’ve certainly seen far worse performances in the Octagon before, right? Thales Leites’ non-performance against Anderson Silva comes to mind.
Nevertheless, it seems the loss has really woken Mayhem up and motivated him to take a more encompassing approach to his training. Dana was especially critical of Mayhem’s striking in the fight, calling it the “worst stand-up he’s ever seen… you could go to a girls’ Tae Bo class and see better form, better stand-up.” It seems Mayhem took those comments to heart because guess where he is now? In Holland, working on his kickboxing with Siyar Badaharzada and Alistair Overeem’s former trainer Martin de Jong.
As far as we know, Mayhem Miller hasn’t been cut, so it’s looking like he’ll get a chance to redeem himself. I don’t think we’ll ever see Mayhem reach a championship level, but I believe he has the potential to be a solid mid-tier performer in the UFC’s middleweight division. He just have to prove it.
Image via Scott Peterson via MMA Weekly
Posted in: ’t, dana, miller, mayhem, performance
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White, President of Ultimate Fighting Championship
submitted by RageThat [link] [comment]
Posted in: dana, championship, president, ragethat link, ragethat
Read the full article at RedditDana White Quick Quote: Fighters Go It Alone
UFC president Dana White recently talked about how fighting is not a team sport, admiring the pressure that fighters are under to get in the cage and perform.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, pressure, team sport
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyIs Chael Sonnen MMA’s Muhammad Ali? On the Microphone, Dana White Says Yes
The card is "UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis." But last week in Chicago, it was Chael Sonnen's show. After a press conference with many vintage "bad guy" moments, Dana White told HeavyMMA that Sonnen is...
Posted in: press conference, dana, sonnen, chael, microphone dana
Read the full article at Heavy MMARandy Couture explains why Dana's rape tweet is okay
Posted in: dana, randy, tweet, rape
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White Amped Over ‘TUF: Brasil’ (Video)
UFC president Dana White deemed his recent trip to Brazil to launch UFC Rio 2 and TUF: Brasil a success. See what he had to say about MMA in Brasil.
Posted in: ufc, dana, tuf, brasil, tuf brasil
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana makes a prison rape joke on twitter
submitted by AbeRudder [link] [6 comments]
Posted in: dana, prison, twitter, joke, rape
Read the full article at RedditDana White Says Gilbert Melendez Will Stay In Strikeforce
Of Strikeforce’s top four champions in 2011, only lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez remains in the organization following the Zuffa buyout. Alistair Overeem, Dan Henderson and Nick Diaz have all left Strikeforce for greener pastures in the UFC.
While Melendez insists he’s focused on an “underrated” Jorge Masvidal, he has made no bones about it — the UFC is where he wants to be so he can prove he’s the number one lightweight in the world.
“It’s obvious it’s something we’ve been talking about. I think it’s inevitable,” he said of a future move to UFC. “I think some of the top fighters need to go to the UFC. And I’m one of those guys, so it’s in the works. Things have been talked about. Am I in [the discussions] all the time? Am I the one talking to them? No. But there’s some dialogue going on and I mean, the goal is to be the UFC champion at the end of the day. The goal is to be No. 1 in the world at the end of the day. And the only way to do that is by getting the UFC title.”
“The goal is to be No. 1 in the world, you know what I mean?” he said. “If I have to beat Jorge, if I have to beat someone else, if I have to beat five more people before that, then so be it. But, the sooner the better. I think I deserve the chance at the UFC title. So, if I can get it as soon as possible that would be great. If not, I’ll have to keep winning and keep working hard. If I feel like I have to constantly prove myself in this MMA industry, then so be it. It’s inevitable. I’m coming for that spot.”
When Strikeforce’s demise seemed inevitable, Dana White matter-of-factly declared that he wanted to bring Melendez over ASAP, however now that the tide has turned and it looks like Strikeforce might have a future after all, Dana has unfortunately changed his tune about Melendez moving to the UFC.
“The guys that are in Strikeforce are staying in Strikeforce,” the fight executive said on Saturday. “Strikeforce lives.”
“Gilbert Melendez and all the guys that are in the Strikeforce show and with Showtime, I will make this right,” White said. “They will be happy to be there. Believe me. I’ve got this thing worked out. I’ve got it figured out. It’s going to be good for everybody. It’s going to be good for the fighters, it’s going to be good for Showtime, and it’s going to be good for Strikeforce. Trust me, I got this.”
That may be good news for Melendez’s bank account, but unless Dana White plans to do some crossover fights (doubtful), it’s not good news for Melendez’s goal to be universally recognized as the number one lightweight in MMA. It’s not really good for the fans either who want to see if Melendez has what it takes to beat the Frankie Edgar’s of the world.
The situation may be out of his control, but the best thing Melendez can do is put on the kind of performance against Jorge Masvidal this weekend that makes Dana White salivate for a Frankie Edgar vs. Gilbert Melendez title fight and hope everything works out like it should.
Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime
Posted in: ufc, world, strikeforce, dana, melendez
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White: New UFC Flyweight Division Has Potential to Be ‘Nasty’
UFC president Dana White says the promotion's new 125-pound division has the potential to be just as explosive as the 155- and 170-pound classes.
Posted in: ufc, pound, dana, division, flyweight
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White's $26,000,000 gamble on UFC on FOX 2 - MMA News
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Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, news, alphahouse
Read the full article at RedditDan Miller's kid can now afford that new kidney
Well this is a heartwarming story:
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) recently learned from Miller's camp at AMA Fight Club that UFC co-owners Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White each made significant private donations to the Daniel James Miller Foundation, which was created to assist in the funding of a kidney transplant for Miller's son, Daniel Jr."Zuffa went above and beyond to make sure that Daniel James Miller and his aunt Kathy, who will be the living donor, will have the absolute best health care and the funding possible to make the surgery happen," AMA trainer Mike Constantino told MMAjunkie.com. "In addition to that, Dana and Lorenzo also made a substantial donation to the Daniel James Miller Foundation."Miller's 1-year-old son needs a kidney transplant as the result of a genetic kidney disorder known as polycystic kidney disease, or PKD. Miller's team helped establish the foundation and recently held a seminar and auction to help raise money for the cause.
When we first heard about this operation, I had a few millionaires in mind that I was hoping were going to donate, but it just seems boorish to say Dana and the Fertittas should crack their wallets every time anything happens to any of their fighters. Fortunately they don't need the shaming of a two bit snark blogger to do the right thing. Plus when you do dick moves like fire Miguel Torres over innocent rape van tweets, it's always good to swing in the saint direction too.
Posted in: dana, miller, daniel, kidney, kidney transplant
Read the full article at FightlinkerBest Ever? Dana White Thinks Jon Jones is Going That Direction
After Jon Jones' big win over Lyoto Machida on Saturday at UFC 140, Dana White thinks his light heavyweight champ may be on the way to greatest-ever status.
Posted in: jon jones, lyoto machida, dana, jon, jone
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White tweeted out this photo and said "Getting Big Nog to LA to get that arm fixed....
Dana White tweeted out this photo and said "Getting Big Nog to LA to get that arm fixed. #toughasnails"
Posted in: dana, arm, photo, tweeted, nog
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Defends Decision to Fire Miguel Torres
UFC president Dana White defends his decision to release Miguel Torres following a controversial Twitter post, saying this will bring consistency.
Posted in: decision, dana, torre, miguel, twitter post
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 140 Video Results: Dana White Praises Jon Jones and Frank Mir
Following the UFC 140 post-fight press conference Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting caught up with UFC President Dana White. White was in great spirits following what many are considering to be one of the best cards of the year. The conversation quickly turned to a discussion about Jon Jones. Helwani notes that Jon Jones has a bit of a swagger now. White responds that he'd cocky too if he won in that fashion. White talked Jon Jones taking a vacation and said he'll likely be off for five months.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira had his arm x-rayed and will be getting surgery this upcoming week. Dana also comments on Frank Mir's performance and calls a fight with Cain Velasquez interesting. White and Helwani talk about Duane Ludwig's claims of having the fasted knockout in UFC history. White will take a look at it and get the record changed.
It is a 10 minute long video where Dana also talks about the flyweight division and the Miguel Torres termination.
Video after the jump...
SBN coverage of UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida
Posted in: ufc, jon, jone, jon jones, dana
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC 140 Post-Fight News & Notes: Four-Man Flyweight Tournament, Lesnar-Overeem Rumors, Brittney Palmer in Playboy
Rundown of post-fight news and notes from UFC 140…
— Despite reports that tickets weren’t selling well for UFC 140, 18,303 UFC fans still showed up at the Air Canada Centre for a $3.9 million live gate.
— Chan Sung Jung, aka The Korean Zombie, pocketed an extra $75,000 for knocking out Mark Hominick in a record-tying 7 seconds (still not sure why Duane Ludwig’s 4 second KO at UFC Fight Night 3 isn’t recognized as the fastest). Frank Mir earned the “Submission of the Century” (Dana’s words, not mine) for snapping Big Nog’s arm with quite possibly the nastiest kimura we’ve ever seen. Jon Jones and Lyoto Machida picked up the Fight of the Night bonus.
— As expected, Dana White announced that the UFC will be adding a 125 lbs. flyweight division this year. The weight class will debut at UFC on FX 2 with a four-man tournament to determine the first UFC flyweight champion. The match-ups will be Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall and Joseph Benavidez vs. Yasuhiro Urushitani. It’s not official, but MMA Junkie is reporting that UFC on FX 2 will take place on March 4 in Sydney, Australia.
— Rumors started flying tonight that Alistair Overeem may be pulled out of his fight against Brock Lesnar at UFC 141. The rumor apparently started with the following tweet Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole sent out earlier tonight.
Hearing could be a change in UFC 141 main event. Overeem may be out of the fight.
Ariel Helwani asked Dana White if the rumors were true at the UFC 141 press conference, but Dana shot them down like it was crazy talk. Nevertheless, Overeem does have business with the NSAC on Monday. The agenda says that Overeem is requesting a fight license, however Josh Gross is hearing there’s more to it, possibly related to a pre-fight drug test. That’s all anyone knows for now, but hopefully there’s nothing to it and Overeem doesn’t get pulled. That would seriously suck. If he does though, Frank Mir said at the post-fight presser that he feels healthy enough to fill in for Overeem if need be.
— The exact nature of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s injuries are unknown, but Dana White told Ariel Helwani that he heard that both his shoulder and elbow were damaged. It also looks like his arm is broken in an x-ray the UFC tweeted after the fight. Big Nog is flying back to Vegas with Dana and will have surgery in LA this week. Both Frank Mir and Dana White said they knew Big Nog wouldn’t tap. Definitely a tough loss for Nogueira, but he at least appeared to be in good spirits despite the outcome.
The extent of Tito Ortiz’s injuries aren’t known either but it sure looked like Lil’ Nog might have broken one or two his ribs judging by the way Tito was wincing in pain immediately after the fight was called. Dana was non-committal about the last fight on Tito’s contract, but you have to imagine they’ll give it to him when he recovers, right?
— In case you didn’t notice, Brittney Palmer was back tonight as a UFC Octagon girl. You know where else you’ll be seeing Brittney? In Playboy. Ariel Helwani confirmed with “sources close to Playboy” that Ms. Palmer will appear in the March issue. She follows in the footsteps of UFC Octagon girls Rachelle Leah and Arianny Celeste who also posed nude in the magazine.
— For the first time in his short career, Jon Jones actually looked beatable when Lyoto Machida was able to get the best of the him in the first round. That quickly changed though in round two was Jones had enough of Machida’s crafty striking and put him on his back. A forehead slicing elbow and a standing guillotine later, Machida was an unconscious, bloody mess and once again Jon Jones racked up another win and retained his title. It caps off one of the greatest years ever for a mixed martial artist with wins over Ryan Bader, Shogun Rua, Rampage Jackson and Lyoto Machida. The run has undoubtedly earned Jones a little time off and he wasn’t afraid to ask for it. He wants to take 4-5 months and Dana said he’s definitely cool with it. Dana added that Rashad Evans will definitely get the next shot if he beats Phil Davis, but wasn’t as definitive about Davis if he wins. Sounds like there’s still room for Dan Henderson to slide into that number one contender’s spot if things don’t work out with Evans.
— Despite a ton of fan backlash, Dana White said he is not changing his mind about Miguel Torres. It doesn’t mean he’ll never be let back in, but he’s definitely cut for now.
Image via Tracy Lee for Yahoo! Sports
Posted in: ufc, fight, overeem, dana, machida
Read the full article at MMA ConvertFight Day: Dana White Talks Jones Win, Torres Firing, Flyweight Announcement
UFC President Dana White discusses the big flyweight announcement, his current stance on Miguel Torres, Jon Jones and more in this exclusive interview.
Posted in: dana, announcement, flyweight, flyweight announcement, talks jones
Read the full article at Heavy MMAUFC 140 Results: Full Post-Fight Press Conference Video
Dana White opened the press conference announcing the official numbers for UFC 140. Attendance was 18,303. Gate was $3.9 million. White handed out the "of the Night" bonuses with Frank Mir pocketing $75k for the "Submission of the Century". Chan Sung Jung won "Knockout of the Night" and Jones and Machida took home "Fight of the Night".
Interesting points of note:
- White was questioned about the rumored Alistair Overeem injury. Dana was adamant there was no injury.
- Mir discussed the submission over Nogueira. He knew that Nog wouldn't tap. He also believes he has to be in title talks due to his winning streak.
- Jones addressed the rumors that he can't take a punch. Said he's glad he got to prove it at UFC 140. Greg Jackson was proud he stayed composed.
- Dana White had to praise for Jon Jones seeing him as a fighter with the potential to be the best fighter ever.
- Dana White announced a four man flyweight tournament to create the first champion in the division. Joseph Benavidez and Demetrious Johnson as well as Ian McCall will take part in the tournament.
Video after the jump...
SBN coverage of UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida
Posted in: ufc, jone, dana, official numbers, nog wouldnt
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: Strikeforce Fighters Are Staying In Strikeforce
UFC president Dana White shares details about Strikeforce's immediate future.
Posted in: strikeforce, fighter, dana, strikeforce fighters, shares details
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White: Extreme Confusion
We’ve all overreacted at some point in our lives to something. I do it all the time when watching a hockey or football game, and I’m willing to bet that most of you reading this overreact or react on instinct and emotion to sports as well.
So when Dana White overreacts to certain aspects of his company, like fights not delivering or his fighters doing something stupid, it’s to be expected.
The difference between you, me, and White is that he’s in charge of a multi-million dollar company.
P.S. - If you’re reading this and you’re in charge of a multi-million dollar company, hook a brother up with a job.
Moving forward, on Thursday night Dana fired Miguel Torres for an unfunny tweet about a rape van. Dana didn’t see the comment prior to being interviewed in Canada by Michael Landsberg, but made the decision shortly after the interview to release Torres without talking to the bantamweight star.
Earlier in the day, Rashad Evans made a comment about Penn St. and their child molestation scandal directed towards his upcoming opponent and PSU alum Phil Davis. Instead of firing or fining Evans, Dana talked to the former UFC champ, let him explain himself, and decided that Rashad was sorry and that it wouldn’t happen again.
We all see the double standard here. Even though Rashad’s comment was far worse than Miguel’s, Miguel was the one released because he’s never headlined a PPV that did a million buys. Lets not look at the double standard though.
Instead, lets look at Dana and his overreaction to one situation and his sensible reaction to the other. With Torres, he was essentially blindsided with news of the tweet and reacted immediately without giving the fighter a chance to explain himself. With Rashad, even though his comment was made just a few feet away from White, he claims he didn’t hear the comment but once he got news of it, he let Rashad explain himself.
It’s not like this is the first time Dana has overreacted to a situation. The problem with his overreactions though is that he always takes the extreme. It’s either the worst thing in the world to happen or the best. There’s no middle ground with him. And once again, when you’re the head of a multi-million dollar company, it’s probably not the best idea to take the extreme.
When Quinton Jackson had his run in with the law or certain female reporters, Dana allowed “Rampage” to explain himself and let him off with nothing more than a warning, much like he did with Evans.
When Junior dos Santos defeated Cain Velasquez in 64 seconds, Dana overreacted to the negative extreme. He was obviously upset that his big main event lasted just over a minute, but instead of praising JDS, he instead decided to bury both fighters on national TV.
When Jason Miller lost to Michael Bisping last weekend, Dana took to Twitter to call it, “the most one-sided fight in UFC history,” even though there was a fight not three hours before that was more one-sided. Once again, it was an overreaction to the negative extreme.
When Frankie Edgar came back to defeat Gray Maynard at UFC 136, Dana took the positive extreme and called Edgar the #2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
There are plenty of other examples of Dana reacting to one extreme or the other to all kinds of situations. Unfortunately it’s usually more negative than positive, but I get it. Dana is a very emotional guy. If you don’t believe me, just watch him and Joe Rogan scream at everyone to order the PPV even though we can hear him just fine.
We can all agree that Dana has done great things for the sport of MMA and that the UFC likely wouldn’t be in this position if someone else were in charge. He’s a guy that inspires confidence in his group, thanks in large part to his emotions. But that emotion is going to get him into trouble, especially now that he’s even more in the public eye thanks to the FOX deal.
Personally, I think Dana needs to step back a little bit. Right now he’s the face of the UFC. Whether he’ll admit that or not, he is. He’s the most public figure in the company. He has the most twitter followers, he’s in the Bud Light commercials, he does more interviews than any other figurehead in any other major sport, and he does video blogs every week, and he’s always in the public eye.
When you’re as emotional as Dana and when you’re in front of the public as much as Dana, you’re going to say stupid things. It’s the environment he’s created. You want to know why guys like Forrest Griffin, Torres, and Evans make rape and molestation jokes or why guys like Frank Mir say they want to kill other fighters? It’s because Dana, the head of the company, reacts on emotion and calls journalists “b*tches” and “c*nts” and throws around “f*ck” like it’s a football and he’s Aaron Rodgers.
Dana isn’t going to change his ways, but he can tone down just how much he does. Let Lorenzo Fertitta be in front of the camera a bit more at press conferences and on media calls, definitely don’t allow Dana to be front and center on the FOX shows like he was on November 12, and someone should probably monitor what he puts out on twitter as well.
MMA is a sport where guys get paid to punch each other in the face. We shouldn’t expect them to act like Taylor Swift, although they could learn a few things from her about how to become a media darling, but they have to know when they’re crossing line. But before Dana can police his fighters, he needs to do a better job policing himself.
Posted in: fighter, ’t, dana, company, ’re
Read the full article at Five Ounces of PainDana White’s UFC 140 Video Blog: Part Two
Dana White makes the rounds in Toronto in this second installment of his UFC 140 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, toronto, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White UFC 140 Video Blog – Day 2
In his second UFC 140 video blog, UFC president Dana White takes us behind the scenes in Toronto as he makes his rounds with the media, the pre-fight press conference, and more.
Posted in: ufc, toronto, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 140 Video Blog (Episode 2)
UFC President Dana White continues his adventures in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, just days before tonight's long-anticipated UFC 140 event. This time it's the UFC 140 pre-fight press conference, weigh-ins, and an army of UFC fans hunting for tickets.
Further Reading: Don't forget to submit your picks for UFC
Posted in: ufc, dana, dont, tonight, reading dont
Read the full article at Low KickDana White video blog for UFC 140 (Episode two)
Two days after releasing his first video blog for the UFC 140: "Jones vs. Machida" event, which will go down tonight (Sat., Dec. 10, 2011) in Toronto, UFC President Dana White finally has enough material to release another one.
The above video kicks off with White's recent interview with Michael Landsberg, the very same interview in which he was told about Miguel Torres' rape van tweet that ultimately led to the former WEC champion's dismissal from the UFC.
But I digress.
The blog quickly switches gears to the pre-fight festivities like the press conference and weigh-ins, which see Tito Ortiz blowing off an Ariel Helwani question and a cute kid saying hello to "The People's Champ" in a way that draws a great response from everyone in attendance.
And, of course, lots and lots of staredowns.
The good news, Maniacs, is that all the hoopla is almost over and these guys will finally be climbing inside the Octagon tonight to do what we pay to see them do -- WAR!
To watch episode one of Dana White's UFC 140 video blog click here.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, video blog, blog
Read the full article at MMA ManiaI think it's awesome that Dana wore this shirt to the weigh ins
submitted by ulees [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: dana, ulee, shirt, in
Read the full article at RedditVideo: Dana White Comments on UFC Release of Miguel Torres After Rape Joke
Ariel Helwani had a long interview with Dana White yesterday and just hours after that interview ended, the UFC experienced a pretty major shift as Miguel Torres was released for making a joke about rape on Twitter. Ariel was able to catch up with Dana again to have a fairly lengthy discussion about the decision and the UFC's thought process.
The video:
Dana on the overall decision to cut Miguel while not cutting Forrest Griffin or Rashad Evans for somewhat similar recent situations:
"It wasn't that I thought this was offensive. I thought it was absolutely ridiculous and offensive. And yeah, I'm sure, offensive to many people. There's been cases here where things have happened where some people have been offended by things that the fighters have said. You know, we have the Forrest Griffin incident, we've got the Rashad Evans incident and now the Miguel Torres incident. Now, the way that I handle these things with guys is, you know, we're all gonna make mistakes. Everybody makes mistakes. And, you know, a lot of the way that the public looks at these things is when a guy makes a mistake, you put him up on this pedistal, he makes a mistake and you want to burn him down. They burn him down, they beat him down. And that's not the way that I operate. We don't come out at the UFC with these canned statements that are written by our lawyers, we handle everything on a case by case basis, with the idea that people are going to make mistakes. And it's how you handle yourself after you make that mistake."
More quotes from Dana on the process, not being pressured into decisions and if Torres is the first to be cut for something he tweeted after the jump
On how he found out about the tweet and what happened next:
"He (Michael Landsberg) reads me Miguel Torres' tweet, which is...let me try to quote it here. Basically 'Rape vans. If they were called surprise vans, more women would get into them, because everybody loves a surprise.' When he read that to me here this morning I was...I was blown away. It's one of the first times in an interview that I didn't know what to say and I was just blown away. So as soon as I was done with that interview, I got ready and had to head over to the press conference. So I've got people working on 'is that what was said?' et cetera. After the press conference I find out that is what was said, he did say that, and he was joking. It was just a joke. And that's not a funny joke to me. That's not a...it's just not something you tweet, you know? If that's your sense of humor, keep it at home around you and your buddies and keep it to yourself. It's not something that you put out on Twitter. And there's no explination for it, there's no...I can't make any sense of it. And enough is enough. If this doesn't...at least, when you're getting ready to Twitter or you're getting ready to say something, think about what you're going to say, think about what you're going to tweet and use a little common sense."
On if this was due to pressure from Fox or media after a string of similar situations:
"I'm not gonna be pressured by the fans, the media or anybody else to go in and attack my guys when they make a mistake. I'm not gonna come out with these canned, written statements from our lawyers. We're gonna handle this thing honestly and real. Just like everybody would in real life. And what Miguel Torres wrote is unacceptable. It's unacceptable."
And on if Miguel was the first to be cut from the UFC for something he tweeted:
"Probably, yeah. I think so. I'm not positive, but yeah, I'd have to say yes."
Posted in: ufc, dana, torre, miguel, mistake
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Fires Miguel Torres From The UFC Over Rape Joke
Miguel Torres is no longer with the UFC.
Dana White announced tonight that he cut Torres because of a rape joke he made on Twitter. The tweet has since been deleted, but it originally read: “If a rape van was called a surprise van more women wouldn’t mind going for rides in them. Everyone like surprises.”
The firing is controversial because Forrest Griffin recently tweeted that “rape is the new missionary” and he wasn’t punished whatsoever. Same goes for Rashad Evans who incorporated a Jerry Sandusky reference into his pre-fight smack talk yesterday. In the above interview with Ariel Helwani, Dana said the difference is Griffin’s and Evans’ explanations made perfect sense to him while Torres didn’t. Torres merely said it was just a joke and apparently not even an original one at that. Clearly, that excuse didn’t work for Dana and now Miguel Torres is gone.
Posted in: dana, torre, miguel, joke, rape
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Confirms Strikeforce Is ‘Staying’, Talks Evans’ Penn State Comments, Fake Injuries, Mayhem Miller & More
As usual, Dana White spoke to reporters following today’s UFC 140 press conference about a variety of topics including Strikeforce’s future, Rashad Evan’s Penn State comments, fighters faking injuries, TUF 15, the GSP-Diaz-Condit situation, Mayhem Miller, the flyweight division and of course UFC 140. We have a rundown below along with Ariel Helwani’s interview with Dana White above.
— Dana White confirmed today that Strikeforce is here to stay. He expects a new deal with Showtime to be wrapped up any day now and says just “watch and see” what he does with it.
“It’s staying,” White said of the organization, adding that he hoped to have more information to release on it next week, hinting that big changes might be in the works.
“Just sit and wait and watch what I do. Trust me, it’s going to be just fine. Like I said last time I talked to you guys about this, I’m getting into this and I’m going to handle it. Watch and see.”
“We’ll see what happens,” White said. “I know I keep saying this every week, but that deal should be wrapped up any day now, and then I’ll make the decisions on who goes where and what’s going to happen. So we should know hopefully by Monday.”
Dana’s plans with the organization remain a mystery, but it’s good news for women’s MMA if nothing else.
— Dana White was not a fan of the controversial Jerry Sandusky reference Rashad Evans included in his pre-fight trash talk with Phil Davis at yesterday’s UFC on FOX 2 press conference, but he’s not going to reprimand him for it either. Instead, they just had a talk.
“We talked.” said White, who called Evans’ remark “one of the dumbest things you could say,” in light of the child abuse allegations against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. According to White, he didn’t have to convince Evans that he’d made a mistake in using the story as a topical reference point at the UFC on FOX presser in Chicago yesterday.
“It’s not like I’m dealing with stupid people here,” White said. “It’s one thing when you’re dealing with dummies. When you’re dealing with people who are really stupid, it’s tough to talk to them. But when you call a guy who’s an intelligent guy, he gets it. He knows.”
“The whole thing with me is people are looking to me, and I saw a couple of stupid stories that were written, people who want attention — you know who those people are,” White said. “What do you want me to do? You want me to have our lawyers draw something up and I’ll come out and read it to you guys? You know, he said something stupid. It’s probably one of the dumbest things you could say. He gets it, and he knows it was a stupid thing to say, and we’ll see what happens.”
In his interview with Ariel Helwani, Dana said he was actually more upset with a tweet Miguel Torres sent out yesterday about a “rape van.” I’m not 100% sure what tweet he’s referring to but I think it’s this one and this one.
Jokes on racism, pedifiles, terrorism, & other fucked up things is ok, but some are off limits. What a sensitive world we live in.
If a windowless van was called a surprise van more people wouldn’t mind going for rides in them. Everyone likes surprises.
Here’s an idea: If you’re a person with a public presence, how about using a little common sense about what society deems appropriate and steer clear of what isn’t whether you agree or not. It’s really not that difficult.
— Dana White has weighed on the topic of fighters faking injuries following Dan Henderson’s comments about Anderson Silva earlier this week. He says it’s “impossible” to fake an injury in the UFC.
“First of all, just to clear this up, and these guys – Dan Henderson knows it, Chael knows it, and every other fighter that fights in the UFC knows it – you can’t fake an injury,” White today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) following a UFC 140 pre-event press conference in Toronto. “It’s impossible to do. You can’t do it.
“When you say you are injured, we bring you to our doctors, and they check you out, and we find out if you’re injured or not injured.”
Fighters may not be able to “fake” an injury per se, but what’s stopping them from milking one? It seems that’s more of what Hendo was insinuating with Silva.
— Living in the TUF house is going to suck twice as much from now on since cast members will now be required to live in the house for 12 weeks instead of 6.
“It’s bad for six weeks,” he said. “Six weeks is crazy. I can’t even imagine what’s going to happen with 12.”
— Dana White explained their thought process in booking Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit for an interim title after they found out GSP blew out his ACL.
“I know [Georges] is going to be out for 10 months, and it’s been however many months since he fought,” White said. “That thing’s been tied up. What happened to Carlos Condit is unfair. Diaz was the Strikeforce champion. It just made sense.”
“I think what happened with Georges, first of all, was that he was diagnosed wrong,” White said. “If we knew that that was a blown ACL from the beginning, he could have already had the surgery and been recovering this whole time.”
“It’s a big layoff, but what are you going to do?” White asked. “It is what it is. When a guy goes out there and blows his ACL, there’s nothing you can do about it.
“I think that whoever wins that fight (between Condit and Diaz), the belt will be defended at least once before GSP is back.”
— Dana blasted Mayhem Miller’s striking in the TUF 14 Finale at yesterday’s UFC on FOX 2 press conference.
“It was bad. To be honest, and my Twitter’s been blowing up with Mayhem fans blasting me, but facts are facts: It was the worst standup I’ve ever seen in my life. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen standup that bad.”
“I don’t even know what to call it – I’ve seen guys with some ring rust,” White said. “Some of the punches that were thrown by Mayhem Miller in this fight, you can go to a girls Tae Bo class and see better form in standup. It was embarrassing.”
It seems the “Mayhem Monkeys” have come to Miller’s rescue though. Dana told Ariel Helwani that they have been terrorizing him on Twitter ever since he criticized Mayhem’s performance, and while he didn’t say Mayhem will definitely be back, he’s received the message loud and clear that people still want to see Mayhem fight in the UFC. Considering how much Dana prides himself on giving the fans what they want, chances are Mayhem will get another chance.
— Dana confirmed that they are implementing a flyweight division and plans to make a more formal announcement this weekend. He’s not going to force any bantamweights to move down to help build the division, but they are free to make the move themselves if they wish.
Posted in: ufc, guy, dana, people, mayhem
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Breaks Down Main and Co-Main Events for UFC 140 (Video)
UFC 140 is just 48 hours away and UFC president Dana White gave his thoughts on the main and co-main events on Thursday.
Posted in: ufc, event, dana, comain, comain events
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyStrikeforce To Keep Going, UFC's Dana White Promising Big Things
At Thursday's UFC 140 pre-event press conference, UFC President Dana White was asked again about the future of Strikeforce, once competition that was purchased by parent company Zuffa earlier this year.
White not only said that Strikeforce will remain in business, but that big things are ahead.
"Just sit and wait and watch what I do. Trust me: it's going to be just fine. Like I said last time when I talked to you guys about this, I'm getting into this and I'm going to handle it. Watch and see."
Strikeforce's deal with Showtime is set to expire in February 2012. The promotion officially announced a January 7th date today and fans are still waiting to hear about when Josh Barnett will battle Daniel Cormier in the Grand Prix finals. They will put their final event of 2011 next Saturday with Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez defending against Jorge Masvidal.
White said that a deal hasn't been signed with the pay-cable provider yet, but that should come "any day now" with Monday potentially as the target for understanding what's next. White was mum on any details, but alluded to the success of the WEC under the Zuffa banner as an example of how it could work. However, the WEC was eventually absorbed by the UFC, so perhaps that wasn't the best example.
When the news is announced, we'll have the details for you on BE. Could Strikeforce survive and how? Comment below with what you think.
Poll
Even if Strikeforce continues to exist, will it eventually be absorbed by the UFC anyway?
Of course! Dana rules.
No way. Coker forever!
Yes, but not for years.
78 votes | Results
Posted in: ufc, strikeforce, dana, zuffa banner, understanding whats
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: Rashad Knows It Was a Stupid Thing to Say
Dana White responds to Rashad Evans ill timed comments referencing the Penn State scandal and alleged sexual abuse of children by former coach Jerry Sandusky.
Posted in: dana, coach, rashad, rashad evans, comments referencing
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 140: Dana White Pre-Fight Interview
Dana White discusses The Ultimate Fighter 15 coaches and live fight format, Jones vs. Machida and much more in this exclusive interview.
Posted in: fighter, dana, coach, interview, machida
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White Confident of Georges St-Pierre Return
UFC president Dana White addresses Georges St-Pierre's severe knee injury, saying he is confident his star will return.
Posted in: dana, return, george, knee injury, stpierre
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 140 Video Blog – Day 1
Getting ready for Saturday's UFC 140, UFC president Dana White kicks off his UFC 140 video blog with some behind the scenes wrap-up from the recent UFC 139 event.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, scenes wrapup
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White’s UFC 140 Video Blog: Part One
Behind the scenes at UFC 139 in this first installment of Dana White’s UFC 140 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, installment
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White UFC 140 Vlog Day 1
submitted by killzy707 [link] [comment]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditUFC 140's Tito Ortiz Talks Repairing Relationship With Dana White
Tito Ortiz's return to the UFC in 2009 it was clear that his once damaged relationship with the UFC had been somewhat repaired. If this was a product of a desire to fix things or a realization that the UFC was the only place he could get the money he wanted was always a little blurry.
Ortiz was on Jim Rome's radio show today to talk about his bout at UFC 140 Saturday with Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, but also gave interesting insight into his relationship with Dana White. Here's the audio:
Transcript after the jump.
SBN coverage of UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida
Tito on his UFC relationship:
I'm very, very thankful for Dana and Lorenzo. I don't want to sound like a broken record but they've given so much to my family and to me as a fighter. I've given so much to make this happen. I've been with the UFC since day one. I fought with the UFC as an amateur, back in 1997, May 30. UFC 13. And I've only competed in the UFC, I've never competed anywhere else my whole career. I made my brand by the UFC. Thanks to Lorenzo and Dana for making that happen for me. And it's just one of those things, man. Me and Dana, we're two alpha males in the same room and it's hard to have that happen. We believe in what we believe in and we battle for that and we're kind of bullheaded. Me and Dana were best friends at a time and I kind of broke their trust, I guess. And so I have to rebuild that relationship and I will. Time cures everything and I just have to show my respect and my loyalty to them as I always have. There was a couple times where I got a little out of hand by people who were around me that were kind of making me believe things I probably shouldn't be believin'. I should have stuck to my own thoughts but it's just one of those things. I was a kid who came from the streets and I never really had any family to trust. I grew up with no trust. There was no trust in my family, in my life. I thought that I could trust someone and it was never there. I made a mistake, I'm human and I made a mistake.
Posted in: ufc, dana, trust, relationship, ive
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowSo we all know Dana's not happy with Mayhem, but do you actually think that he'll get fired?... Again?!
He's become one of my favorite fighters and I know if he had another chance at the UFC magical things will happen Also, most one sided fight in history? Dana is trippin submitted by DayGreedy [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: fighter, dana, history dana, trippin, daygreedy
Read the full article at RedditUFC Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale Results Video: Dana White Positive Showtime Deal With Strikeforce Continues
Following the Ultimate Fighter 14 finale, MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani caught up with UFC President Dana White to get his thoughts on the fights. Among the topics discussed are Jason Miller's performance and future in the UFC, the finals for the TUF crown, and Michael Bisping's next fight (White doesn't give any information, but hints that it's a huge fight). However, the most newsworthy tidbit is the future of Strikeforce.
Since the UFC's purchase of Strikeforce, it was assumed that eventually the company would be folded once the contract with Showtime ran out in February 2012. All signs pointed this way with various Strikeforce fighters getting the "call up to the majors" so to speak. However, some members of the media were adamant that the recently announced date for Luke Rockhold's title defense against Keith Jardine was a sign that talks between Zuffa and Showtime have improved and the chances of a contract extension were extremely high. White's comments to Helwani confirm this suspicion. He won't commit 100% to a new contract but if Dana White feels that there will likely be a new contract, it's probably likely that the paperwork is being drawn up right now and they are just waiting to put the ink on the paper.
SBN coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale
Posted in: ufc, strikeforce, fighter, dana, contract
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowTUF 14 Finale Post-Fight News & Notes: Dana White Calls Bisping-Mayhem ‘Most One-Sided Fight’ He’s Ever Seen
Rundown of post-fight news and notes from the TUF 14 Finale…
— 1,649 fans attended the TUF 14 Finale at the Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. The live gate number was not released.
— TUF 14 featherweight champ Diego Brandao made out big at the finale. Not only did he earn the $40,000 Submission of the Night bonus, he and Dennis Bermudez were awarded the $40,000 Fight of the Night bonus as well. TUF 14 bantamweight winner John Dodson picked up the $40,000 Knockout of the Night bonus.
— Fan-voted $25,000 bonuses for the season were also announced. Louis Gaudinot and Dustin Pague won best fight. Once again, John Dodson earned best knockout. And Dennis Bermudez won best submission.
— Dana White was not a fan of Jason “Mayhem” Miller’s performance in the Octagon tonight. After tweeting out that it was the “most one-sided fight” he’s ever seen, Dana told Heavy.com’s Megan Olivi that he doesn’t know if Mayhem will be back. Chances are he will, but Mayhem definitely didn’t make a good impression on his boss.
Mayhem’s biggest issue seemed to be his cardio. He gassed pretty hard in round two and Bisping pretty much took over from that point on. Most people would point to poor preparation to explain Mayhem’s lack of cardio, but Michael Bisping believes he just beat it out of him.
“This was a big opportunity for Jason. I guarantee he had the cardio to go five [rounds],” Bisping said. “Guess what? You might have cardio, but when someone’s landing big body shots like I was, kneeing you in the stomach and punching you repeatedly in the face, your cardio gets affected. The best runners in the world, you kick the [expletive] out of them, they won’t run quite as well.”
Bisping told the crowd that he wasn’t happy with his performance, but he felt satisfied to “teach Mayhem a lesson.”
“This was a satisfying victory,” Bisping said afterward. “Jason jumped on the bandwagon of that a) nobody likes me, and b) I’m not a very good fighter, and I don’t deserve…all the rewards I’ve received for being a professional fighter all this time. He was quick to discredit me, that I was given hand-picked opponents and things like that. That doesn’t sit well with me, and I find it very offensive. It was nice to go out there and teach him a lesson.”
“For someone who has no punching power, I do believe the statistic is that seven out of eight of my last opponents have all gone to the hospital. While I’m sitting here doing this, he’s probably in the back of an ambulance.”
Bisping added that he wants a title shot, but while Chael Sonnen and Mark Munoz decide who gets the next one at UFC on FOX 2 he wants to fight someone in the meantime that will get him closer to a title shot. It’s unclear who that opponent will be but Dana White did strongly hint in his post-fight interview with Ariel Helwani that Bisping could find himself fighting on the UFC on FOX 2 card. Dana claims that they’re going to add one more “headlining” fight to that two-hour card and it’s “possible” Bisping will be one-half of that match-up.
— The $80,000 in bonus money and the “six-figure” contract Diego Brendao earned for becoming season 14′s featherweight Ultimate Fighter is going to be put to good use. Brendao stated after the fight that he’s going to buy his mom a new house in Brazil.
“For me, part of my mission is over,” Brandao said. “I wanted to give a better life to my family after my dad passed away. I’m so happy to buy [my mother] a house in Brazil. She doesn’t know. I hope she doesn’t have a heart attack.”
— Season 14′s bantamweight winner John Dodson was so ecstatic over his finale win against TJ Dillashaw he asked Dana White to fight again at UFC 141 in a few weeks.
“[I thought,] ‘Am I really the Ultimate Fighter? Is this happening?’ I started pinching myself. I said, ‘John, just do a backflip [off the cage]. If it hits, and you don’t wake up, you’re okay.”
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Dodson. “I’ve been at Jackson’s for 10 years. I’ve been seeing everybody on the rise, and I’ve been waiting for my time to shine.”
“Dana White, put me in there [Dec. 30 at UFC 141]. I’m down to go. I’m ready,” said Dodson. “You saw [a] fast fight [tonight]. I’m ready to go again. Come on, Dana. Put me in there, please.”
Dana hasn’t obliged as far as I know, but he does believe that Dodson is going to be a “star.”
— Nothing is official still, but Dana White told Heavy.com’s Megan Olivi that he has a “very good feeling” that things are going to go well with Showtime in regards to Strikeforce’s future on the network.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: fight, dana, bisping, mayhem, dodson
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White isn't sure if Mayhem Miller will fight in the UFC again
I spilled my entire supermarket pre-packaged salad on the floor rushing to the computer in order to get this video up -- so you better enjoy it. It's still there, pieces of vegetables and ricotta cheese sprawled out on my floor, now it's only a matter of time before the roaches organize in tribes deep beneath my floor and plan their invasion later tonight. That's $1.99 I will never have again. Blame it on Megan Olivi at Heavy MMA for interviewing Dana White in regards to Mayhem Miller's future. The truth is, Dana White is unsure whether Miller will have a future in the organization. According to Dana White, tonight's TUF 14 finale was the worst one-sided beating he's ever seen, and apparently White wasn't impressed with Miller's performance against Georges St. Pierre. It's all in the following interview, so I suggest you take some time out of your night to watch it. Don't worry about me, I have no salad. [Source]
Posted in: dana, miller, mayhem miller, megan olivi, floor
Read the full article at Middle EasyUFC Quick Quote: Dana White is 100-percent right, Bob Arum is a greedy pig
"You know what? We still are sticking firm. I think [Pacquiao vs. Mayweather is] the fight that everybody wants to see. Here's the thing, Dana White is 100-percent absolutely correct. Bob Arum is a greedy pig. Now I see. That's exactly why Dana White has been so successful and Bob Arum sees him as such a threat, because he puts the fights together that the people want to see. It's about putting the best fights on. That's why people love the UFC so much, because the fights are so competitive. Even though he had the biggest fight with Nick Diaz and they went back and forth at each other, Dana did the right thing by the sport and he still put him and B.J. Penn together and made them fight. Arum hates Floyd Mayweather, can't stand him, doesn't want to see him make a dollar, can't stand Golden Boy, doesn't want to do business with them, but instead of doing what's best for the sport, what's best for the fans, and what's best for the fighters because they'll get the payday of a lifetime, no, it's all about him. 'I don't like him, so fuck him!' I mean, right or wrong? Unless you can tell me and convince me otherwise, because I'm thoroughly convinced and believe that Floyd really does want to have this fight. I think he really wants to have this fight. As far as he knows, he's right. He's right. Bob is the one interfering and fucking shit up."
Sounds like Dana White has yet another (unlikely) ally in his beef with boxing blowhard Bob Arum. After promoter Lou DiBella took Arum to task back in August, Alex Ariza, strength and conditioning coach for Manny Pacquiao, told Fight Hype the UFC President was a "threat" to the Arum establishment because mixed martial arts fans (mostly) get the "competitive" fights they want to see. Any loyalists to the "sweet science" think Ariza is oversimplifying things? Would Pacquiao vs. Mayweather have already happened without Arum's "interference?" Or does the blame game extend far beyond just one man? Thoughts? For more on the war of words between White and Arum click here.
Posted in: fight, right, dana, arum, bob
Read the full article at MMA ManiaManny Pacquiao's Strength and Conditioning Trainer Says UFC's Dana White Right About Bob Arum
Manny Pacquiao's strength and conditioning coach, Alex Ariza, is an outspoken guy. After Pacquiao had a very close call a few weeks ago against Juan Manuel Marquez, Ariza went on the record blaming Manny for slacking in his conditioning routine in camp.
Now he has decided to go after promoter Bob Arum and Top Rank (Manny's promoter) for the fight against Floyd Mayweather, Jr. not happening in a recent FightHype interview. Including talking about exactly why Dana White was right about Arum's greed:
I think that's the fight that everybody wants to see. Here's the thing, Dana White is 100% absolutely correct. Bob Arum is a greedy pig. Now I see. That's exactly why Dana White has been so successful and Bob Arum sees him as such a threat, because he puts the ights together that the people want to see. It's about putting the best fights on. That's why people love the UFC so much, because the fights are so competitive. Even though he had the biggest fight with Nick Diaz and they went back and forth at each other, Dana did the right thing by the sport and he still put him and BJ Penn together and made them fight. Arum hates Floyd Mayweather, can't stand him, doesn't want to see him make a dollar, can't stand Golden Boy, doesn't want to do business with them, but instead of doing what's best for the sport, what's best or the fans, and what's best for the fighters because they'll get the payday of a lifetime, no, it's all about him. "I don't like him, so f**k him!" I mean, right or wrong? Unless you can tell me and convince me otherwise, because I'm thoroughly convinced and believe that Floyd really does want to have this fight. I think he really wants to have this fight. As far as he knows, he's right. He's right. Bob is the one interfering and f**king s**t up.
There are a few things to take away here.
First off, it's unfair to compare Pacquiao vs. Mayweather to Diaz vs. Penn. Fights between UFC fighters don't carry the same risk to Dana that putting Pacquiao up against Mayweather does to Arum. Should Manny lose that fight, suddenly Arum's biggest fighter has his brand significantly damaged while not gaining anything on the other side. Penn losing to Diaz or Diaz losing to Penn, neither of those outcomes had profoundly worse consequences for Dana and the UFC.
It's the same reason we didn't see Dana going out of his way to make Fedor vs. Couture or Fedor vs. Lesnar when those were the most talked about "must-see" fights in the sport. The fact that Dana controls damn near every fighter worth controlling allows for much more ease to make "the fights the fans want to see." Although I still don't exactly think there is a list of any consequence beyond Floyd vs. Manny that boxing hasn't delivered.
Ariza also conveniently ignores that it was a combination of Manny's "fear of needles" and Floyd's constantly moving targets with drug testing that shot the fight down when it was even bigger than it would be right now. There are so many more people at fault here than simply Bob Arum. And this is coming from a guy who wrote previously about how Arum is a greedy pig.
And one could also mention how Ariza was talking two days after the fight about how he and Manny wanted a fourth fight with Marquez next. Not exactly the kind of thing someone who was knocking down walls to try to get to a fight with Floyd would be saying.
So yeah, Arum is a greedy pig. But things are never as simple as people try to make them out, especially when it comes for Floyd vs. Manny.
Posted in: fight, floyd, dana, arum, manny
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowFedor Emelianenko vs. Cain Velasquez? Dana White Says 'Hell No'
With his win over Jeff Monson in M-1 Global last weekend, Fedor Emelianenko got back in the winner's column after three straight Strikeforce loses. He also showed a somewhat modified approach to the game, with an emphasis on striking, gameplan, and, above all else, caution.
After the win, it was only natural that questions would surface about where Fedor goes from here. And, just as it has so many times before with Fedor, the idea of an Emelianenko run in the UFC surfaced. M-1 Global's Director of Operations Evgeni Kogan took to twitter and got the ball rolling by tweeting Dana White and calling out no less than former UFC Heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez:
@danawhite Fedor vs Velasquez in 2012, lets make this happen. Fedor is back, and a fight w/ Cain will prove it.
White's response, also via twitter, was simple, straightforward, and emphatic. When asked if the rumors of a possible Fedor/UFC deal were true, Dana replied simply:
hell no!!
Kogan is trying his best to make this sound like a possibility, noting their high attendance for the Fedor vs. Monson fight, and insisting that they would not be looking to co-promote, just to see this fight happen.
My take on it? Despite those loses, there is still a big appeal in seeing Fedor in the UFC. At this point, he will easily go down in the books as the biggest name of this era to never have a UFC fight, and that is a shame. I don't think he has the ability to seriously make a UFC Heavyweight title run (the mind shudders at the thought of Fedor vs. Junior dos Santos), and he's not a good match-up for the top young guns of the division, including Cain Velasquez. But I would be interested to see him against someone like Frank Mir, or even another go with Minotauro.
But will that happen? I wouldn't hold my breath.
Dana White tried to bring Fedor to the UFC before, and M-1 played hardball with the negotiations, making massive demands and asking a huge salary that Zuffa was unwilling to meet. At the time, they felt they could make those demands, as Fedor was the undefeated pound for pound king and clear #1 Heavyweight in the world. But those days are gone. And now, as M-1 comes knocking again, they are finding that their previous strong-arm tactics have come back to bite them. They refused to meet Dana on his terms before - don't be surprised to see Dana refuse to meet them now.
In the end, while there is some upside to a Fedor UFC run, it's not something that his career demands, nor is it something that will have a massive benefit to the UFC (unless they suddenly decide to run a card in Russia at some point). And so we may have to resign ourselves that the mythical Fedor run in the Octagon will forever remain a figment of our imagination.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, velasquez, fedor
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White wants you to know that the UFC will survive with or without him
Contrary to what some may have come to believe over their years of MMA fandom, Dana White is not the God of MMA. As a matter of fact he is not even the God of the UFC. Calm down, I'm not trying to turn your world inside out and drop any life changing spiritual enlightenment on you, this is just something Dana himself wants us all to know. He is not the be all end all of the UFC and the UFC is nothing like an overly dependant emo and possibly suicidal Bono serenading Dana with 'With or Without You' lyrics of desperation and hopelessness.
I'm not sure why Dana felt the need to really open up and share this information with all of us. Maybe it was the recent passing of Apple founder Steve Jobs. Maybe he watched 'Kung Fu Panda' and was moved by the passing of Grand Master Oogway. He wants to ensure all of his disciples of UFC that they are strong and skilled enough to survive when the time comes for him to ascend into the heavens amongst the peach blossom petals just like Oogway leaves Master Shifu and the Furious Five. Whatever his reason, rest assured the show will go on according to this clip: [source]
Posted in: ufc, dana, their years, something dana, master shifu
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White: UFC on Fox 2 Will Get Ramped Up a Notch
If you're still griping about the UFC's Fox debut being just one 64-second fight, get over. Dana White says UFC on Fox 2 will make you happy.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, debut, youre
Read the full article at Heavy MMADespite UFC 139 Win, Dana White OK if Wanderlei Silva Retires
UFC president Dana White said if Wanderlei Silva walked away after one last highlight-reel win – his upset of Cung Le at UFC 139 – he wouldn't stop him.
Posted in: ufc, silva, dana, wanderlei silva, wanderlei
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White: UFC Will Go on Without Me or With Me
Love him or hate him, it's hard to imagine the Ultimate Fighting Championship without company president Dana White. What would happen if he were no longer steering the ship?
Posted in: ufc, dana, championship, company, love
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyScott Coker says he feels confident Strikeforce will be around for several years
Whatever Christmas cards Dana White has in store for the media this year, the Showtime Network should not expect a seasons greeting. You guys don't remember last year's Christmas card? When you open it up, you can hear Dana White say 'So you wanna be a [expletive] fighter?'. If you flip the card over, there's a picture of Dana White wearing a shirt with the words 'Tito Ortiz is my [expletive]'. In fact, the entire thing is filled with expletives. It's more like a collection of unsolicited verbal warnings, than a 'Hope your family is doing well' card.
It's well known that Lorenzo Fertitta is the ZUFFA liaison to Strikeforce due to a few public disagreements Dana White had with the network over the past few years. According to Scott Coker in this interview, he believes negotiations are going so well between the two parties that he feels confident Strikeforce will be around for several years.
Posted in: dana, year, card, scott coker, expletive
Read the full article at Middle EasyUFC 139 Results: Dana White Versus the Marge Simpson's of the World
One of the first questions Dana White was asked at last night's UFC 139 post fight press conference -- outside of an opportunity to gush over the simply amazing main event between Dan Henderson and Mauricio Rua -- was whether a war like Shogun vs Hendo is the sort of fight he'd like to see on Fox considering how short Cain Velasquez vs Junior Dos Santos was and how people were wanting more than what the UFC delivered. Dana White maintains if he could go back in time he wouldn't have changed a thing and that the hardcore fans need to shut up about it. Transcription by me:
Reporter: Obviously a war, I mean those guys were bloodied and hurt in battle ... is that the type of fight you'd like to see on Fox? I mean people were complaining last week, 'we didn't get enough', is this too much for Fox?
Dana White: Let me tell you guys what ... I said it before and I'll say it again, if I could go back in a time machine and do the Fox fight over again, it would have been done the same exact way. Exactly the same way. The hardcores can bitch about that fight, I could care less what they think about that fight. I don't care, y'know? And people are like "Oh, you don't care what your fans think!?" - No! I do not care what you think. That fight had to go the way that it went because none of you guys understand what goes on behind the scenes. If that fight that happened tonight went on Fox for the first time ever ... let me tell you what, I would not be having a good time these last 5 or 6 days. Believe me. We got to ease our way (in), we live in this bubble, gang, we live in this bubble that the rest of the world doesn't live in or understand and we're still in an education process and educating the masses about what this sport is and what it's all about.
Those of us who are in this room, and people who have been watching this for a long time are blown away and just incredibly appreciate what those two did tonight in there, and you can understand what they went through and what was going on and, y'know, the rest of the world will go "Oh my god, what was that!?" ... you just don't understand. You guys might, I'm not talking to you; those of you that think we didn't do the right thing on the first Fox fight do not understand what it takes to build this sport and to be on national television. So 'shut up again'.
Later on in the post fight press conference media scrum, Dana White re-iterates the potential hurdles he believes UFC have to avoid:
Dana White: If you could have like a Shogun type fight, you know a Shogun / Henderson type fight on TV - I mean imagine what that (viewing) number would get to ... but that's not the fight you want for your first time on network television. It (the Fox Show) couldn't have gone any better, it worked out perfect for us, so yeah I'm pretty happy. The big thing is to go on network television and not have Fox getting flooded the next day with "Get this s**t off the television", you know what I mean? And I mean really if you watch that show, I don't care if you're the biggest freak - I mean these do, these freaks they come out of nowhere, right? I call them the 'nothing better to do with their lives' people - get a job, have some kids - do something! These people come out of nowhere and start attacking this sport, literally saying that it should go away; that we should shut down the UFC and this thing should go away - yeah OK, that's 'realistic'. But those are the kind of people that come after you, y'know? And it's just crazy.
So there was none of that. To have the event on and have none of that is incredible.
The UFC under the Zuffa umbrella have for a number of years been extremely image conscious and have an almost irrational fear of being perceived the wrong way publicly, which is perhaps why they are so particular about the media they're willing to credential to cover their events live and in person and why Dana White gets super defensive and often labels MMA writers with a critical opinion of the UFC as 'Internet idiots'.
There was a point in time where perhaps this was the right attitude to have, when the UFC was truly fighting for its own survival and with it the hopes of a sport that was otherwise an underground spectacle with a cult following.
I myself believe the UFC has achieved so much in both commercial success and its state regulation lobbying efforts that this fear of the sky falling over the slightest misstep has been completely unwarranted for several years. I also believe trying to micromanage its image to the point of delivering a more sports-like but ultimately sanitary product as a way of 'easing' its way into broader demographics is missing the whole point of going into business with a network like Fox.
As TV networks go, Fox is known for being the ones at the cutting edge of television and willing to push the envelope, and the UFC trying to 'blunt its edge' to make themselves more palatable for the masses just seems at odds with Fox's ability to blaze trails.
Fox has thrived on television products that have sparked controversy for years. Just look at Big Fox's schedule - Family Guy, American Dad and one of the most successful shows of all time, The Simpsons. The Simpsons has been protested against and criticized even by a US President about having a bad effect on children and for sending a bad message to the people of America. But it's still here, and it's still on network television some 20 years after its inception.
If these shows were merely controversial or in some cases shocking and offensive without some kind of inherent quality to back themselves up with, they wouldn't be on TV anymore. Even with Family Guy which has been canceled a number of times, DVD sales prompted Fox to pick the show back up and stick with it. Fox should already know that the UFC's PPV numbers and sponsor attraction from the likes of Bud Lite and Harley Davidson, as well as its general presentation and ability to showcase exceptional fights speaks volumes about its quality.
Even a fear of certain fights possibly being too graphic to watch pales when compared with the simulated gore that can often be seen in a medical show like 'House' where some episodes have shown eyeballs bursting, orifices bleeding and eviscerations. All of these shows can be dismissed as fictional while the UFC's product is real, but hysterical outrage isn't going to be so discerning and for the other shows this public attention has actually been of benefit.
What's so interesting about Dana White's concerns and describing the 'freaks' he believes would bombard Fox with complaints, is it's almost a perfect match to the type of character Marge Simpson is and even the stance the character took in the Mixed Martial Arts themed episode "The Great Wife Hope" (Season 21, Episode 3).
The episode satirizes the outrage these sorts of people have with an entity like MMA while spoofing the stereotypes associated with the sport, and gives Marge Simpson such gems of dialogue as "Call me a killjoy, but I think that because this is not to my taste - no one else should be able to enjoy it", and then a little later when addressing the episode's MMA promoter "Chet, I'm here to ask you one simple thing - please go out of business and donate all your profits to charity".
The Simpsons' writers were able to succinctly display the flawed mentality of the types of people Dana White is wanting to avoid, but by trying his utmost to deliver a product that will fly under their radar just to prevent a few early headaches, the UFC might not actually be putting its best foot forward in showcasing the best the sport has to offer.
Featuring fighters that are known to be loose cannons in and out of the cage understandably should be avoided, but the contrast of the visceral nature of the sport coupled with the often great sporting prowess and conduct by the fighters involved is something the UFC should not shy away from when it comes to their presence on national television. The benefit of this dual layer to MMA is of capturing the interest and imagination of the public which can lead to growth, and it far outweighs the drawback of having to contend with the Marge Simpsons of the world.
Posted in: ufc, fight, fox, dana, people
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Says Storytelling the Key to UFC on Fox
Unlike a UFC pay-per-view that's straight to the point with fights, Dana White says the UFC on Fox will be like a Hollywood movie with the stories of the fighters coming to the forefront.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, fights dana, hollywood movie
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 139 Post-Fight News & Notes: Shogun-Hendo’s Epic War, Cung Le’s Flattened Nose, Anderson Silva’s Next Title Defense
Rundown of post-fight news and notes coming out of UFC 139…
— 13,173 fans filled the HP Pavilion for a $1.268 million live gate.
— Tonight’s two headlining fights were so good, Dana White gave Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva and Cung Le all $70,000 Fight of the Night bonuses. Michael McDonald earned Knockout of the Night and Urijah Faber picked up Submission of the Night for choking out Brian Bowles.
— Shogun Rua and Dan Henderson have proved throughout the years to be two of the most talented and toughest light heavyweights the sport has ever seen. So what happens when you put them in the cage together? Well, as we witnessed tonight, you get one of the most epic fights this sport has ever seen. That’s right, one of the all-time greatest fights in the history of mixed martial arts. And I’m not just saying that because Dana White did.
“People who have been watching this sport a long time appreciate what [Henderson and Rua] did in there tonight,” said UFC president Dana White.
“To dig down deep in a five-round fight that was our [Muhammad] Ali-[Joe] Frazier III. It was incredible.”
“Bonnar-Griffin is in amazing fight and important for us at the time,” White said. “If this was the WWE, we couldn’t have scripted it any better than the way it went for us that night.
“But when you look at the level these two are at and what was on the line, going five rounds and the way it went — it was one of the sickest fights I’ve ever seen. Ever.”
Just because Dana called it one of the “top three” fights ever at the post-fight press conference though, doesn’t mean he wishes that was the fight they headlined UFC on FOX 1 last weekend. In fact, Dana was relieved Velasquez-JDS didn’t turn into a five-round bloody war like Shogun-Hendo did. He didn’t come right out and say it, but it was pretty clear that he doesn’t think FOX or mainstream America is ready to see two severely busted up fighters with blood-soaked shorts beating the living hell out of each other on national television for 25 minutes.
— As for who won, Dan Henderson was awarded the decision, but that’s up for debate. Many, including myself, scored it a draw, giving the first three rounds to Dan Henderson and the final two to Shogun with the final round being a 10-8. Fightmetric scored it the same way under the 10-point must system, but in terms of overall performance or “effectiveness” as FM calls it, the numbers say Shogun was more deserving of the win. Regardless of who won or should have won though, both Shogun and Hendo deserve a tip of the cap for the performances they turned in tonight. What they did tonight was the reason we love MMA.
— As for what’s next, Dana White confirmed that Dan Henderson is definitely in line for a title shot at either middleweight or light heavyweight, but with Chael Sonnen up next at 185 and Rashad Evans waiting in the wings at 205, Dana wouldn’t commit to either. In other words, if someone gets injured or loses Hendo could very well get the call, but nothing is guaranteed at this point. Hendo made it clear after the fight though that he wants a light heavyweight title shot. Since he’s been fighting there (and above) for several fights now, I think 205 makes a lot more sense than 185 does.
— Wanderlei Silva not only saved himself from a possible forced retirement at UFC 139, he gave us a vintage Axe Murderer finish that we really haven’t seen since the PRIDE days. Wand uncharacteristically hung back in the opening round of the fight but once he cut Cung Le’s eye and smelled blood, he started going in for the kill which ultimately resulted in Cung getting his nose flattened by several knees to the face in the second round. Pic via MMA Mania & Mike Meholovitch
Wanderlei called it one of the great moments in his life.
“I know this sport has no more space for falls,” Silva said at the UFC 139 post-fight press conference. “We are fighting in the best event in world and these are the best [fighters] in the world. I know the responsibility of being here. There is only space for the best guys in the world.”
“My coach told me to attack more in the second round. That was the plan,” Silva explained. “I hit him hard with the knee and I felt he was close to the finish.”
“It’s wonderful [to win]. I can’t talk after my last fight [against Leben] It’s embarrassing that I lost like that,” said Silva. “But in this job, every weekend, [the UFC] makes one event better than the [last]. It was a tough moment for me [in my career], but this victory came at the right moment. This was a great moment in my life.”
— It sounds like Anderson Silva will defend his title in Sao Paulo, Brazil next June. When asked about Brazilian reports claiming that was the time and location of Silva’s next title defense, Dana White tried to play coy, but basically gave it away with a poor poker face. While Chael Sonnen is expected to be Silva’s opponent, Dana said it’s “possible” Chael could be part of the four fight UFC on FOX 2 broadcast in January.
— Dana White confirmed that Urijah Faber is now the number one contender in the bantamweight division. Faber lobbied for him and Dominick Cruz to coach TUF 15 on FX at the press conference, but all Dana did was smirk.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: ufc, fight, silva, dana, dan henderson
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Predicts Double the Viewers for Ultimate Fighter on FX
UFC President Dana White is expecting big things when the 'Ultimate Fighter' moves over to FX. As a matter of fact, he believes double the number of viewers after the switch.
Posted in: fighter, fx, dana, viewer, fighter moves
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 139 Video - Dana White Talks UFC on Fox, Fox 2, and Dan Henderson
As per usual, Ariel Helwani was able to catch up with UFC President Dana White to get his thoughts leading into the fights this upcoming weekend. Helwani is fortunate with his relationship that he is able to press the president with certain questions that others will be unable to ask. One of them is regarding the lack of press and marketing for UFC events the end of the year. To his credit, White is candid about the reasoning. The shattered relationship with Spike has changed everything and has created a transition period where the UFC is left to their own devices when promoting fights.
White also speaks about his relationship with Dan Henderson. White holds no ill-feeling towards Hendo for leaving the company for Strikeforce. He understands that it was a business decision and it doesn't change his promotion of his fighter.
A nice snippet is that Dana teases that Showtime isn't out of the MMA business yet. While he doesn't elaborate, this gives hope that Strikeforce will continue in some sort of a capacity. He also breaks down the Viacom deal with Bellator and gives some information about UFC on Fox 2 (1?) which won't have a title fight but will have four fights.
SBN coverage of UFC 139: Henderson vs. Rua
Posted in: ufc, dana, dan henderson, ariel helwani, mma business
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White talks UFC 139, promises four exciting main card fights at UFC on FOX 2
Ultimate Fighting Championship Presdent Dana White, who was absent from the UFC 139 pre-fight press conference due to illness, shared thoughts about this weekend's fight card and the burning topics revolving about UFC's debut on FOX last weekend. Dana White revealed next UFC on FOX (or FX) fight card will feature four "big and fun" fights, in what would be the first official fight card in the UFC-FOX.
White also related to the "what's next" question regarding UFC 139 main event clash between Dan Henderson
Posted in: ufc, fight, fox, dana, card
Read the full article at Low KickDana White Confirms UFC on FOX 2 on Jan. 28 in Chicago with Two ‘Great’ Fights Already Lined Up
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White to talk about a variety of topics heading into UFC 139 including the event, last weekend’s FOX debut, their next FOX card and what’s going on with the Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen rematch. Here’s a quick rundown of news and notes.
— Dana White confirmed that UFC on FOX 2 will take place on Jan. 28 in Chicago. They already have two “great” fights lined up to headline the show, but he isn’t spilling the beans until he tells FOX first on Monday. The plan is to air four fights total. There will not be any title fights on the card. Again, Dana wouldn’t drop any names, but there is a lot of speculation floating around that Rashad Evans will be one of the headliners. Just a rumor for now, but it does make sense.
— Dana White blames the lack of buzz for UFC 139 and other year-end events on the “transition period” they’re going through with the networks. They expect the end of the year to be “rocky.” Dana believes all the work they put into the next two years will be more important than the last 10.
— Dana is expecting an “influx” of new people with a lot of money getting into the MMA business in the next few years in addition to Viacom and Showtime. Sounds like he knows something we don’t know.
— A lot of possibilities for Dan Henderson if he wins Saturday including possible title shots at 185 or 205. A win for Shogun would put him back in the title picture (somewhere).
— If Wanderlei Silva gets knocked out again this weekend, he and Dana will “need to talk” about retirement. Dana won’t sit back and watch someone get knocked out over and over again.
— Unless I missed something, it was believed Urijah Faber and Brian Bowles would be fighting for the next bantamweight title shot. When asked about it, all Dana would say is “we’ll see what happens.”
— Dana says they painted the blood on the canvas on the FOX broadcast because they wanted a “clean presentation” and didn’t want the canvas to look like it was used.
— Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen 2 is definitely going to happen, but they’re still working on the date.
— Dana called the interview Chael Sonnen did with TSN’s Michael Landsberg earlier this week “very weird.”
— No new updates on the Strikeforce situation.
— There’s no fear of the New York MMA situation worsening if they don’t win their lawsuit.
Posted in: ufc, fight, title, fox, dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDan Henderson: ‘Dana White Bought Strikeforce Because He Missed Me’ (Video)
Dan Henderson is back in the UFC. He's happy with the decision he made when he left for Strikeforce, but jokes about Zuffa buying the company because Dana White missed him.
Posted in: strikeforce, dana, henderson, dan, ufc hes
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White UFC 139 Video Blog
UFC President Dana White is back with his first blog from UFC 139.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, president
Read the full article at Heavy MMAUFC 139: Dana White Video Blog, Part One
UFC president Dana White is back with his first UFC 139 video blog. As usual, the first blog looks at the last event, which was UFC on Fox. It starts off with the usual stuff (plane rides, autographs), then shows some footage from the pre-fight press conference, including the moron that called Velasquez Shrek. The usual ticket giveaway is next. And...that's almost half the blog. Geez, not a lot of excitement so far.
Business picks up at the 4:21 mark, when Dana walks into a Fox dressing room and directly into a gigantic Brock Lesnar. Lesnar uses some colorful language (and a threat) to tell the guy with the camera not to use the footage, which is honestly the highlight of the blog. Dana also talks a bit with Lesnar's UFC 141 opponent, Alistair Overeem.
Dana talks a lot of heat from people, but he does a lot of good things as well. In the next part, he meets with a cancer patient and talks about the fight with him. That's followed up by a humorous conversation between Bruce Buffer and Joe Rogan where Buffer is complaining about a video that was posted last week with some outtakes of him called "The Ring...Announcer." Some weigh-in and Fox pre-game stuff follows, and we see the two main eventers warming up and going out to the cage.
Finally, it shows Dana entering the cage to strap the belt around the waist of JDS, and how Cain reacted after the fight. The last clips are of the post-fight press conference. Certainly not the best blog ever, but it has it's moments I guess.
Posted in: ufc, dana, blog, lesnar, talk
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White's UFC 139 Vlog
Posted in: ufc, dana, vlog, white
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White UFC 139 Vlog Day 1
submitted by killzy707 [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditUFC on FOX Fallout: What Dana White Should Have Said
Dana's response to Junior dos Santos this Saturday was irritating for many. After all, Junior had just flattened Cain Velasquez in sixty four seconds. There was no controversy. No incompetent judges to inform the water cooler talk, and no ref to be the topic of scorn. It was a definitive win.
And yet Dana felt like now was the time to be critical. His argument boiled down to two things. One, that Cain was foolish not to shoot in. And two, that Junior gets "tired at the end of fights".
I don't have a problem with Dana's criticism in principle: consider this alternative scenario - if the fight ends in the 3rd, and those are Dana's words, would people be as critical of Dana's actions? Maybe they still are, but at least then Dana would have a point. But he doesn't.
On the first point, Cain did shoot in. It was brief, but he did take a shot. However, the real problem with Dana's criticism is that no world class fighter ever intends to shoot in ex nihilo. Any takedown needs to set up with punches: especially when the guy against you can scramble. On the second point: based on what? Cigano has gone to the third round more than Cain has. We know Cain has incredible cardio, but it's not like history bares this out. Nor is it the case that Junior "gases". Plus there's the issue of time: in what universe is 64 seconds enough to say [Pride Final Conflict 2003]Cain didn't follow the gameplan[/Pride Final Conflict 2003]?
The problem with Dana's criticism, and forgive me for stating the obvious, is that it's just flat out, out of control wrong. Junior has gone the distance, and doesn't have a history of gassing. Nor has Cain ever been the type of shoot in right away: that's precisely what made him look so vulnerable against Cheick Kongo. His point fails as criticism, and as promotion: now viewers are left with the impression that Cain is an idiot, and Junior just needs to get to the 3rd round in order to lose.
Even worse, this fight was very easy to interpret: that Junior dos Santos is awesome. This guy needed just 64 seconds to put away one of the toughest men in the HW division. He's MMA's version of Mike Tyson. Unlike using that description for fighters like Tim Sylvia (which was the promotional narrative), or Andrei Arlovski, it's not hilariously out of touch with reality. He just put away Cain Velasquez: JDS won't fight many HW's that are better in the future, so his outlook looks good.
While his nationality might hinder his marketability, his fighting style will not. On top of that, he's a charismatic guy. There are no borders when it comes to emotion, and JDS reacted the way you'd expect a man to react who truly came from poverty, and for now, can stake his claim as the baddest man on the planet. Wipe that scowl off your face, Dana. Over five million people witnessed a badass. Don't think people aren't interested in Junior just because Cain failed to implement a gameplan in under sixty four seconds. 64 is a number that reflects Junior's strengths: not Cain's weaknesses.
Posted in: dana, point, second, criticism, danas criticism
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White and Brock Lesnar analyze UFC on FOX: Velasquez vs dos Santos
UFC President Dana White and the former Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar provided their analysis of Junior dos Santos' 64-second triumph over Cain Velasquez, as part of UFC on FOX post-fight panel. Surprisingly (or not), Dana White was the first man to critique Cain Velasquez, stating that A.K.A. product had a terrible gameplan, and made a fatal mistake of standing for too long with someone like Junior dos Santos. White also added that dos Santos "is well-known for getting tired", suggesting that
Posted in: ufc, dana, do, velasquez, aka product
Read the full article at Low KickWhoa, this must be why Dana stands between the fighters during the weigh-in. M-1 fight during staredown.
submitted by WoodStainedGlass [link] [11 comments]
Posted in: fight, fighter, dana, staredown, woodstainedglas
Read the full article at RedditDana and Brock talking about the fight after it went down. Dana seems mad.
submitted by AbeRudder [link] [comment]
Posted in: fight, dana, aberudder, brock, aberudder link
Read the full article at RedditUFC on Fox: Dana White Can't Keep His Mouth Shut
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The biggest loser last night was not Cain Velasquez, but Dana White and his ill timed comments on the Fox debut. The heavyweight fight ended in surprising fashion, with Junior dos Santos finishing Cain in two minutes of the first round. Not exactly what the UFC brass were looking for in terms of displaying the UFC to a new audience, and his frustration was very evident in his post fight comments.
Listen, I'm no strategist and I'm nobody's coach but I don't understand why they didn't go for the shot early. They should have shot in on Junior Dos Santos knowing that he has the power early in the fight and tries to knock you out. But the truth is that Junior Dos Santos gets tired at the end of fights, you know? Here he is standing right in front of him trying to trade and bang with Junior Dos Santos and gets hit with that big right hand right behind the ear and down he goes. Down goes his heavyweight championship. I'll say it again, not saying that I'm some strategy coach but I don't know why they wouldn't take the shot on him and wrestle early.It's one thing to feel a fight out but when you're standing right in front of a guy that you know his biggest weapons are his hands and he can knock you out and this thing is a five round fight. Get in there and start working him. Stay busy and put him against the fence. Rough him up and tire him out a little bit and bring it into the later rounds where Junior Dos Santos is well known for getting tired.
These kinds of remarks are unacceptable by someone in his position, especially now that they have the attention of much more respected media outlets. He not only discredits the previous champion, he also trashes his current champion in the process. I understand he was frustrated the fight didn't go longer, the UFC has put a lot into this night and a lot was riding on their performance, but it's a fight. Things happen that you can't predict and Dana of all people should understand that.
He's now inadvertently hurt Junior's creditability as a champion, and did so on Fox in front of possibly millions of viewers. Instead of praising the champion for not only coming into the fight injured, but defeating the champion in impressive fashion, he decides to attack JDS's cardio. This is easily one of the most foolish things Dana has ever done, and for his sake, I hope the mainstream media doesn't pick up on these comments.
So is Dana White the wrong person to represent and introduce the UFC to a new audience (and a potentially more conservative audience)? In the past, people have connected with his brash honest approach to running a company, but now the UFC is attempting to become recognized as a mainstream sport and the majority of his comments would be deemed offensive and out of place by most media outlets. We all know his history with running his mouth at the wrong time, and now it seems he's done it again. It's time for either Dana White to change, or for the UFC to find a new man to represent their product.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, champion, do
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendUFC on Fox Results: Dana White Needs to Keep Promoting his Fighters, Not Bury Them
If there was a downside to the UFC's first Fox show, for me it wasn't the short length of the Heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos. Instead it was Dana White's apparent burial of Cain Velasquez as a fighter and his failure to build up Junior Dos Santos in his win, either, in his post fight show remarks.
Maybe Dana White and co. had hoped the fight would go longer, but then he was the one who kept saying it didn't matter if it went 30 seconds or 30 minutes because of his faith in the fighters delivering. Junior Dos Santos' knockout power delivered in spades.
Matthew Roth touched on Dana White's comments in his Post Fight analysis, and provided a transcript of the particular comments that quite a few others took issue with. To his credit, White admits up front he's not a coach or strategist but his words as the very public figurehead of the UFC will always carry weight in influencing the opinion of new and casual fans.
When Dana White says "I don't understand why they didn't go for the shot early" and "They should have shot in on Junior Dos Santos knowing that he has the power early in the fight ...", to the uninitiated he makes it sound like it's all too obvious and that Cain Velasquez is a fighting simpleton. As if shooting in for a takedown with no setup has no consequence, as if a well timed knee or uppercut could never happen. We know these possibilities and the benefit of setting up takedowns using strikes, but the brand new fans the UFC were going after only have Dana White's word to go on.
White then says almost immediately afterwards "But the truth is that Junior Dos Santos gets tired at the end of fights, you know?". He's just told this new audience that could help the UFC's growth that the new Heavyweight champion isn't physically fit enough to go the distance. That's not exactly a glowing endorsement of a fighter you're meant to be marketing and making money off of, nor does it help a fighter build a bigger fanbase so they can financially benefit as well. White spends more time on what Velasquez did wrong than what Dos Santos did right and it benefits neither man or the UFC in general.
With Pay Per View buys being significantly down year on year due to obvious factors like the lack of Brock Lesnar and Georges St Pierre, the UFC needs to do a far better job promoting its other fighters as it can not afford its mouthpiece stripping them of their value because of the lack of thought that goes into his opinion. Yes, Dana White prides himself on his honesty and frankness and No, I don't expect him to completely bullshit the audience if there's a bad fight or if a fighter under-performs. But when he puts more effort into being a character witness to defend a fighter that slips up using Social Media than he does in making people want to watch the former and current Heavyweight champion fight again it's clear his energy as a spokesman often isn't focused where it needs to be.
After the page-break, Matthew Roth's transcript of the comments in question.
Listen, I'm no strategist and I'm nobody's coach but I don't understand why they didn't go for the shot early. They should have shot in on Junior Dos Santos knowing that he has the power early in the fight and tries to knock you out. But the truth is that Junior Dos Santos gets tired at the end of fights, you know? Here he is standing right in front of him trying to trade and bang with Junior Dos Santos and gets hit with that big right hand right behind the ear and down he goes. Down goes his heavyweight championship. I'll say it again, not saying that I'm some strategy coach but I don't know why they wouldn't take the shot on him and wrestle early.
It's one thing to feel a fight out but when you're standing right in front of a guy that you know his biggest weapons are his hands and he can knock you out and this thing is a five round fight. Get in there and start working him. Stay busy and put him against the fence. Rough him up and tire him out a little bit and bring it into the later rounds where Junior Dos Santos is well known for getting tired.
Posted in: ufc, fight, fighter, dana, do
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDidn’t Like One Fight on Fox? Dana White Says Too Bad
For weeks, UFC President Dana White has said that the first ever main event for their debut on Fox could go '10 seconds or 25 minutes'.
Posted in: ufc, week, fox, dana, fox dana
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC on FOX Results: Junior Smashes Cain to Become the New UFC HW Champion
I'm not sure how casual fans and neophytes might have reacted to tonight's fight. After all this build up, we were left with the image of Cain Velasquez in a crumpled mess not even two minutes into the fight. The result led to the most accurate description of tonight's festivities compliments of one Bill Simons: "UFC loses its network virginity to Fox and it's over in under 90 seconds. Just like real life!"
Well said. I think. The fight clearly wasn't what many of us expected, but to virgin viewers, there was no question about the outcome. No worrying about whether or not the fight would go the judges' scorecards. No worrying about whether or not both guys would put on a stinker. No mater what universe, tonight's outcome was at least one of the best possible worlds. Junior dos Santos is the new HW Champion and he did it with a bang.
Don't tell Dana that though. Following the fight, Dana would go on a bizarre monologue about Cain not following the gameplan. In a description that will be familiar to MMA historians who mocked White's adventure into Japan that saw Chuck Liddell enter the Pride Tournament and lose, Dana seem hung up on what Cain failed to do as opposed to what Junior accomplished.
This will surely be the talking point for the MMA media, and to be sure, you'll get some hyperbolic analysis: "Why the FOX adventure was a failure", or something equally and incredibly dumb. The outcome does deserve analysis: casual fans are used to the fight culture of boxing, where matches seem to play out like stories rather than footnotes. Will they accept this footnote?
I'd say that the event was a success, but with caveats. The positive is that the UFC has a new exciting young champion. While some observers may be concerned about what fans react now, JDS is a marketable as hell fighter, and that bodes well for his future. Second, the UFC now has 3 Brazilian champions, which also bodes well for the success of their international expansion.
Dana wouldn't shut up about Cain not following the gameplan (at the time of the press conference, Dana is still in Buzz Killington mode). Where does this crap come from? The fight lasted less than two minutes. As a promoter, you'd think he would thrilled to talk up Dos Santos as the new HW champion, especially in the fashion that he did. Instead he can't refrain from playing armchair critic. I know Dana means well, but Junior blasted Cain before he could even consider a gameplan: this is the nature of MMA.
Brock Lesnar did an excellent job. People tend to forget that for all of his strange beliefs about healthcare, and horse shoes, he's a lucid speaker. His thoughts flow when he speaks his mind, and his mind is nothing if not organized. Plus he was a good sport about the highlights they kept replaying of him getting obliterated by Velasquez.
Ben 'Daigo" Henderson went into beast mode once again. Against Clay Guida, he put on another phenomenal performance. He hurt Clay early, and everytime Guida tried to wrestle, Ben would shrug off his attempts, displaying supernatural balance. It was a highly competitive fight, but with a clear winner. WEC NEVER DIE! I think Edgar beats Henderson, but he's gonna have a hell of a time doing it. That fight will likely be fight of the year for 2012, and Ben Henderson will finally be certified as a national treasure.
Perhaps the only other news worth mentioning were some of the other heroes on the facebook prelims: Dustin Poirier, and Ricardo Lamas put in solid performances.
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, champion, hw champion
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White Talks MMA vs. Boxing Paydays
UFC President Dana White talks about the perception of the big paydays pulled in by boxers like Floyd Mayweather versus the top fighters in the UFC.
Posted in: ufc, floyd mayweather, dana, talk, payday
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White responds to Griffin's tweet about rape - MMA News
submitted by alphahouse44 [link] [2 comments]
Posted in: dana, griffin, tweet, alphahouse, griffins tweet
Read the full article at RedditDana White Expects Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos To Be An ‘Absolute War’
“You see what these two fight like and you can pretty guarantee the way this fight is going to go. I can tell you what’s not going to happen. It’s not going to be boring, there’s not going to be any stalemating, and this fight’s going to be an absolute war… Give me my entire roster of guys, make every one of them healthy, and this is still the fight I’d pick. This is the fight that I picked to put on network television, and it is important, and I picked this fight for a reason.”
— Dana White, via MMA Fighting, hyping UFC on FOX 1′s main event between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos
From the get go, I thought this fight was a rather interesting choice to kick off the UFC’s big FOX deal. On one hand, Dana’s probably right about the fight being an “absolute war.” Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos rarely turn in a dull performance, if ever, and likely won’t in the most important fight of their respective careers. On the other, neither of them have the same kind of star power that say Kimbo Slice and Gina Carano had when they made their network television debuts. The UFC is surely hoping this fight will propel their drawing power to new heights, so it makes a lot of sense for them. But for FOX, they’re looking for ratings and I’m honestly concerned about Cain and JDS’ ability to deliver that. Furthermore, the fact that pay-per-view numbers and ratings are down quite a bit this year — neither UFC 136 or UFC 137 broke 300,000 — makes me wonder if the UFC’s brand power isn’t as strong as it’s been in recent years. I’m hoping they’ll be able to match or even beat Kimbo’s numbers on CBS (4.3m avg, 6.5m peak) and nail the demos, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t either. If it tanks, no, I don’t think FOX would bail, but I imagine they would ask for bigger names that move the needle when the real seven-year contract kicks off next year.
Image via CombatLifestyle.com
Posted in: ufc, fight, fox, dana, network television
Read the full article at MMA ConvertKen Pavia talks to us about Dana White and imitators
Compared to Ken Pavia from three years ago, the Ken Pavia of today is a laid back, calm individual. 2008 Ken used to write a column called 'The Pav Says' where amongst other things he detailed one of his fighter clients flushing his colon out. He also butted heads with UFC brass several dozen times. Ken was the 'coward faggot' referenced in Dana White's infamous bitch / faggot video blog rant, was the one who revealed the UFC's EA MMA blacklist, and was sued when he allegedly provided Bellator with certain UFC documents.2011 Ken has a much lower profile. Other than selling his MMA agency to Takedown Entertainment and accusing the UFC of astroturfing forums with pro-UFC chatter, he's rarely in the news. Probably a good thing since it keeps the UFC from finding new reasons to hate him. We sat down with Ken Pavia to ask him what his thoughts were on Dana White. "I think Dana has done some good and bad things. I think you can say that about a lot of people though. People say that about me as well. I think if Peter Youbroth or David Stern or somebody of that stature were then I think they would be. Dana has moved the needle and grown the sport. There are levels and there are levels above Dana but we could have been unfortunate and gotten somebody not as good as Dana."Some see MMA agent Malki Kawa as a spiritual successor to Ken, mainly because Malki isn't afraid to open his mouth and say stuff even if it goes against the UFC grain. Kawa's latest, greatest hit was evaporating a large amout of UFC goodwill towards his client Carlos Condit by calling bullshit on the claim that Condit had willingly stepped aside so Nick Diaz could fight Georges St Pierre. Pavia has his own thoughts on the agent."I think Malki is trying to steal my schtick." Pavia said. "I used to tell people that I’m the best and the second best and I clearly still am, I just chose not to do it anymore because there’s a finite amount of money you can make and a finite amount of affect you can have on industry, quite frankly because there aren’t that many good agents who will stand up and fight. I’ve said for years that everybody competes for third. I think Malki tries to imitate me and make similar claims. Nobody works as hard as me and he’s not nearly as effective as I was."Things had gotten so heated between the two that we couldn't help but prod for the possibility of an actual MMA fight between the two. As to that, Pavia demurred."I’m 45 years old. I hung up the gloves a long time ago. If we met in the board room then I’d destroy him. That’s my arena at this stage in my career."
(image via combatlifestyle.com)
Posted in: ufc, pavia, dana, ken pavia, ken
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White says he's intentionally freaking himself out for UFC on FOX
The way Dana White effortlessly crushes self-esteem and egos is synonymous with Atilla the Hun, and now it looks like he's intentionally doing it to himself leading up to UFC's first venture on FOX primetime. It's like he's one of those catholic monks that systematically beats their body to get closer to God. If you asked me what they're called three years ago, I would have known -- but a lot of partying has gone on between then and now, so whatever brain cell that retained that information is now retired in the recesses of my mind. Some would even argue that the fate of mixed martial arts lies within White's hands -- which are also white. Interesting.
LayzieTheSavage caught up with Dana White at yesterday's UFC on FOX presser to see if he is indeed stressing out about the event and what is his 'worst case scenario' for UFC on FOX.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, he, yesterdays ufc
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana White Asks, Fans Receive: Brittney Palmer Returning to UFC
After several months away from her Octagon Girl duties while attending art school, the popular Brittney Palmer will return, Dana White said.
Posted in: dana, brittney palmer, palmer, brittney, art school
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White talks UFC on FOX, says Anderson Silva will have to fight Chael Sonnen
UFC President Dana White shared his thoughts ahead of this weekend's Ultimate Fighting Championship's debut on FOX with a Heavyweight title bout between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos. Once again, White spoke about the importance of UFC on FOX, and its influence on the future of Mixed Martial Arts. Dana White related to the match-up between Velasquez and dos Santos as "stylistically best", claiming that it's nothing but his duty to bring back the big Heavyweight superfights to mainstream
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, championships debut, arts dana
Read the full article at Low KickStressed-out Dana White focused on UFC on FOX debut – and nothing else (MMAJunkie.com)
LOS ANGELES – Wanna know a good way to get on UFC president Dana White's bad side?
Posted in: ufc, way, dana, stressedout dana, angele
Read the full article at Yahoo! SportsDana decides to bring Brittney Palmer back
submitted by sealtron [link] [5 comments]
Posted in: dana, brittney palmer, palmer, brittney, sealtron
Read the full article at RedditUFC on FOX 1 Pre-Fight News & Notes: Dana White Is A Nervous Wreck
A UFC on FOX 1 media conference call and pre-fight press conference was held earlier today in anticipation of the UFC’s big network television debut this Saturday on FOX. There was plenty of news and notes coming out of the press events. We got a rundown below along with Ariel Helwani’s interview with Dana White.
— First and foremost, Dana White revealed today that he has been such a nervous wreck over this show he hasn’t slept in four days.
“I’m a mess over this thing; I’m a mess,” White said. “I’m telling you guys. I’m not trying to play it cool or whatever. But I’m a [expletive] wreck. I’m a wreck. I haven’t slept in four days. I feel weird.
“I can’t wait for Saturday to be over with. I just want to get it over with. I want to nail this thing, I want to do it right, and I want to move forward. I just want to get this first one under my belt.”
“The only thing that I care about right now is this fight,” he said. “Seriously, when I tell you guys this I couldn’t be more serious or more literal – I am not thinking of anything, nothing. I don’t care about anything with my business – anything on this planet, anything right now – except the fight getting pulled off.”
There’s no doubt Cain Velasquez is a big fight, but Dana White even went as far to say it’s “the biggest fight in UFC history.”
— The UFC of course has a lot riding on the success of this event. They claim they’re losing money on the show — Lorenzo Fertitta estimates as much as $16 million — but if it pulls good ratings, it would be a great start to what UFC brass sees as a long-term investment in the future growth of their business. If not, who knows what would happen, but it definitely wouldn’t be a good sign.
If you ask Dana White what a good rating would be, you won’t get much of an answer.
“On network television, I’m not an expert,” he said. “I don’t know what they consider bad. Saturday nights aren’t traditionally a big night for television, either network or cable. … (FOX Sports chairman and CEO) David Hill today told me it’s a jinx to talk about it. So I’m not going to talk about it. I just want to put up a good number. That’s the answer I’m supposed to give.”
Dana White may be playing dumb, but word is they’re hoping to best EliteXC’s CBS record with Kimbo Slice and James Thompson which averaged 4.3 million and peaked with 6.5 million viewers.
— The UFC confirmed today that all live fights will air on TV in one way, shape or form starting next year.
“When this deal starts in January, every live fight, no matter what it is, all goes to Fox,” said White. “Some are going to FX and some are going to Fuel. It’s going to depend, but every live fight will be on a Fox platform.”
The early prelims that we’ve grown accustomed to seeing on Facebook will air on FUEL TV while the Spike TV prelim specials will air on FX. FUEL TV is also expected to broadcast the preliminary cards for FX and FOX shows.
Additionally, FUEL TV will broadcast 2,000 hours of UFC programming which will include overseas events not on pay-per-view, weigh-in specials, international versions of TUF, “Countdown” and “Primetime” specials and other shoulder programming in 2012.
“Twenty-five percent of our programming will be devoted to the UFC. We’re going to have north of 2,000 hours,” said Greenberg. “At the end of the day, this is an introduction to a new sport that has absolutely been put on the map in the last 10 years.”
Unfortunately, only 26 million people currently get FUEL TV. FOX is surely banking on the UFC to help build that network like they did with Spike considering they’re devoting 25% of their programming schedule to the UFC.
— The UFC plans to heavily promote the upcoming Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem heavyweight number one contender’s bout this weekend. Instead of hosting a Q&A session like they usually do, they’re holding a special pre-fight press conference with Lesnar and Overeem before the weigh-ins. Both fighters will also be in attendance and Lesnar will even serve as an analyst on the FOX broadcast.
“This is focused on the heavyweights and the heavyweight championship fight on Saturday night between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos,” said White. “We’re going to be talking about Alistair Overeem and Brock Lesnar. Overeem will be there, and Brock Lesnar is actually going to be one of the analysts on the show, breaking down the fight. He [defended the title] against Cain Velasquez, and he was supposed to fight Junior dos Santos, so his opinion is interesting.”
Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta have called this show a big UFC commercial from the very start. It looks like they’re going to take full advantage of that.
— Conference call audio below via MMA Weekly
Posted in: ufc, fight, fox, dana, tv
Read the full article at MMA ConvertAn inside look at Dana White
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: dana, mattyblayze
Read the full article at RedditDana White UFC on Fox Video Blog 1
UFC president Dana White gives you behind the scenes look leading into the historic UFC on Fox show.
Posted in: ufc, show, fox, dana, scene
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana vs Braveheart
Posted in: vs, dana, braveheart
Read the full article at FightlinkerNo One Wants Fighters To Make Boxing Money More Than Dana White
Money is a hot topic in MMA. Despite the fact that purses have increased over the years, many people complain that fighters don’t make the same kind of huge purses that some of the boxers do. That kind of criticism bugs Dana White, because as he explains in this video from the UFC 138 post-fight press conference, no one wants mixed martial artists to make boxing money more than he does. It’s not hard to figure out why. If the fighters are making more money that means Dana White and the UFC is making more money.
Despite the lack of eight-figure purses though, Dana says they have made approximately 40 fighters millionaires, 20 of which have become multi-millionaires.
Video via Kimura.se
Posted in: fighter, money, dana, boxing money, eightfigure purses
Read the full article at MMA Convert
Dana: "What Diaz said is crazy"
UFC president Dana White did not look a happy man when he left the UFC 137 post-fight press conference last week. He, like the assembled media, had listened...
Posted in: ufc, diaz, conference, dana, media
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyDana White’s UFC 138 Octagon Update (video)
UFC president Dana White looks back at UFC 138 and forward to a number of topics, including Koscheck vs. Condit, for a veritable Octagon update.
Posted in: ufc, koscheck, dana, condit, octagon
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White talks UFC 138, Michael Bisping, Carlos Condit and much more
UFC President Dana White, who was in attendance for the UFC 138 Post-Fight Press Conference, shares his thoughts on the event and discusses various other hot topics. White promises that the fighter's will be well-compensated for putting on a great show and blasts those who were critical of the card before it had actually taken place.
Posted in: ufc, show, dana, share, topic
Read the full article at Low KickJerry Millen talks to Dana White's mom
Check out this interview that June “Dana’s mother” White did with Gary “Jerry” Millen, better known as the guy with the Sterculius Touch (which means that anything he touches, such as PRIDE FC or M-1 Global, turns to shit). It’s prefaced by an elegant montage of every embarrassing photo of Dana White that ever befouled his mother’s attic accompanied by a harrowing orchestral score.
Once we get to the actual interview, we’re treated to several dozen totally non-bitter accusations about Dana, each more salacious and smarmy than the last. It would be very strange to see this coming from his own mother if we could just forget that she and Dana, the king of vindictiveness, have the same blood. Among the accusations:
June decided to start talking ill of her son when his grandmother died and he didn’t take care of her as allegedly promised and didn’t go to the funeralShe believes her son takes steroidsShe accuses Dana of cheating on his wife, calls the marriage “a joke” and says he “puts Tiger Woods to Shame”She claims to “know for sure” that Dana is sleeping with plenty of the ring card girls including Amber Nicole and Rachelle LeahShe says Dana slept with his sister-in-law in her houseShe alleges Dana got the worst black eye she’s ever seen and nearly lost his eye after his wife attacked him on their honeymoonShe tries to play the guilt card by saying that it’s unfair to Dana’s kids that she doesn’t get to see them.
Dana’s mom published an unauthorized biography of the UFC president this May and compared Dana to Satan's child from "Rosemary's Baby", even though he is, well, HER CHILD. Her insistence that she does not care about money and is just doing this for Dana’s own good falls flat when we consider that she could have chosen to, well, you know, just talk to Dana in private about it instead of drag his name through the mud to sell books.
Millen, for his part, has been a prickly burr on Dana’s tender sphincter for over five years now and has no plans to let up anytime soon. When the two of them get together, we can see what a beautiful dung mushroom the resentment and hate blossom into. If June White and Jerry Millen are really as cozy as they seem in the above photo, then maybe he’ll do what he did to PRIDE USA by touching Dana’s mom with his little pingling: drain all of her blood and vitality, turn her into a skeleton, bury her in a ditch, and then somehow find another willing victim.
Posted in: dana, millen, pride usa, satans child, rosemarys baby
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White's mother "tells all" in this 10m video.
submitted by ju11ce [link] [12 comments]
Posted in: video, dana, ju, mother, white
Read the full article at RedditDana White: UFC on FOX 1 inspired by boxing's once-glorious past (MMAJunkie.com)
Longtime boxing fan Dana White always envisioned an event like UFC on FOX 1. The UFC's heavily anticipated...
Posted in: ufc, fox, boxing, dana, boxings onceglorious
Read the full article at Yahoo! SportsDana White Dreaming of Ultimate Fighter World Cup
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: world, fighter, dana, mattyblayze, cup
Read the full article at RedditDana White Dreaming of Ultimate Fighter World Cup
UFC president Dana White sees a future with 'The Ultimate Fighter' eventually producing a World Cup style tournament with all of the winners battling for one crown.
Posted in: world, fighter, dana, style, cup
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyCesar Gracie: Nick Diaz Saved UFC 137, Pay Cut ‘Patently Unfair’
“What happened is you can’t pull a guy off a card and then bring him back on: ‘Oh, he’s not good enough to fight. We pulled him out of the card. He can’t be in the main event. Yeah, here you go. Oh, wait a minute, guess what happened? Our little star guy over here, his knee hurts. Oh my God, we need Nick Diaz. Let’s put him back in the main event.’ Everybody wants to see that fight. He delivers. Well, little star guy didn’t fight and Nick Diaz did, but they pulled a lot of money from Nick’s purse because it wasn’t structured for him to make as much if it wasn’t GSP, even though he was the main event now and put the people in the seats… Nick Diaz saved that card. OK?. That’s what people need to remember when they talk about responsibility, is that he showed up, hamstring injury, knee injury, whatever. He had the same thing. He’s the guy that showed up. He’s the guy that fought his heart out, him and B.J. Penn. They put on a show. They’re two great warriors. They saved the UFC that night… [Nick’s pay cut] is a hard pill to swallow. I think it’s patently unfair. Myself, in my opinion, that’s unfair. I think Nick obviously knows it’s unfair, and these are talks we’re going to have with Dana White and with the UFC… We’ve had good negotiations with Dana before. We’re going to put everything on the table, and I’m confident that we’re going to be able to iron all of this out and that Dana will make it right.”
— Cesar Gracie telling Sherdog that Nick Diaz saved UFC 137
It’s not hard to read between the lines here. Nick Diaz reportedly lost out on a potential seven-figure payday when he lost the Georges St. Pierre fight and now that he has his title shot back, they want their big payday back too. I can’t say how it will turn out, but the Diaz camp does have a little bit of leverage here. It’s a fight the fans badly want and Dana White already announced it, presumably without a bout agreement signed. If Dana can’t get the fight done, he stands to lose a considerable amount of goodwill with fans — the same fans he takes pride in giving the fights they want to see.
In other words, Dana White has to get this fight signed, even if it means giving Nick Diaz his pay-per-view bonus back.
Image via Tracy Lee for Yahoo! Sports
Posted in: fight, diaz, nick diaz, nick, dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White: Georges St. Pierre vs. Nick Diaz Planned For Super Bowl Weekend UFC Event
If you haven't heard Carlos has agreed to step aside to let GSP fight Diaz! GSP flipped out after what Diaz said and wants him next.about 1 hour ago via Twitter for iPhoneReplyRetweetFavorite@danawhiteDana White
Dana’s tweet says it all.
Nick Diaz, not Carlos Condit, will challenge Georges St. Pierre for his title next. As Dana told it, GSP didn’t like how Diaz said he was scared, not hurt, in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan following his win over BJ Penn tonight at UFC 136, and flipped out, asking for the fight with Diaz.
“I’ve known GSP since 2004, he’s one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. GSP flipped out tonight when Nick was in the ring. Nick needs motivation, he’s got it. He’s gonna fight GSP,” White stated.
“I’m going to give him an ass whooping like no one’s ever seen,” St-Pierre conveyed through UFC President Dana White.
According to Dana, Carlos Condit agreed to step aside to let the fight happen, however Condit’s manager, Malki Kawa, claims that’s not how it went down.
“We didn’t step aside. That’s not what we do,” Kawa wrote in a text message to MMAWeekly.com. “GSP doesn’t want to fight Carlos.”
Whatever the case may be, Condit is going step aside and GSP vs. Nick Diaz is going to happen, likely at the Super Bowl weekend card. Dana says Condit will also compete on that card, and if he wins, he’ll get the GSP-Diaz winner.
I’m sure some people will bitch about it not being fair to Condit, but I think GSP-Diaz is the right fight to make. Coming from Strikeforce, many people doubted if Nick Diaz was good enough to compete against the tougher competition in the UFC, let alone if he was worthy of fighting for the title. Diaz answered that question tonight with a record 178 significant strikes landed against BJ Penn. There’s no denying now that Diaz is an elite welterweight and after his performance tonight, during and after the fight, there’s no better time to make St. Pierre vs. Diaz happen. Dana White and the UFC would be stupid not to.
Posted in: fight, diaz, gsp, dana, condit
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana's big announcement [spoilers from 137]
submitted by trollfoot [link] [14 comments]
Posted in: dana, announcement, spoiler, announcement spoilers, trollfoot
Read the full article at Reddit
Dana White Confirms UFC’s January Return to Brazil
In wake of the tremendous success of UFC 134, UFC President Dana White made the decision to not stay away from Brazil for long. In fact, the promotion will head back to Rio de Janeiro in January, according to an announcement White made on Friday.
Posted in: ufc, dana, announcement, january, brazil
Read the full article at SherdogDana White UFC 137 Video Blog (Part 2)
As UFC President Dana White continues with his UFC 137 fight week video blog, he arrives in Las Vegas, Nevada for the event's pre-fight press conference. White, alongside the majority of Saturday's main card competitors, field questions from the media before taking some time to meet and greet several fans in attendance. Photo: Scott Hirano
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, saturday, blog
Read the full article at Low KickUFC 137: Dana White Video Blog, Part 2
The UFC released the second VLog from Dana this week. The first video blog focused on the backstage fighter reactions to UFC 136. It showed that the sport isn't just about fighting in the cage and gave that inside look at the highs and lows a fighter experiences following a win or a loss.
The second video blog shown above focuses more on fight week and the fan interaction with Dana. It opens with Nick Diaz standing around waiting for the presser to start. He looks pretty anxious because it turns out the UFC PR staff had him down an hour early just to make sure he makes it on time. Fans get to see what a UFC media scrum is all about, with Dana talking about the perceived monopoly on the sport with the MMA reporters. Nagashima, a K-1 MAX kickboxer makes an appearance and uses his twitter followers to perhaps get signed to a UFC contract.
The highlight for me is Dana's interaction with the fans. He's been criticized by some as having lost focus with the wants and needs of the UFC fanbase. I'll respectfully disagree based on his interacting with a woman whose son has cancer. Dana makes arrangements to fly him out to a UFC event and cover all costs. He hasn't lost focus. He is more concerned about a faceless fan than possibly any sports executive in the world. Sure you have to put up with the "f-bombs" but in the end, he still hasn't lost sight of what's important.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, fan, video blog
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: Viacom buying out Bellator means #UFC is a “Mom & Pop” MMA group @MMASupremacy @mauroranallo
Is Dana White claiming that Viacom buying out Bellator makes UFC an underdog, fighting the corporate 'man'?
Posted in: ufc, bellator, dana, group, viacom
Read the full article at Fight OpinionDo Not Pass Go: Dana White says UFC isn’t a Monopoly
Dana White responds to claims that the UFC is somehow a monopoly in the world of MMA, and says look no further than Viacom's recent investment in Bellator for proof.
Posted in: ufc, dana, monopoly, claim, monopoly dana
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White: If there was a gay fighter in UFC, I wish he would come out
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [3 comments]
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, mattyblayze, ufc i
Read the full article at RedditTUF: Brazil is a "done deal", says Dana White
After Vitor Belfort proclamated that the UFC would become more popular than soccer and the tremendous success of UFC 134 in Rio de Janeiro this past August, UFC President Dana White announced yesterday that Brazil will be the first country to have an international edition of The Ultimate Fighter.
Posted in: ufc, dana, deal, brazil, tuf brazil
Read the full article at Low KickDana White talks Nick Diaz, BJ Penn, Cro Cop, Silva-Sonnen and much more
UFC President Dana White shared thoughts about this weekend's UFC 137 fight card in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event will be headlined by Nick Diaz's return to the Octagon against BJ Penn, after a long history of missed press conferences, media calls and speculations whether Cesar Gracie's product is going to make it into the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Dana White also related to the potential rematch between Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva, claiming that he's still working on putting this fight together.
Posted in: bj penn, event, dana, anderson silva, chael sonnen
Read the full article at Low KickDana White’s UFC 137 Video Blog: Part Two
Part two of Dana White’s UFC 137 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, part, blog
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Talks UFC 137, Strikeforce, Viacom, Plus Other News & Notes
As usual, Dana White chatted with reporters following today’s UFC 137 press conference. We’ve got a rundown of news and notes along with Dana White’s video interviews with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani and Heavy.com’s Megan Olivi below.
— Dana White announced at the beginning of the press conference that they have hired MMA Live anchor Jon Anik away from ESPN to commentate on the FX and TUF broadcasts. Anik will also have a role in other programming. MMA Weekly is reporting that Anik has signed a three-year deal with the UFC. Dana White said they’ll be working him so much, he’ll regret leaving ESPN.
— Mirko Cro Cop was very candid at the press conference about his future in the UFC. He realizes that this may very well be the last fight of his career.
“I wish you could see the new Cro Cop, 15 years younger. I wish it’s possible, but unfortunately I’m 37 and this could easily be my last fight in the UFC. It has nothing to do with the result, if I win or lose. Especially if I lose, but even if I win it could be my last fight in the UFC. And I’ll really give my best and hope this will be an attractive fight. I cannot afford anymore, especially in this fight, that it’s declared as the most boring fight of the evening like the fight with Frank Mir. I think me and Roy will perform a good fight and the fans will be satisfied and excited.”
Dana is taking a wait-and-see approach with Cro Cop. He wants to see how he performs and see what he wants to do after the fight before making any decisions. It seems there’s still hope for Cro Cop but he needs to perform on Saturday night.
— Dana confirmed that Brazil is getting the first international version of TUF. He says it’s a “done deal” and will likely air on FUEL, aka the channel no one gets.
— Dana finally confirmed the broadcast plans for the UFC on FOX 1 undercard. The good news is you’ll get to see them. The bad news is you’ll have to watch them on your computer, specifically on Facebook and Fox.com. That includes Ben Henderson vs. Clay Guida.
— With former Showtime Sports head Ken Hershman now out of the picture, Dana White has taken an active role in the ongoing Strikeforce-Showtime negotiations. He told Ariel Helwani that Lorenzo Fertitta got the talks going and now he’s been brought in to close the deal. Dana met with Showtime in New York on Wednesday and said the meeting went great but the deal isn’t done yet. It definitely seems like they want to keep Strikeforce alive though. For what reason, I don’t know.
— Dana White thinks that anyone who believes the UFC was a monopoly either before or after the Viacom-Bellator deal is either a “hater or a moron.”
This is not a monopoly. It’s the dumbest thing ever said. We are far from a monopoly. If you guys could really know that story, too. If we’re a monopoly, Viacom now owns a mixed martial arts company. They’re sitting on five billion dollars cash. What does that make us? Now we’re the mom-and-pops. I can tell you this: The UFC has been tremendously successful. We’re not sitting on $5 billion in cash.
“Seriously, you have to be a moron – an absolute moron – to say that this thing is a monopoly, or just out to get us, and just hate us and want to say us. It’s one of the two: you’re either a hater or a moron.”
— Nick Diaz has passed his pre-fight drug test. Woohoo!!!
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, deal, — dana
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White UFC 137 Video Blog – Day 2
UFC President Dana White goes behind the scenes of the UFC 137 pre fight press conference and more on day 2 of his video blog.
Posted in: ufc, day, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC Pres Dana White Says TUF Hitting Brazil in Near Future
The UFC's reality show is headed to South America. Read here to see what Dana White had to say on the situation.
Posted in: ufc, show, dana, brazil, pre
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White video blog UFC 137 (Day two)
Join Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White as he hits the UFC 137 press conference to promote "Penn vs. Diaz" pay-per-view (PPV) event, which is scheduled for the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Oct. 29, 2011.
White and the key players who will get locked inside a cage this weekend and battle -- B.J. Penn vs. Nick Diaz, Matt Mitrione vs. Cheick Kongo and Mirko Filipovic vs. Roy Nelson -- all hit the Brooklyn Bridge replica outside New York-New York to paratake in the pre-fight festivities.
Afterward, White shook hands, took pictures and signed autographs for numerous fans, even doling out free tickets to a lucky few.
To watch the first episode of Dana White's UFC 137 video blog click here.
Posted in: ufc, vs, dana, yorknew york, prefight festivitiesnbsp
Read the full article at MMA ManiaNew Life in Strikeforce-Showtime Partnership? Dana White Takes Over
While most had considered a new deal between Strikeforce and Showtime was dead in the water, UFC president Dana White has taken over negotiations, breathing life into negotiations.
Posted in: ufc, dana, life, water, negotiation
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Talks UFC 137, Taking Charge of Strikeforce and Viacom Buying Bellator
submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: ufc, strikeforce, dana, mattyblayze, charge
Read the full article at RedditUFC 137: Dana White Talks Diaz vs. Penn and Much More
Dana White discusses Nick Diaz's recent comments about going into boxing, B.J. Penn, Matt Mitrione's improvement and more in our exclusive interview.
Posted in: diaz, dana, matt, penn, nick diazs
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White hopes for gay UFC fighters to come out
There is not one openly gay fighter on the UFC roster - or many in professional sports at all, for that matter - but promotion president Dana White says...
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, ufc roster, ufc fighters
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyDana White Takes on Culinary Union (UFC 137 video)
UFC president Dana White isn't giving in to the efforts of the Culinary Union to slam his promotion. The union recently called on Fox to keep the UFC off of its airwaves.
Posted in: ufc, fox, dana, union, airwaves
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC 137 Video: B.J. Penn Challenges Cesar Gracie, Admits to Being 'Hookwinked' By Him
B.J. Penn is an mature adult now and doesn't want to talk smack. That's fine, and I applaud that decision. Penn is usually a pretty honest guy though, and in an interview with Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting, he aims his honesty in the direction of a guy that he thinks might have 'hoodwinked' him - Cesar Gracie, manager of Nick Diaz and a guy B.J. has trained with in the past. He even offers to go five rounds with him. Here's the telling quote:
"Dana called us...it's a funny story actually. Dana called us and said 'Cesar just called me and said they would love that they would love to fight Nick Diaz. I mean, that him and Nick Diaz would love to fight you, and that's the fight they want. So I texted Cesar. I said 'Dana just said you would love to fight us, and this and that's the fight you want'. And I guess, I don't know, maybe Cesar didn't wanna say that he said that. He texted me back and said 'Laugh out loud, Dana just told us the same thing'. So I ended up thinking Dana's trying to set me up and make it into a personal thing, but it was really Cesar. Cesar was...Cesar hoodwinked me, I guess."
He goes onto explain that he talked it out with Dana and White made it clear that it was Cesar's idea. This stuff with Cesar and Dana actually led to the drama surrounding Penn's comments about White during the whole Countdown fiasco last month. But as B.J puts it, "it was Cesar all along". He also responded to Gracie's talk about wanting a five round fight between Penn and Diaz:
"If Cesar wants the five rounds so bad, me and Cesar can do a five round fight. Any time, anywhere, whenever he feels like it."
Penn goes on to discuss why he likes watching Nick Diaz, the possibility of going back to 155, and even admits he's a huge Hulk Hogan fan and sings some of his theme song. You can check the video after the jump.
More SBN coverage of UFC 137
Posted in: fight, diaz, dana, penn, cesar
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC 137: Dana White 'sweetened the pot' for a 'hoodwinked' BJ Penn
Why was B.J. Penn so quick to accept a fight against Nick Diaz at UFC 137, despite spending most of his training camp preparing for Carlos Condit?
Because UFC President Dana White made him an offer he couldn't refuse. That's according to a "compensated" Penn, who tells 5th Round that his pot is now sweet.
"Dana sweetened the pot for me and he made it worth my while, for sure, to take this fight. He compensated me."
Having a barrel of cash delivered to your door in Hilo can take some of the sting out of being "hoodwinked," which is how "The Prodigy" explained the genesis of the re-worked main event for Oct. 29 in Las Vegas.
Penn elaborates to MMA Fighting:
"Dana called us and said that Cesar just called us and said they would love to fight B.J. Penn and that's the fight they want so I texted Cesar and said, 'Dana just texted us and told us that's the fight you want.' I don't know, maybe Cesar didn't want to say that he said that, he texted back LOL, Dana just told us the same thing, so I ended up thinking Dana was trying to set me up and get me into a personal thing but it was really Cesar, Cesar hoodwinked me I guess."
Diaz was demoted from his fight against Georges St. Pierre in the UFC 137 main event after failing to uphold his media responsibilities, which led to Condit being moved up to take his place.
When St. Pierre was injured, Diaz was elevated back to main event status to fill the void after "The Natural Born Killer" opted to wait on the sidelines for "Rush" to get better. All part of Cesar Gracie's master plan? Or just dumb luck?
Would anyone out there have handled this thing any differently?
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, penn, cesar
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC 137 videos: Dana White gives BJ Penn title shots easier than everyone else
At least that's what "The Prodigy" thinks (wink, wink):
"Honestly, as of now, I'm not really thinking about (getting a title shot) too much but I think Dana White gives me title shots easier than everyone else, so I'll probably get it. I don't know, Dana likes me."
B.J. Penn will take on Nick Diaz in the main event of UFC 137 this Sat., Oct. 29 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and while the winner hasn't exactly been promised a title shot, whoever is the victor will have a better case for one than anyone else. If it's Penn, though, it might be a rocky road considering his two losses to division champion Georges St. Pierre. Time will tell, Maniacs, but would you be down for a third act in the St. Pierre vs. Penn feud? Or is it Diaz or bust?
Posted in: title shot, title, dana, penn, shot
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC 137: Dana White's New Video Blog Should Not Be Missed
Dana White UFC 137 Video Blog - Behind the Scenes (via UFC)
UFC 136 was a big night for hardcore fans. It was full of fantastic, gutsy performances. Dana White's latest blog is interesting because instead of adorning us with shots of Dana in his ferrari, or Dana at Pinkberry, we get an honest look at the UFC behind the scenes. This time starring the people we tune in to watch.
The result is at times, a little heartbreaking. Watching Kenny Florian's blank stare brings home the emphasis of his failures. Here's a guy who's been here for the 3rd time, itching to prove the critics wrong against an absolute killer in Jose Aldo, and now he's back to square one. Florian has, for the most part, earned his title shots. For dedicated fighters like Florian, fighting is a job, and the only reward is 12lbs of gold. In that moment, that failure is his identity.
Same with Gray Maynard. When he walks away from his post fight checkup, Edgar approaches him as if to congratulate him. Gray dismisses him. It's selfish sure, but what accolades does Gray think he deserves? He lost. With Edgar hurt in the first, just as in their 2nd fight, Maynard failed to capitalize.
Except this time he lost definitively: unconscious and face first on the canvas. "What praise do I deserve, or care about if I fought for the title and didn't win?", Gray is probably thinking. The only time he ever appears consolidated is when him and his teammates briefly embrace.
Melvin Guillard's reaction to defeat is a little more dramatic. Throwing a backstage chair around, burying his head in his own tears, one hopes he uses his loss to finally make peace with the fact that a "little jiu jitsu" goes a long way in this sport.
I really hope the UFC produces more content like this. These videos cut to the heart of what sports are really about.
Posted in: ufc, time, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendDana White’s UFC 137 Video Blog, Episode 1
Get a revealing behind the scenes look at UFC 136 in Houston with the first episode of Dana's UFC 137 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, episode
Read the full article at Heavy MMAUFC 137: Dana White Video Blog, Part 1
UFC president Dana White is back with his first video blog for this weekend's UFC 137, and as usual the first episode is all about the event before this. It begins in a humorous way with White wearing a Buffalo Bills jersey because he lost a bet. It becomes apparently quickly that the theme of the blog is to see how the losers of the UFC 136 bouts deal with the aftermath of their fights. It starts with Steve Cantwell and then Joey Beltran getting checked over by a doctor while they discuss their respective fights. Then stuff gets real for Melvin Guillard, who throws a chair before kneeling and crying after his loss to Joe Lauzon.
Things change up a bit when Leonard Garcia is shown with the doc, as Nam Phan enters the picture and the two combatants exchange compliments and pleasantries before posing for a post-fight pic. Brian Stann is next, talking about Chael Sonnen's wrestling was too good for him, while Sonnen is posing for pictures with a little kid. Kenny Florian is looking particularly beat up and depressed. Anderson Silva is then shown congratulating a returning Jose Aldo on his victory. Finally, Gray Maynard is filmed getting a quick exam and hugs from his teammates while Frankie Edgar poses for pictures.
The blog finishes up in a very cool way, with Dana handing out envelopes to the bonus winners while they wait to go into the press conference. Here's the video.
More SBN coverage of UFC 137
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, chael sonnens
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowThe Dana White video blog returns
Posted in: video, dana, blog, return
Read the full article at FightlinkerDana White’s UFC 137 Video Blog: Backstage at UFC 136
We get a backstage look at UFC 136 in this first installment of Dana White’s UFC 137 video blog. Gray Maynard definitely wasn’t excited to see Frankie Edgar backstage after their fight.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, frankie edgar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana just tweeted this: :) . Big announcement?... What a tease.
submitted by ImaG [link] [4 comments]
Posted in: dana, announcement, imag, tweeted
Read the full article at RedditAnderson Silva doesn't want to fight Chael Sonnen
Eugh, it's only Thursday? Why the hell can't the weekend be here yet??? Fortunately there's alcohol to numb the pain and I've got an excellent drinking game guaranteed to get you absolutely shmammered. Just read some MMA news sites and drink a shot every time Anderson Silva's manager implies Chael Sonnen shouldn't fight the Spider next. Note: I am not responsible for cases of alcohol poisoning.Feeling wasted / better yet? Now watch Silva's manager dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge what they'd do if the UFC officially asks for that fight:
But you know what? Whoever Dana [White] puts in front of us, for the most part, we’re always going to take the fight. [Anderson has] never dodged any fights. It’s really not up to us to determine. … I’m not saying that’s who we want or who we don’t want. People ask my opinion, and I see what Anderson’s saying. He’s fought him once. He had his opportunity, but hey, if Dana wants to put the fight on again, we’ll cross that bridge when it comes.
Whoever Dana puts in front of us! For the most part. If Dana wants that fight ... uh, let's just cross that bridge when it comes. Jeez, man. That totally doesn't sound like a yes. Where this hesitation comes from, I'll never know. This is one of the few professions where you can legally beat the shit out of someone you don't like, and Sonnen has given Anderson several dozen very good incentives to maul him. Maul him like a mad monkey with Hepatitis B.
Posted in: fight, dana, sonnen, anderson, doesnt sound
Read the full article at FightlinkerGossip King Perez Hilton Picks Up On Anti-UFC Attacks
With the UFC about to make its American debut on broadcast television in November, their enemies have ramped up anti-UFC attacks. The labor organization Unite HERE has been sending this letter to UFC sponsors Anheuser-Busch compiling homophobic remarks by UFC fighters and executives. They've also launched this web site making more allegations.
These folks have beef with the owners of the UFC due to labor disputes at the Fertitta-owned Station Casinos. They've allegedly played a major behind-the-scenes role in keeping MMA out of New York. Now their attacks on the UFC have been picked up by mega-gossip king Perez Hilton on his FitPerez.com site:
Ugh! We are not happy to hear about this.
While sports organizations like the NBA and MLB are working to end homophobia, others like the NHL seem to be tolerating it. Unfortunately, the UFC (Utlimate Fighting Championship) seems to be flat out endorsing anti-gay bigotry!
In recent incidents, not only have the athletes used gay slurs to taunt their opponents, but even the PRESIDENT of the organization, Dana White, is leading by poor example!
Hilton goes on to recap the 2009 youtube diatribe from Dana White attacking female MMA writer Loretta Hunt.
The UFC has been notably lax about curtailing homophobic remarks from fighters and announcer Joe Rogan for some time. Unfortunately it's coming back to haunt them at an awkward time. Whatever we may think of Hilton, his web sites reach an enormous audience that includes many many many writers and editors for more mainstream publications. Expect to see these charges of homophobia repeated ad nauseum as the build up to the UFC's Fox TV debut continues.
Hopefully Dana White and company can get out ahead of this stuff with some PR that will defuse these attacks before they get picked up by more major media outlets.
Also see this fanshot from killphil.
HT reciprocal
Posted in: ufc, dana, attack, hilton, antiufc attacks
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowRich Franklin: "Sometimes The UFC Doesn't Really Have My Back"
Former UFC middleweight champion, Rich Franklin, has always been portrayed as the UFC's ultimate company man. Whether it's moving between weight classes to make way for younger, more talented fighters, fighting at catch-weights in bouts with no divisional relevance, or taking part in countless media opportunities, press tours, and promotional activities, "Ace" has always gone above and beyond to do whatever Dana White, Lorenzo Fertitta, or Joe Silva ask of him. This is partly because Franklin is one of the UFC's most well-spoken and highly educated fighters, and also because he has a large fan-base and appeal as the all-American good-guy fighter who's rarely in a boring fight.
Now, it seems that Franklin isn't so willing to be the company man any more and is also a little uneasy about his relationship with the UFC brass. In an interview with on The MMA Hour yesterday, Franklin opened up about what he thinks about being the "company man", and how his relationship with Dana White has gone downhill in recent months, particularly after he believed he was accused of "ducking" Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 133:
According to Franklin, he found out exactly three weeks before his scheduled fight with Nogueira that the Brazilian was injured and the UFC wanted to move Gustafsson up to replace him.
"At the time I was like, well who is this guy? I don't know. So my manager, Monte Cox, said Joe Silva's going to send you over some tapes so you can at least see this guy and check it out. I said all right."
The following afternoon, Franklin said, he told his manager he'd take the fight, even though "there was nothing really appealing about the fight, and I basically told my manager that."
But, due to what Franklin described as a "communication breakdown" brought on by the stress of an injury-riddled fight card, the UFC opted instead to pull Franklin from the event altogether.
"I listened to the interview that you did with Dana, and was a bit disappointed...I'll be honest with you, I was a bit disappointed listening to that, because the tone of the interview between you and Dana almost sounded like that. I thought, first of all, I've never ducked any other opponent in my life. For that kind of stuff to come out and to question, I guess, my motives or my character or whatever, it was very upsetting to me."
"That feeling of family, it's dissipated a little bit," Franklin said. "It's not the same as it used to be when I first starting fighting for the UFC, and I basically told Lorenzo that. I said, 'Hey, I feel like sometimes you guys don't really have my back,' and he told me that they'd been really busy with the FOX deal and all that kind of stuff."
This seems to be the first time that Franklin has publicly stated any frustration or disapproval with the way the UFC is treating him, although it might just be a momentary outnburst, as toward the end of the interview, he goes right back into his typical role:
"If the UFC said something to me about fighting at middleweight again, I'd be great with that," he said, though he clarified that he's not about to request anything specific along those lines. "...If they're not going to let me work toward a title, in the meantime as long as I can just work at putting on exciting fights and that stuff, then I'm good with doing that."
Posted in: ufc, fight, dana, franklin, company man
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC President Dana White ranked 38 in AskMen.com 'Top 49 Men' poll for 2011
UFC President Dana White was ranked by readers as number 38 in the AskMen.com 'Top 49 Men' poll for 2011.
Here's why:
Just when we thought the UFC couldn’t get any bigger, Dana White had to go ahead and prove us all wrong -- again. In what White himself deemed the biggest moment of his career, the charismatic president helped to legalize MMA in Toronto, which helped set the stage for UFC 129 at Toronto’s Rogers Centre, an event that drew 55,000 fans and broke ratings records in what White insists is the UFC’s No. 1 television market on the planet. As if that wasn’t enough, White also inked a major broadcasting deal with FOX, which will help ensure that the UFC gets plenty of airtime on the network’s various subsidiary channels for years to come. White might never actually step into the ring himself, but, boy, does he know how to win.
White's reaction on making the Top 49 for 2011, after the jump.
"I’m honored for even being thought of for a 3rd time, especially for the fact that readers have voted for this. I am just completely honored."
The Zuffa boss debuted on the annual list at number 10 in 2009, before tumbling down the rankings to number 32 for 2010. This year he drops a few spots but still holds steady at number 38.
Any Maniacs out there think he should be ranked lower -- or higher?
To see the rest of the Top 49 for 2011 click here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, president, number, broadcasting deal
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White ranks #38 in AskMen's Top 49 Men in 2011
The fact that Dana White throws verbal ninja stars at anyone in his vicinity shouldn't surprise you. If this news has startled you, we suggest you go back and look at every recorded interview White has done in the last five years. Hopefully you may run across Technoviking in your search and he will steer you in the right direction. If Dana White was an honorary member of the X-Men, his mutant power would be the ability to completely demolish your self-esteem within seconds. His words and actions are more influential than yours, which has earned him a place on this year's 'AskMen's Top 49 Men in 2011.'
Last year Dana placed in the number 32 spot, and the year before he nabbed the 10th slot. This year, Dana White is MMA's sole representation coming in at number 38. Dana managed to beat guys like Dirk Nowitzki, Larry David, Tom Brady and Justin Timberlake -- but was superseded by Jimmy Fallon, Mark Zuckerberg, Mark Cuban and The President of the United States. According to the online magazine, the most influential man in the world this year is Steve Jobs, followed by Seal Team Six, the guys who located and killed the most wanted man on the planet. Larry Page, Warren Buffet and Kayne West followed exactly in that order. [Source]
Posted in: dana, year, steve jobs, year dana, years askmens
Read the full article at Middle EasyRich Franklin feels the UFC no longer has his back, disappointed in recent comments from Dana White
Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin has seemingly lost his way in recent years, getting forced out of the 185-pound division thanks to two crushing losses to division champion Anderson Silva.
Mixed success at light heavyweight, as well as two catchweight fights (195 pounds), have "Ace," unsurprisingly, a little unsettled as he heads into perhaps the twilight of his career. In fact, Franklin -- the promotional poster boy prior to his setbacks to the "Spider," feels as though a little love has been lost in recent years.
During an appearance on the MMA Hour, Franklin, 37, said that he feels like he's been pushed to the back burner these days:
"That feeling of family, it's dissipated a little bit. It's not the same as it used to be when I first starting fighting for the UFC, and I basically told Lorenzo Fertitta that. I said, ‘Hey, I feel like sometimes you guys don't really have my back,' and he told me that they'd been really busy with the FOX deal and all that kind of stuff."
The consummate company man, who certainly is not known for ever rocking the boat or delivering controversial comments, had more to say about the possible genesis of the misunderstanding.
It all started back at UFC 133 when Franklin's bout versus Antonio Rogerio Nogueira was pulled because an injury to "Lil' Nog." Shortly thereafter, Franklin was pulled from the card altogether.
According to UFC President Dana White, the move was made at the request of Franklin, who made it known that he didn't have time to waste on lesser known opponents.
"We had another opponent for Rich, but Rich didn't want to take that fight. He said, ‘You know what, man, I'm at a stage in my career where I only want to fight the top of the heap. I want to fight the top name guys.'"
Not the case, according to Franklin. And in this recent interview he attempted to set the record straight, voicing his displeasure with the the way he felt White painted him with his comments:
"I listened to the interview that you did with Dana, and was a bit disappointed...I'll be honest with you, I was a bit disappointed listening to that, because the tone of the interview between you and Dana almost sounded like that. I thought, first of all, I've never ducked any other opponent in my life."
So where is the disconnect? Franklin said that the UFC had approached him about a potential fight against up-and-comer Alexander Gustafsson. This was his reaction:
"At the time I was like, well who is this guy? I don't know. So my manager, Monte Cox, said Joe Silva's going to send you over some tapes so you can at least see this guy and check it out. I said all right."
For fans who missed the fight or are unable to recall, Gustafsson went on to fight Matt Hamill instead at UFC 133. It will go down in history as the fight that ended "The Hammer's" career. In hindsight, perhaps Franklin made the right call.
After losing his last fight to Forrest Griffin at UFC 126 on Feb. 5 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Franklin is looking to get back into the win column as soon as possible.
Regardless of his recent trials, Franklin is adamant about the fact that he's working hard to get back on top of his game. He'll even fight at middleweight again if the need arises:
"If the UFC said something to me about fighting at middleweight again, I'd be great with that... If they're not going to let me work toward a title, in the meantime as long as I can just work at putting on exciting fights and that stuff, then I'm good with doing that."
Regardless of Franklin's next move, he, as well as the Ultimate Fighting Championship, will certainly have time to iron out their differences and ensure that they are on the same page moving forward. He recently underwent successful surgery to repair a torn labrum suffered in training camp and expects to return in summer 2012.
Posted in: ufc, fight, guy, dana, franklin
Read the full article at MMA ManiaUFC Quick Quote: Dana White and Joe Silva decide who Anderson Silva fights -- not Ed Soares
"It makes no sense at all. Chael is as deserving as anybody for that next title shot. The bottom line is it doesn’t matter what I think and it doesn’t matter what Ed thinks. It matters what Dana (White) thinks. Ed’s not the matchmaker, I’m not the matchmaker, you’re not the matchmaker. Joe Silva and Dana White make the matches. Ed’s saying some personal things about Chael and I don’t think Ed or I are in a position where it’s good to throw insults at anybody. I think Ed’s a good guy that’s maybe got caught up a little emotionally himself with some of the things Chael has said about Anderson. It’s just better in my opinion if we leave that to the fighters."
Remember last week's comments from Anderson Silva's manager, Ed Soares, who said Chael Sonnen didn't deserve a rematch and should be sent to the back of the 185-pound line? Well, that didn't sit well with Sonnen’s manager, Mike Roberts of MMA Incorporated, who told MMA Weekly it's up to Dana White and Joe Silva to decide who "The Spider" will fight, not the Brazilian's manager. Silva was trounced for four-and-a-half rounds back at UFC 117 before pulling out a fight-ending triangle choke to secure the fifth round submission win and retain his belt. There was talk of an immediate rematch prior to Sonnen's TRT issues with the CSAC, but he eventually returned (following a suspension) to the Octagon in winning fashion, choking out the hard-hitting Brian Stann at UFC 136 on Oct. 8. How about it Maniacs, "Silva vs. Sonnen II" over the Super Bowl weekend? Or did you have someone else in mind? Opinions, please.
Posted in: silva, dana, chael, joe silva, doesnrsquot matter
Read the full article at MMA ManiaAntonio McKee: 'I'd Like to Vote Dana White Out of the UFC'
Antonio McKee made a lot of noise about his place in the sport when the UFC wouldn't sign him despite going fifteen straight fights without a loss. He eventually got his chance only to drop a decision to Jacob Volkmann and get cut from the UFC roster.
Recently, McKee has been a very vocal critic of UFC president Dana White. In an interview with TapouT Radio, McKee continued his criticism (transcription via Crooklyn's Corner):
"I'm here for the sport. I've been getting a lot of static about the stuff I've been saying about the UFC, and how I've been blasting them, but, at the end of the day, everyone, whether they like me or dislike me, whether they are a UFC fan or not a UFC fan, one thing they will say, if they're honest, is that McKee is right. I've been bashing away at Dana White for the way he talks about fighters, calling them p*ssies, calling women c*nts, and F this and F that, calling unions a bunch of idiots. You're an icon of the sport. The last thing we need is an icon showing this type of behavior to people who are engaging in this sport and support it. We need somebody to step up, that has a little bit of integrity and a little bit of respect for fighters, whether they're good fighters or bad fighters, the fact that they're fighters, and just show a little bit more appreciation. I'd like to vote Dana White out of the UFC and bring in somebody that has a little bit more courtesy and common sense, because this guy's definitely smoking some dust."
Antonio went on to say that he understands being cut as it is a business, but didn't like that it was after a split decision that he felt he won.
Posted in: ufc, fighter, dana, mckee, vote dana
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowWith Dana White saying he wants to introduce flyweight in "early 2012" do you think TUF 15 will feature flyweights? If so, who would you like to see be coaches?
submitted by blueboybob [link] [28 comments]
Posted in: dana, coach, tuf, flyweight, coaches ?.
Read the full article at RedditDana White: Good for Bellator
submitted by tbolts48 [link] [comment]
Posted in: bellator, dana, tbolt
Read the full article at RedditUFC's Dana White Has No Problem With Bellator...Yet
Dana White is a ruthless competitor and that's certainly not a bad thing. The world of combat sports promotion has always been cutthroat and always will be. Dana and the rest of the management at the UFC are competitive and they've used that drive to become the big winners in the MMA field.
Dana talks about his feelings on competitors and why he has no beef with Bellator in this MMA Weekly video:
From the video:
"I've went after the promotions that come after me. When you come out and you talk a bunch of (expletive), talk about our company and how we're doing business, and how you're gonna take us down and you're gonna beat us; now you've picked a fight. And now we're gonna fight until somebody wins and somebody loses."
...
"The people from Bellator have never said anything about us. I have nothing to say about them either. They're out there. They're doing their thing. Good for them."
Some of us have long enough memories to remember when Dana said those same exact things about Strikeforce and how quickly that changed.
Sleep with one eye open, Bellator.
Posted in: bellator, dana, thing, dana talks, expletive ),
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Explains Why He Let Brock Lesnar Be In The WWE Video Game
Following yesterday’s UFC 140 press conference, Dana White explained why he let Brock Lesnar being in the new WWE video game. Dana said it wouldn’t be right to claim complete ownership on Brock Lesnar’s merchandising rights given that the WWE made him a star, so he has no problem letting Brock Lesnar and the WWE make money off Brock’s likeness. What Dana won’t allow him to do though while under contract with the UFC is wrestle.
Video via MMA Digest
Posted in: dana, brock lesnar, wwe, lesnar, brock
Read the full article at MMA ConvertFirst the FTC, now FOX: The Culinary Union Continues its Assault on the UFC
In what feels like an addendum to the news from The Economist that the UFC may already be under FTC investigation as a result of the Culinary Union's insistence, now comes another whopper.
"In its latest step against the Fertitta brothers' mixed martial arts business, Culinary Workers Union Local 226 has penned a letter to Anheuser-Busch, calling on the beer company to pull its Bud Light sponsorship of UFC. The union wants Anheuser-Busch to stop its UFC affiliation and says the MMA promotion has "a history of tolerating homophobic conduct.", writes Sergio Non of USA Today.
In addition, the Union is calling for FOX to drop UFC related programming. "We urge FOX and its affiliate networks to drop UFC from its programming schedule immediately. We urge FOX and its affiliate networks not to broadcast any UFC content until UFC publicly agrees to require its employees (including Dana White) and fighters to behave in a socially responsible manner, respect the LGBTQ community and women, and demonstrate a real commitment toward stopping the bullying epidemic in our society." - from the official petition.
The current petition is using Unfit For Children as its source: highlighting various obscenities. Particularly Dana White's rant against Loretta Hunt. From "you fu**ing dumb bitch", to "whoever gave you that quote is a pussy and a fu**ing faggot", Dana cooked up an entire buffet of red meat vulgarities.
What was previously a war between the Culinary Union and Station Casinos in Nevada has turned into a full blown scrap with Zuffa (not exactly ironic). The Petition itself is questionable insofar as the Union is attacking essentially the entire sport: looking to punish the whole for the few. In that sense, it's not a wise move, and will likely draw the ire of many fans, fighters, and UFC officials that are socially responsible.
But it does raise questions about the UFC's image, which has been cultivated on machismo, and testosterone. The Ultimate Fighter, for example, the vehicle for the sport's current spotlight is a melting pot of frat boy antics, and sentiment. Rarely does a show go by in which someone isn't insulted, degraded, or double deckered (and where being a male nurse makes you sexually suspect, according to Josh Koscheck). And Dana himself, while apologetic on the rant against Loretta Hunt, continues to defend bigotry in the sport with "this is the fight business" (his line in response to Nog's statement that he wouldn't "train with gays"). Meaning what? This is the fight business, so it's ok to be a bigoted halfwit?
I give Dana a little credit in the sense that I think he simply means 'well, these things happen in MMA', as everyone's favorite broadcaster once said. But at the same time, his lack of action on Rogan's use of the word "cunty" (in response to Maggie Hendricks), and Quinton Jackson's follow up are telling.
Dana himself has reaped the rewards of political incorrectness: in a way that's always been the charm of MMA. It's a sport for firebrands, where being raw is a virtue. But just how much longer can this kind of behavior be tolerated after November?
Posted in: ufc, dana, nbsp, union, loretta hunt
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendIssues with Diaz resolved, according to Dana
Nick Diaz’s press conference phobia issues are resolved, according to UFC president Dana White.And that means he could get a title shot if he beats...
Posted in: title shot, diaz, conference, dana, issue
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyDana: "Brock wont wrestle for WWE while under contract to UFC"
UFC president Dana White has taken a remarkably accommodating approach with the WWE wanting to use Brock Lesnar in their latest video game.Lesnar was one...
Posted in: ufc, dana, wwe, brock, video game.lesnar
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyDana White: Jon Jones Could Go Down As ‘The Greatest Ever’
MMACanada.net caught up with Dana White following today’s UFC 140 press conference in Toronto. Dana called the Jon Jones vs. Lyoto Machida fight a “dream” match-up and said “the sky is the limit” for Jon Jones. If he continues to run through the light heavyweight division like he has thus far, he could go down as “the greatest ever.”
Posted in: jon, jone, jon jones, dana, ’. mmacanada.net
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana: "If Jones walks through Machida he has arrived"
Are we on the verge of a ‘Jon Jones era’?UFC president Dana White seems to think so, according to comments he made at today’s UFC 140...
Posted in: ufc, jone, dana, &rsquo, machida
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyDana White on Georges St-Pierre: ‘You Couldn’t Ask for a Better Role Model’
According to UFC President Dana White, welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre is everything that's right about MMA.
Posted in: dana, georges st-pierre, george, st-pierre, couldn ’t
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana will bring the UFC to the next level or die trying
Now Dana White knows exactly how it feels to be a Mega Man fan. I can think of quite a few childhood memories that can be summed up in the same eloquent phrasing the UFC head honcho uses in regards to the growth of the UFC brand: "I will get to the next level or *expletive* die". But this isn't about Mega man (or is it?), this is about the UFC growing at a rapid pace, heading to Fox and putting on thirty four live events next year. Here is what the exhausted but inspired Dana had to say to MMAJunkie.
"This year was a big year for us," "But the next year is going to be the real big year for mixed martial arts. Next year is going to be the real big year for MMA. Next year is the one that's going to change everything and take it to the next level."
"It's been crazy, but I wouldn't change a thing. When you want to achieve and you want to do what we're doing, this is how you do it, and this is what you have to do. In no way, shape or form am I like, 'I need to lay off; [expletive] this.'
"I love it. We have a plan. The next two years ... definitely the next is going to beat the living s--- out of me. The next year is going to be a real rough one for me. But I'm down for this. This is what I want to do. I have a plan; I know how I want to execute this next year. Because in my opinion, the next two years are the most important two years for this company and this sport."
"I think we hit a lot fight fans with that first step (on cable television). Now we're reaching people that would have never watched us in a million years. It's the perfect time. We did that first fight on FOX, and it was such a huge success. 2002 we did the 'Best Damn Sports Show.' (People say) '[S---], we should have gotten that deal then.' But it wasn't time. It didn't happen then because it wasn't time. We weren't ready for that. We're ready now.
"All the ducks are in a row, we've got this thing dialed in, we know what we're doing, we're the best at what we do, and now we're going to go out there, and we're going to f------ nail this in the next two years."
"Hold this tape and watch what happens at the end of next year and where we are and what we're talking about. And believe me, I will f------- die before I let this not happen. I don't give a s---- how many cities or countries I have to fly to in the next 10 days or next year. I am focused and excited and ready to do this."
Props to Dana and the UFC for blowing up the sport in just under a decade, but this is still more impressive.
[source]
Posted in: ufc, sport, dana, year, level
Read the full article at Middle EasyDana: Rampage can go boxing when his contract expires
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is free to go boxing when his UFC contract is done, according to company president Dana White.“He’s under...
Posted in: ufc, boxing, dana, contract, ufc contract
Read the full article at Fighters OnlyUFC 136 Results: Great Expectations Beget Great Disappointment for the Lightweight Division Beyond Edgar
We thought for sure UFC 136 would clear up the 155 picture. Many, myself included, thought we'd finally get a definitive outcome following Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard III, and going into the 4th, we weren't. Thankfully Edgar steered us away from that particular boat.
But everything else would work itself out. Melvin Guillard and Anthony Pettis were obvious favorites against Joe Lauzon and Jeremy Stephens, respectively. All they had to do was win.
That, of course, didn't happen. In fact, it anti-happened (I'm starting to realize that the more you write, the lazier you get, and the more creative you try to be without actually being, ya know, creative). Melvin Guillard didn't just lose. He lost impressively. Lost in such a way that offended some fans, including Dana White, who thinks Guillard still has an attitude problem.
Which is semi-valid. Guillard made his way to the cage like he was "ready to walk out, instead of walking in" (Dana's words via MMAFighting). Once the fight started he appeared overly aggressive, throwing wild kicks, and acting as if the KO would be handed to him. Lauzon stayed composed, caught Guillard with left hookish punch, and used his "little jiu jitsu". The fight turned into a NAGA tournament after all. Perhaps these words, coming from Melvin himself, were karmic. Not respecting different aspects of MMA is the same as not respecting the different ways you can lose.
The other piece of the 155 coin was Anthony Pettis. He was given the perfect opponent: a fighter who would stand with him, and wouldn't be the wrestling threat like Clay Guida that was said to be his kryptonite. Pettis would end up 1-1 going into the 3rd, and Stephens made it a dog fight on the mat, where he scored takedowns with relative consistency.
It's as if Pettis took two steps back in his career. Unlike Guillard, Pettis didn't drop the ball completely. He won, and that's what matters. But with so much hype foisted upon him following his win over Henderson, and potential title shot looming on the horizon, the Pettis bubble feels like it has burst. As an optimist, I suspect a fight with Joe Lauzon will be just what Pettis needs to get everyone's attention again (in a fight I think he can and should win: Lauzon is still a front runner until he can prove otherwise).
Still, Lauzon wasn't even "in the mix" before the Guillard fight. Which means Clay Guida vs. Ben Henderson will be official contenders assuming Gilbert Melendez doesn't receive the shot first.
The Melendez fight is the one Dana seems to want. But in talking to Ariel Helwani, the fact that he's in Strikeforce with a title defense scheduled for December might make things difficult. Dana White has been known to change his mind, and so I wouldn't be surprised if he's waiting for either Guida or Henderson to look impressive in order to reach a decision.
I wasn't actually disappointed, for my part. Even in a lackluster fight, Pettis is still engaging to watch. And I think a return to Jacksons can put Guillard back on track. But perhaps even more bizarre is considering who has stood up in these tough times for LW. Stephens nearly replaced Pettis for contendership. Lauzon replaced Guillard. Henderson replaced Miller. Could Cerrone replace Siver at UFC 137? Could Dos Anjos, having replaced George Sotiropoulas, get into this mix with a win over Tibau? The lightweight division is still a mess, but what a glorious mess it is.
Posted in: fight, petti, dana, guillard, lauzon
Read the full article at Head Kick LegendUFC 136 ‘Edgar vs. Maynard 3′ Post-Fight News & Notes
Rundown of post-fight news and notes from UFC 136…
— 16,164 fans filled the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas for a $2.2 million live gate.
— Frankie Edgar was awarded the Knockout of the Night bonus for finishing off Gray Maynard in the fourth round. Joe Lauzon was given the Submission of the Night bonus for choking out Melvin Guillard in under a minute. Nam Phan and Leonard Garcia picked up Fight of the Night honors for another thrilling bout. Each bonus was worth $75,000.
— Dana White made a strong push to sell Frankie Edgar as the #2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world following his come-from-behind victory over Gray Maynard in last night’s main event, telling reporters that if they don’t agree, “you’re wrong, I’m right.”
“That’s movie s–t. That doesn’t happen in real life,” White said of Edgar’s performance during the event’s postfight press conference. “There are only two guys I’ve seen do that: Arturo Gatti and [Edgar]. He has a heart the size of this room, and that’s not promoter bulls–t.
“He’s the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and the only thing keeps him from being No. 1 is Anderson Silva,” White asserted. “You can’t deny Frankie is No. 2. I don’t give a s–t what anybody else says. Tonight, he beat a guy who had him out of it — a guy who many people believe had his number — and he knocked him out. I’ve never seen s–t like that in my life.”
Despite the commendation, Dana actually wants to see Edgar move down to 145 and fight Jose Aldo.
“Honestly, I’d like to see [Edgar] move to 145 and fight Aldo… All these other guys that [Edgar] fights are so much bigger than him,” White said. “I think that fighting out of your weight class isn’t healthy. I don’t think it’s healthy long-term.
“I don’t think that guys that fight out of their weightclass and fight a weightclass above them and take damage can have the longevity that other fighters can have. I think when you fight with guys that are your own size, you don’t take the punishment that you take when you fight bigger guys.”
Dana conceded however that he can’t make Edgar do it, especially when he’s having so much success at lightweight. Plus, Edgar doesn’t seem too interested since he’s the lightweight champion, so don’t expect that anytime soon.
“Here I am. I’m the champion,” he said. “It’s definitely a nice option to be able to go down and possibly fight at 145 in the future, but I’m comfortable right now. I could talk some ideas over with Dana and Lorenzo [Fertitta] and see what they think, but I’m comfortable at 155. I’m the champion. I don’t see any reason to go anywhere.”
As for what we can expect, it’s looking like the Ben Henderson vs. Clay Guida winner is the most likely option for Edgar. Gilbert Melendez would be ideal if you ask me. He really wants the fight, but it sounds like talks with Showtime might prevent that from happening.
— The third time was not the charm for Kenny Florian last night. Florian came up short once again in his bid for a UFC title. When asked if he knew what was next, Kenny said he wasn’t sure.
“Not right now,” Florian answered when asked if he had planned his next move. “I haven’t really thought past this fight, so we’ll see what happens.”
“Obviously, I’m disappointed,” Florian said. “I fought very hard. I trained extremely hard. I wasn’t successful. That’s it.”
Dana White was much more complimentary following this loss than the last. It will be up to Kenny to figure out what he truly wants, but he does have other options outside of fighting if he decides he doesn’t have another run in him.
— Chad Mendes will likely be Jose Aldo’s next challenger for the UFC featherweight title.
— If you haven’t seen it yet, Chael Sonnen laid down the ultimate challenge to Anderson Silva following his dominating win over Brian Stann last night.
“Anderson Silva, you absolutely suck. Super Bowl weekend … the biggest rematch in the history of the sport. I’m calling you out, Silva, but we’re upping the stakes. I beat you, you leave the division. You beat me, I’ll leave the UFC forever.”
It was a bold move that could ultimately backfire in a big way, but Sonnen seems intent on going through with it.
“As far as Anderson goes, we’re playing for keeps this time,” Sonnen said. “I’ve had it with this guy. He’s probably had it with me, so let’s just figure this thing out once and for all. You heard what I said, and my word is good.
“I’d of … shoved that microphone up his ass if he would have said that to me. You saw what he did. He sat there, and it was a good move.”
“I’m after 12 pounds of gold, and as far as I’m concerned, that belt is worth nothing more than a piece of tin when it’s around [Silva's] waist,” Sonnen said. “I am the true middleweight champion.”
Dana White wouldn’t commit to the rematch, but later told Ariel Helwani that he would be stupid not to book it. Dana thinks Super Bowl weekend is a great idea, but wouldn’t commit to that either. The only problem with Super Bowl weekend is that card will be in Las Vegas and Sonnen still has licensing issues to work out in Nevada. There’s no word yet on what the NSAC thinks about that, but I’m sure we’ll hear from Keith Kizer sooner rather than later.
Other venue ideas floated at the press conference for the rematch included Cowboys Stadium and the 100,000 seat stadium in Brazil. Dana acknowledged Cowboys Stadium could be a possibility, but said he was worried he wouldn’t get Sonnen out alive if he took him to Brazil.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Posted in: fight, night, guy, dana, edgar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC 136 ‘Edgar vs. Maynard 3′ Post-Fight Interview: Dana White
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White following UFC 136 to talk about the event, Strikeforce and Jon Jones vs. Lyoto Machida.
Posted in: ufc, vs, dana, lyoto machida, machida
Read the full article at MMA ConvertWatch Dana White Unveil The Undisputed 3 Cover
Watch UFC President Dana White reveal the new cover athlete for UFC Undisputed 3 today on HeavyMMA.com at 1:30 p.m. ET
Posted in: ufc, dana, today, president, athlete
Read the full article at Heavy MMAWhite talks UFC 136 with Sportsnet
UFC president Dana White shares his thoughts with Sportsnet on the main events at UFC 136.
Posted in: ufc, dana, thought, sportsnet, share
Read the full article at sportsnet.ca‘Showtime Either Wants to be in Business with Us or They Don’t’ – Dana White (video)
UFC president Dana White has thrown the ball to Showtime, declaring, "Either you want to be in this business or you don't."
Posted in: business, dana, showtime, ball, ‘ showtime
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyDana White Talks UFC 136, Middleweight & Lightweight Title Pictures, Gilbert Melendez, Matt Hughes, Dual Events & More
Rundown of news and notes from Dana White’s chat with reporters following today’s UFC 136 press conference. Also, Dana White’s interviews with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani and Heavy.com’s Megan Olivi.
— Dana White doesn’t seem to mind that Spike TV is countering their UFC on FOX debut and other shows down the road. The way he sees it, whether fans are watching his programming live or taped it’s all good for him as long they’re watching his programming. Not sure FOX would agree, especially if Spike digs into their ratings, but Dana doesn’t hold any ill will towards Spike he says.
— Strikeforce’s fate has either been decided or is very close to being decided. Dana says Lorenzo Fertitta was in New York today talking to Showtime about Strikeforce’s future on their network. He planned to talk to him about it when he got done with all the media interviews today. Sounds like we’ll find out very soon.
— There isn’t going to be a Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard IV regardless of how the fight turns out Saturday night.
“(Let’s) put it behind us,” White today said at a pre-event press conference in support of Saturday’s fight, which takes place at Houston’s Toyota Center. “This division is stacked with tons of talent, and there’s a lot of good fights to make at 155.”
Dana isn’t sure who’s next but maintained that Gilbert Melendez and Melvin Guillard are definite possibilities along with others like Clay Guida and Ben Henderson. He says he’ll “yank” Melendez over to the UFC if he has to, but thinks that Melendez would be better served to do a tune-up fight to shake off the UFC jitters before fighting for the title.
— Matt Hughes will be flying to Vegas soon to meet with Dana White regarding his future. Dana thinks Hughes should retire but he fully expects Hughes to fight him on it.
“It doesn’t matter what he says and what he wants to do; Hughes is going to be with us forever,” White said. “Whether he talks me into doing [a fight] one more time – which I prefer he didn’t; I’d rather he didn’t – I’d really like to see him retire. I get to his point with these guys – him, Chuck Liddell, these guys who dominated all these years and were such a large part of us growing. (I’m like), ‘Why? What’s next?’
“Matt Hughes, believe me when I tell you, he doesn’t need money. He’s set. He doesn’t ever need to work again. He doesn’t need to fight again. He has plenty of money.”
“He’s the worst,” White joked. “He’s the absolute worst. The worst. When I go in and give bonuses to all the fighters at the end (of an event), he’s always negotiating in there for everybody. On ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ he was always arguing for money for the guys. He was the worst.
“So yeah, if he wants to keep fighting. it’s not going to be a fun conversation. He’s going to be negotiating and busting my balls and everything else. I’d love to see him just hang it up now. We’ll do something else together. He doesn’t need to fight anymore. I don’t want to see it anymore.”
I have to agree with Dana on that one, but I doubt Hughes will. I bet we’ll see him in a couple more.
— Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz may still meet in a welterweight title fight if they walk away winners at UFC 137, but GSP and BJ Penn probably won’t if they both win. Dana White doesn’t think anyone wants to see them fight a third time.
“This is one of those situations where we were talking about if Chael [Sonnen] or [Brian] Stann should win, this is different. I don’t know how many people are clamoring to see B.J. versus GSP again. But if Nick [Daiz] should win [against Penn at UFC 137], I think that’s a fight that people want to see.”
Yeah, I don’t think that fight’s necessary.
— Dana White confirmed that Chael Sonnen, Dan Henderson and Brian Stann are all in the running to fight Anderson Silva next. The Sonnen-Stann winner will certainly be an option, but so will Dan Henderson if he beats Shogun Rua at UFC 139.
“Should Dan win, he’s definitely one of the guys that could go take that fight,” White said today following a UFC 136 pre-event press conference.
“How could you feel that if Sonnen wins, he deserves a shot at the title, but if not Stann doesn’t?” White asked. “Stann’s been on a tear. He beat some good guys and looked good doing it – (Chris) Leben, (Jorge) Santiago and now Chael? That would be tough to deny him.”
I guess my question is why would Dan Henderson get a title shot at middleweight when he’s been competing at light heavyweight (and heavyweight) for the past three fights (four if you count Shogun). The last time he fought at middleweight he lost to Jake Shields. Shouldn’t be in the running for the light heavyweight title?
— Dana backtracked a little bit on the dual Japan/Vegas event night next Feb. in the interview with Megan Olivi below. He says it’s not in stone just yet, but says those type of dual US/International event nights will happen.
Posted in: ufc, fight, hughe, dana, doesn
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White: "There's a fine line between stopping too early and stopping too late. I'll take stop too early every time"
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Posted in: time, dana, line, emoticon
Read the full article at Reddit
Credeur Injured, Tavares Takes on Jacoby Oct. 29
The UFC 137 fight card has undergone yet one more revision with Tim Credeur being forced to withdraw due to injury, UFC president Dana White announced today. His opponent Brad Tavares will instead face UFC newcomer Dustin Jacoby, a 6-0 middleweight out of Springfield, Illinois. Camozzi Returns to the UFC Against Francis Carmont updated September 12A UFC newcomer faces a returning veteran as Francis "Limitless" Carmont and TUF alumni Chris Camozzi will go to war at UFC 137. Carmont, a French striker who trains with event headliner Georges St-Pierre in Montreal, has long fought at light heavyweight but will make his promotional debut at 185 pounds against the TUF alumnus.Musical Chairs at UFC 137 - Diaz vs. Penn Set for Vegas updated September 8If UFC fans didn't get enough blockbuster news this week, company President Dana White delivered some more Thursday evening with the announcement that Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz is not only remaining in the UFC fold after being pulled from his UFC 137 title bout with Georges St-Pierre (due to missing two pre-fight press conferences this week) but that he will still be fighting on October 29th. The opponent for the Stockton native's first Octagon bout since 2006? Former two division world champion BJ Penn. The bout came to fruition after Penn's original foe for the UFC 137 event in Las Vegas, Carlos Condit, was moved up to replace Diaz against GSP. And by popular demand, White made the new bout happen, tweeting "This is crazy but here we go again! You wanted it so you got it. Penn vs Diaz Oct 29th in Vegas."Diaz Out, Condit in to Face GSPA wild week for the Ultimate Fighting Championship just got wilder on
Wednesday afternoon, as UFC President Dana White revealed in a Las Vegas
press conference that the man challenging for UFC welterweight champion
Georges St-Pierre’s title on October 29th in Las Vegas won’t be
Strikeforce 170-pound king Nick Diaz, but “The Natural Born Killer,”
Carlos Condit.
The shocking news came after Diaz no-showed a press conference in
Toronto Tuesday and did the same thing in Vegas. And after not returning
phone calls, White decided to pull the Stockton, California native from
the main event of UFC 137.Cowboy in for Stout, Faces Siver at UFC 137 updated August 29After the Monday removal of Sam Stout from his UFC 137 bout with Dennis Siver, rising lightweight star Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone has stepped up to the plate yet again, verbally agreeing to take on the streaking contender from Germany in the October 29th bout in Las Vegas. Cerrone is currently riding a five fight winning streak that includes three UFC victories and two post-fight awards for KO of the Night and Fight of the Night. Siver has notched four straight wins, and is coming off back-to-back victories over George Sotiropoulos and Matt Wiman.Curran's Back, Meets "Young Guns" at UFC 137
After a seven year absence, veteran Jeff Curran will return to the Octagon on October 29th in Las Vegas to take on bantamweight contender Scott "Young Guns" Jorgensen at UFC 137. Curran, whose last UFC appearance was a decision loss to Matt Serra at UFC 46, has since gone 19-6 and is remembered for a five fight WEC stint in 2007-09. The "Big Frog" has won four of his last five, but will be tested by former WEC title challenger Jorgensen, who is fresh from a first round knockout of Ken Stone in June.Fan Faves Danny Boy and Stripper Ramsey to Fight
A lightweight match between the tough-as-nails Daniel "Danny Boy" Downes and TUF 13 runner-up Ramsey Nijem has been verbally agreed to for the UFC 137 fight card, UFC president Dana White confirmed today.Crazy Tim to Face Tavares at 137 July 21Verbal agreements are in for a middleweight bout between "Crazy" Tim Credeur vs. Brad Tavares at UFC 137, Dana White confirmed.Credeur — Louisiana’s first Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt — hit the public eye as a member of the TUF 7 house; Hawaiian Tavares was a season 11 standout. At that same event, two longtime veterans will look to establish themselves in the ever-deepening featherweight division as Bart Palaszewski and Tyson Griffin have verbally agreed to meet.Siver vs. Stout, Fire vs. Truth at UFC 137 updated July 16UFC president Dana White today confirmed a hotly-speculated-about lightweight bout to take place at UFC 137. “A potential Fight of the Year candidate has been verbally agreed to between hard-hitting Dennis Siver and Sam "Hands of Stone" Stout," he said. Also at UFC 137, a light heavyweight matchup has been verbally agreed to as Eliot "The Fire" Marshall will welcome Brandon "The Truth" Vera back to the Octagon.Condit vs. Penn Added to UFC 137 updated July 15The title fight between GSP and Nick Diaz won't be the only showcase for elite 170-pounders this fall in Las Vegas. A match between two of the best welterweights in the world has been set as "Natural Born Killer" Carlos Condit will take on BJ "The Prodigy" Penn at UFC 137.The two hinted at the matchup on Twitter this last week. Condit, who is coming off a first-round KO of the Night victory over the previously-undefeated Dong Hyun Kim, tweeted to Penn on Monday that "The people have spoken @bjpenndotcom, they want to see us scrap, let's give em what they asked for."Penn - who had previously been exchanging barbs with Jon Fitch about a possible rematch of their UFC 127 main event draw, responded with: "@CarlosCondit Yup. Let's do it! October 29th." Dana White confirmed today that both men have verbally accepted the bout.Cro Cop/Big Country, Kongo/Mitrione This Oct. updated July 14Roy "Big Country" Nelson and Mirko Cro Cop, fan favorites for both their in-cage performances and their out-of-ring personas, have agreed a Las Vegas battle this fall. UFC president Dana White confirmed today that PRIDE legend Cro Cop and TUF winner Nelson have verbally agreed to a heavyweight matchup at UFC 137 on October 29.Those aren't the only star heavyweights on the UFC 137 roster - White also confirmed today that Cheick Kongo and Matt Mitrione have agreed to a bout on the same card. "Both men are coming off big knockout wins at UFC Live in June," he said.Roop to Welcome Hioki to Octagon at 137 updated June 1Highly regarded featherweight phenom Hatsu Hioki lands in the Octagon on October 29th to begin his quest for the title. Welcoming him to UFC and looking to take out another top contender will be the always dangerous George Roop. Both fighters have verbally agreed to the UFC 137 bout.GSP vs. Diaz Superfight set for October updated June 1UFC President Dana White’s tweet Wednesday afternoon was short and sweet – “U wanted it! U GOT IT!!!” What the fans wanted was a showdown between UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre and the STRIKEFORCE welterweight title holder, Nick Diaz. So on October 29 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, the UFC 137 Superfight becomes a reality. Unbeaten since 2007, St-Pierre has taken on and beaten all comers, barely losing a round in the process. Since regaining his title from Matt Serra in 2008, he has turned back the challenges of Jon Fitch, BJ Penn, Thiago Alves, Dan Hardy, Josh Koscheck, and Jake Shields. But this fall, he will face off against the man many believe has the style to dethrone him, Shields’ longtime training partner Diaz. A proud native of Stockton, California, Diaz, like GSP, has not lost since 2007. Along the way, the UFC vet has defeated Frank Shamrock, Scott Smith, Mach Sakurai, KJ Noons, and Paul Daley, and with his world-class striking skills and jiu-jitsu game improving with each fight, he is on track to shock the world on October 29th.
Posted in: ufc, diaz, dana, vega, october
Read the full article at UFCKurt Angle Responds to Dana White, Claims He Never Made Original Statements
The Kurt Angle saga continues. Originally it started with an Angle interview with a UK publication, where he said that Dana White wanted him to fight Kimbo Slice on a UFC pay-per-view on less than five weeks notice. White was asked about it and said that was not true, and that Angle had actually been offered a slot on The Ultimate Fighter 10, but failed his medicals. Sounds a lot more plausible than a PPV fight on short notice for someone that's never competed in MMA, right? Well, Mr. Angle responded on twitter today, and he's being even more bizarre than usual:
@anglefoods1Kurt Angle I wish the Some Media stop the untrue Press between Dana White and Myself.Yes, Dana and I Met twice. But We never discussed a Ppv with KimboOct 03 via txtFavoriteRetweetReply
@anglefoods1Kurt Angle What was talked about between Dana and I are Between Dana and I. I Love Dana and Will not Say things that Were untrue. Just drop It, pleaseOct 03 via txtFavoriteRetweetReply
So, let's get this straight. Angle tells an interviewer what Dana requested of him (and even says he passed his medicals). White says he's full of it. Angle then says he never said anything like that and he wouldn't talk about what he and Dana discussed. Hmm. Unless the interview is a fake, which it clearly doesn't appear to be...Kurt Angle appears to have truth issues.
Posted in: dana, angle, weeks notice, truth issues, be...kurt angle
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: The mob changed my life
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Posted in: dana, life, war, mob
Read the full article at RedditDana White Talks UFC on Versus 6, Dual Event Nights, Bob Arum & Rampage Boxing
NBC Sports’ Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White following UFC on Versus 6. Dana talked a little bit about the event before explaining how dual event nights would work. Basically, they will only do it with a US show and an international show, never with two US shows on the same night. The international shows will air on live TV and lead into the US pay-per-views. Dana says both cards would be “stacked”, but then asked when have they ever not put on a “stellar” show, so take that for what it’s worth. Dana then went off on a long rant about boxing promoter Bob Arum and doesn’t think Rampage will ever leave the UFC for boxing. Dana says all the boxers not named Mayweather, Pacquiao or Klitscko want to fight in the UFC because they’re all so starving in boxing. In other words, the grass is not as green on the other side as some of these fighters think it is.
Posted in: ufc, boxing, dana, bob arum, event nights
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC on Versus 6 Post-Fight News & Notes: Dana White Wants Gilbert Melendez In The UFC ASAP
Rundown of post-fight news and notes from UFC on Versus 6…
— 9,380 UFC fans came out to the Verizon Center in Washington DC last for a $706,775 live gate. Both numbers set new attendance and live gate records for the UFC on Versus series.
— Matt Wiman and Mac Danizg took home $65,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their dogfight. Stefan Struve picked up Submission of the Night honors for tapping out Pat Barry with a triangle choke. Anthony Johnson was awarded the KO bonus for brutally kicking Charlie Brenneman in the face.
— A broken hand didn’t stop bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz from defending his title against Demetrious Johnson last night. That’s right, Cruz broke his hand during the fight, but you wouldn’t know it if you relied on Cruz to tell you. Dana White had to break the news following the fight.
“You know one of the things I respect about the kid?” UFC president Dana White openly pondered. “He’s got a broken hand and had one the entire fight. He broke his (left) hand and is going to have surgery. Not only did he not stop fighting and keep coming up 100 percent, he doesn’t even [expletive] say anything about it.
“He goes through an entire press conference and doesn’t say anything about his hand.”
Cruz shrugged it off like it was no big deal, but the injury will require surgery. His timetable for return is unknown.
In the meantime, his next challenger will likely be decided when Urijah Faber and Brian Bowles meet at UFC 139.
— The UFC is getting very close to adding a flyweight division. As Dana White explained, you may see some familiar faces from TUF 14 on the flyweight roster in addition to UFC newcomers. One fighter you won’t see at 125 anytime soon though is Demetrious Johnson. Despite the loss last night, Johnson is determined to get better and make his way back up the bantamweight ladder.
“I’m focused more at 135,” Johnson said. “I know I lost, but I’m happy where I’m at, and I still think I can be champion at 135. I’m going to go home and fix a lot of things and keep climbing back to the top of that mountain.”
It’s still unclear exactly when the flyweight division will be implemented, but if the UFC is going to run as many shows as they say they in 2012, we’ll probably see it sometime next year if not before.
— There was a little controversy last night surrounding the Anthony Johnson vs. Charlie Brenneman stoppage. If you missed it, Johnson blasted Brenneman with a nasty kick right to the mouth off a scramble. It should have knocked him out, but amazingly Brenneman was still conscious when he landed and appeared to be in position to defend himself from his back. It didn’t matter though, because referee Mario Yamasaki called the fight as soon as the kick landed which led many to believe the fight was stopped prematurely. When asked about it the press conference, neither Johnson or Dana thought there was anything wrong with it.
“Yamasaki is a good ref, so whatever he decided to do didn’t bother me,” Johnson shrugged.
“I agree 100 percent with that stoppage,” [Dana] said. “He was on crazy legs before the kick to the head happened. And again, there’s a fine line between stopped too early and stopped too late, and I’ll takes stopped too early every time. I thought he was hurt before the kick to the face.
“And that was a kick to the face.”
Yes, it was.
— Regarding the simultaneous Japan/Las Vegas events the UFC has planned for next February, Dana White clarified that the Japan card would air on live TV before the Vegas show goes live on pay-per-view.
“It’s going to happen,” White said. “It’ll be live in Japan and live in the United States. The fight in Japan would go live on free TV before the (Las Vegas) pay-per-view.”
Dana says both cards will be “stacked.”
— And last but not least, Dana White revealed last night that’s he’s working on bringing Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez over to the UFC.
“Yeah, we do want to bring Gilbert Melendez over, and we’re looking at it right now,” White said following Saturday’s UFC on Versus 6 event at Washington, D.C.’s Verizon Center. “We’re looking to bring Gilbert Melendez over ASAP.”
Melendez was expected to defend his Strikeforce title in December against Jorge Masvidal, but that seems to be in question now. Dana says an immediate title shot is a possibility if the timing works out, but it’s too early to tell right now.
Image via Tracy Lee for Yahoo! Sports
Posted in: ufc, fight, night, dana, johnson
Read the full article at MMA ConvertIt’s Not True, It’s Damn Not True: Dana White Confirms TUF 10 Offer to Kurt Angle, but That’s It
UFC President Dana White talks about offering Kurt Angle a spot during TUF 10, but that's as far as any negotiations went with the longtime WWE and TNA wrestler.
Posted in: dana, tuf, angle, kurt angle, tna wrestler
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyUFC Planning to Run Simultaneous Shows In February
It seems that Dana White has ambitious plans for the future. At Tuesday's press conference for UFC 139, White mentioned to Dave Meltzer of Yahoo Sports that they were going to do something they've never done before - run simultaneous shows. One overseas, and one in their backyard:
"When we go to Japan next year, we are going to be putting on a show at the same time in Las Vegas."
Definitely an interesting concept, but how would it be aired? Meltzer covered that one too:
When asked how the company was going to handle a dual-show evening from a television standpoint, White just smiled and said, "You’ll see."
While Dana didn't give a firm date, it's all but confirmed that the Japan show will take place on February 26th at Saitama Super Arena. It's unlikely that the shows would run at exactly the same time to time differences, but they could be packaged together as one broadcast. Both wrestling and boxing have used variations of that theme for pay-per-view events before. I'm not quite sure how the logistics would work out, but it's an interesting concept, and one that Dana says will continue in the future as well:
"We’ll be doing a lot of that in the future," White said.
Posted in: time, dana, las vegas, future, firm date
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowUFC 136 Main Card gets Jolt with Addition of Garcia-Phan Rematch
With Dave Herman forced to withdraw from his UFC 136 bout against Mike Russow, the long-awaited rematch between featherweight standouts Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan has been bumped to the main card on October 8th in Houston, making this Pay-Per-View event one of the most stacked and action-packed of 2011.Red Schafer Returns Against Aaron Simpson at UFC® 136 in HoustonWith Nick Catone injured, UFC veteran Eric "Red" Schafer has been tapped to return to the Octagon against Aaron Simpson next month. Former light heavyweight Schafer made a successful middleweight debut and will re-test his new weight class against the always-tough Simpson at UFC 136 in Houston.Grice Injured, Garcia and Phan Get Rematch updated September 7Matt Grice is out of his scheduled UFC bout on October 8th with Nam Phan due to injury, but Leonard Garcia has quickly stepped in to fill the spot and verbal agreements are in place, confirmed UFC president Dana White today. Garcia and Phan previously battled to what many considered the most controversial decision of 2010, with Garcia taking home the W at the TUF 12 Finale last December. Their first rematch was postponed due to Phan's injury. Now, they will finally meet once again to settle the score.It's the second change to the featherweight bout - Grice was originally slated to face Josh Grispi at UFC 136, but Grispi was forced to withdraw, sending Phan into the Houston lineup. The Wolf Faces The Damage in H-Town updated August 18Verbal agreements are in for a third featherweight scrap on the stacked Houston fight card. "China’s best prospect, Tiequan Zhang, makes his return to the Octagon vs. the always-tough Darren Elkins at UFC 136," said UFC president Dana White.Elkins most recently scored a hard-fought decision over Japanese judoka Michihiro Omigawa. Zhang's last bout was a first-round submission of Jason Reinhardt at UFC 127. Tickets for UFC 136 may be purchased today using the pre-sale password HOUSTON at ToyotaCenterTickets.com.Grispi Out, Phan in for Grice at UFC 136 updated August 12Fresh from his exciting UFC 133 scrap with Mike Brown, The Ultimate Fighter's Nam Phan is back in October, replacing Josh Grispi against always tough Matt Grice."Josh Grispi had to withdraw from UFC 136 in Houston, but the always ready Nam Phan is stepping up and taking his place vs Matt Grice on October 8th," said UFC President Dana White. "Both fighters have verbally agreed to the featherweight matchup."Massenzio and Cantwell to meet in Houston
Mike Massenzio and Steve Cantwell will look to get back to their winning ways this October at UFC 136“Verbal agreements are in for a middleweight match between two former light heavyweights, Mike ‘The Master of Disaster’ Massenzio and Steve ‘The Robot’ Cantwell at UFC 136 October 8,” said UFC President Dana White. Beltran to Welcome Newcomer Miocic at UFC 136Following his impressive third round TKO of Aaron Rosa at UFC 131 in June, "The Mexicutioner," Joey Beltran, will look to spoil the debut of another newcomer, as he has agreed to face off against unbeaten prospect Stipe Miocic in UFC 136 action in Houston on October 8th.Miocic comes to the UFC with a 6-0 record that includes five knockouts and one submission. A former Division I wrestler for Cleveland State and a Golden Gloves champ, Miocic will be put to the test by the heavy hands, granite chin, and relentless pressure of Beltran,who is 3-2 in his UFC stint thus far. Wrestlers Catone and Simpson Meet in HoustonTwo of the middleweight division's finest wrestlers, New Jersey's Nick Catone and Arizona's Aaron Simpson, will try to keep their winning streaks intact when they meet at UFC 136 on October 8th.Jeremy Stephens vs. Anthony Pettis at UFC 136 updated July 16Two of the most exciting fighters in the lightweight division will face off as verbal agreements are in for Jeremy "Lil' Heathen" Stephens VS Anthony "Showtime" Pettis at UFC 136, UFC president Dana White confirmed today.Two Title Fights in Texas This Fall updated July 15The featherweight world title will be on the line October 8th at UFC 136 in Houston, TX with Jose Aldo vs. Kenny Florian. Reigning champion Jose Aldo looks to continue his incredible six-year unbeaten streak and total divisional dominance. Coming off his featherweight debut in June, KenFlo has already taken out one of the division’s absolute best, Diego Nunes. In his fourth weight class since joining the UFC, Florian is gunning for the pound-for-pound contender. Both fighters have verbally committed to the bout.UFC President Dana White has also made another title bout official for that same event – Frankie Edgar has verbally agreed to defend his UFC lightweight title against the only man to beat him, as well as the number one contender who held him to a classic draw in January, Gray Maynard. The bout will be the main event at UFC 136 in Houston, Texas on October 8th.Also on that card, lightweight fan favorites and TUF alumni Joe Lauzon and Melvin Guillard have verbally agreed to meet.
Both men scored blitz first-round wins in the last month - Guillard via
KO over Shane Roller at UFC 132 and Lauzon via kimura over Curt Warburton at UFC Live. "One way or another, someone is getting hurt,' said Lauzon in a blog post about the matchup. "I’m sure he will be looking for the knockout bonus, and I will be looking for the submission bonus. This fight is guaranteed excitement."Maia vs. Santiago in Houston Battle of BraziliansFight fans in Texas will get to see two of the
best ground specialists in the world at work in October. "Two top Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts go to war in order to move back up the middleweight rankings as Jorge Santiago and Demian Maia have verbally agreed to fight at UFC 136 in Houston, TX," said Dana White today.Heavyweights, Featherweights Booked for UFC 136 updated July 1421-2 Dave 'Pee Wee' Herman and 14-1 Mike Russow have verbally agreed to a heavyweight showdown at UFC 136 in Houston this fall, confirmed UFC president Dana White today. Both men are unbeaten inside the Octagon. Herman made his UFC debut in June with a Fight of the Night win over John-Olav Einemo at UFC 131. Russow's most recent victories were a TKO over Jon Madsen and a memorable third-round comeback KO of Todd Duffee.Also on that card, featherweights Josh Grispi vs Matt Grice have verbally agreed to fight each other. Sonnen vs. Stann Coming in October updated July 6At UFC 136 in October, middleweight contender Chael Sonnen will return to the Octagon for the first time since his epic 2010 battle with Anderson Silva to take on the “All-American” Brian Stann in a bout verbally agreed to Wednesday. Sonnen
was less than two minutes away from defeating Silva and winning the
185-pound title at UFC 117 last August before being submitted by the
champion. Stann is on a 3-0 run at middleweight, with a submission of Mike Massenzio and knockouts of Chris Leben and Jorge Santiago.
Posted in: ufc, houston, dana, october, phan
Read the full article at UFCDana White: UFC Planning Simultaneous Events Next Year
Dana White: World Conqueror
Many people have questioned if the UFC overexposes themselves by running too many events. After all, hardly a weekend goes by anymore when there isn’t a UFC or Strikeforce event happening somewhere.
Well, no matter what the critics say, Dana White thinks that idea is preposterous. Every time someone asks him that question, he says they need more, more, more, not less.
So much more in fact, Dana told Yahoo! Sports that they’re going to start running two shows in two separate parts of the world on the same night as early as next Feb. when they go to Japan.
“When we go to Japan next year, we are going to be putting on a show at the same time in Las Vegas,” he said.
While he didn’t confirm the date, UFC is scheduled for a show on Feb. 26 at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan. The show would take place in the early afternoon in Japan, so it would air in the U.S. on Feb. 25, a Saturday night, live in the usual 9 p.m. Eastern pay-per-view time slot.
When asked how the company was going to handle a dual-show evening from a television standpoint, White just smiled and said, “You’ll see.”
“We’ll be doing a lot of that in the future,” White said.
I’m not gonna lie, I’m already pretty burnt out by all the shows Zuffa is running now, so this simultaneous events idea really doesn’t excite me. But, I also have to cover all these shows (with Jim’s much appreciated help), so I’m coming from a different perspective than the average fan.
So I’ll ask you: Is two UFC shows in one night overkill? Or the more the better?
Posted in: ufc, event, dana, japan, feb
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White Talks Shogun vs. Hendo, UFC Japan and Debut on Fox
MMAWeekly.com caught up with UFC President Dana White after the UFC 139 press conference for an exclusive one on one video interview.
Posted in: ufc, conference, dana, ufc japan, video interview
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyKurt Angle: Dana White wanted me to fight Kimbo Slice on pay-per-view
It's true ... it's damn true.
At least in the mind of Olympic gold medalist and longtime professional wrestler Kurt Angle, who continues to talk mixed martial arts while promoting his role in the "Warrior" movie that's currently fading away at the box office.
Angle, a headliner for Impact! Wrestling, formerly known as Total Nonstop Action (TNA), definitely has the credentials to make a name for himself inside the Octagon. After all, who wouldn’t want to have an Olympic gold medalist on their roster?
You know, assuming you could overlook his history of pill-popping and drunk driving.
In a conversation with The Void, the Pittsburgh native reveals his "trials" to get into MMA and the offers that were given to him by UFC President Dana White, including a pay-per-view slot against bearded brawler Kimbo Slice.
"I’ve tried out five times; let me tell you what happened.I met with the IFL, I met with Pro VFC, I met with Pride, I met with the UFC twice, and the reason I did not sign with any of them was, the three other companies weren’t paying me near what UFC was offering, so there was a money issue; then, the UFC, who I would have signed with in a second -- and I passed their physical, thank God -- wanted me to start just four-and-a-half weeks later. No way. I had to do what they wanted under their terms. Me trying out for the Olympics is under my terms. I choose my weight class, how I’m gonna train, who I’m gonna train with, and that the US Open is when I’m gonna start. It was hard because I love Dana White and I respect him a lot. The first time I met him he wouldn’t let me wrestle and fight, and I had just signed with TNA, and I didn’t want to go back to TNA and say 'Hey, I’m not doing this now…' so he said 'call me when you’re done wrestling.' I called him a couple of years later – I was getting a little tired of wrestling – I said 'Hey, I’m ready,' so we had another meeting and he had me do a physical, and he threw a great offer at me, but said 'I need you in four and a half weeks.' I said 'I can’t do that. You’ve gotta give me 3-6 months,' but he said 'I need you in four a half weeks,' so I said 'Well then; we’re not going to be able to do this.' We didn’t talk for a while, but now we’re back to being good friends. The reason Dana White wanted me so quickly though, is because he wanted to put me in the next available pay-per-view against Kimbo Slice."
Very odd matchmaking if the fight would have went down.
Angle, a superior wrestler against a "one trick pony" in Kimbo Slice, probably wouldn’t have made for the most exciting match; however, it’s interesting to see that Dana White and the ZUFFA brass may have actually been considering this.
Though far from a freak show, the matchmaking probably would have left some people scratching their heads.
Fans who have been anticipating Kurt Angle's MMA debut may have to keep on holding their breath as the 42-year-old wrestling guru recently revealed he signed a new three-year deal with Impact.
Anyone buying what Angle is selling? Or is he a gold medalist in tall tales as well as wrestling?
Posted in: dana, &rsquo, i &rsquo, angle, wouldn &rsquo
Read the full article at MMA ManiaLarry Merchant Reacts To Dana White's Insults, Respects UFC's Street Fighting Revenue
UFC president Dana White recently took the time to throw a few jabs the way of HBO's Larry Merchant for the commentator's post-fight interview-turned-argument with Floyd Mayweather, Jr. White said that HBO should fire the "senile" Merchant for his actions.
Merchant recently responded to the situation, giving his opinion of White and the UFC to Boxing Scene.
On Dana:
"Let's see, anyone who can make a multimillion dollar business out of street fighting has to be respected." Merchant opened up during our recent conversation. "My opinion is that anyone is allowed to put up a tent, put on a show, and invite people to come. And obviously he's had a lot of success. Good for him."
On MMA's appeal:
"I don't watch it. I don't get a so-called sport in which you can have a 6-2 record and be called a world champion. I just don't appreciate the finer points of MMA."
On Dana's criticism:
"It's a free country. I'm a commentator, and if I'm commenting and observing on others than how can I not be open to others observing and commenting on me?"
There will certainly be MMA fans who get mad that Merchant took a few shots at the sport. But he's an 80 year old man who has been involved with boxing for most of his life. He is not the target audience for the UFC and it's not crazy to think that the sport doesn't appeal to him.
Merchant is not everyone's cup of tea and he has certainly been out of line at times in his career. But I've always enjoyed that he isn't there to sell the fight or fighters, that's not his job. He does go too far trying to establish his own narratives on fights and can be overly negative much of the time.
He was "over the line" with Floyd after the fight to a degree, but again...he's 80 years old. I think Larry just doesn't have it in him to be pushed around by a guy like Floyd and he'd just as soon get into it with him and get fired than back down.
Posted in: ufc, larry merchant, sport, dana, merchant
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowNew Bantamweight Steps Up for Saturday
UFC president Dana White confirmed today that UFC Live fighter Jeff Hougland is sidelined due to injury and will not be able to face Washington D.C.'s own Mike Easton this Saturday night at the Verizon Center. Stepping up on short notice will be Georgia-based Byron Bloodworth. "Both bantamweights will be making their promotional debut in what is sure to be a fast-paced, high-energy battle."Fabio Maldonado Injured, Off UFC Live Card updated September 27Brazilian brawler Fabio Maldonado is injured and out of his scheduled October 1 light heavyweight fight against Aaron Rosa, UFC president Dana White revealed today. Wisniewski, Neer Return to UFC's Welterweight Division updated September 6“Two UFC veterans return to try to make a run in the welterweight division as Keith Wisniewski and Josh ‘The Dentist’ Neer have signed on to fight October 1st in Washington D.C," said UFC president Dana White.
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Also at that event, two new prospects enter the bantamweight division as Walel Watson will be taking on fellow newcomer Joseph Sandoval.Battle Between Rosa and Maldonado set for Oct. 1st updated August 17Expect a fight to remember when 205-pound bangers Aaron Rosa and Fabio Maldonado meet on October 1st.“Two exciting light heavyweight sluggers have verbally agreed to throw down October 1st in Washington D.C. as Aaron Rosa takes on Fabio Maldonado,” said UFC President Dana White.Grant Moves to 155, Faces Roller on October 1stCanadian standout TJ Grant will make his lightweight debut against Shane Roller in an October 1st bout verbally agreed to today. The match will take place at Verizon Center in Washington D.C.Edwards vs. Oliveira in DC October 1stLightweight veterans Yves Edwards and Rafaello Oliveira will square off in Washington DC on October 1st in a quest to get back in the win column after recent losses to Sam Stout and Gleison Tibau, respectively. This bout on the UFC Live card was verbally agreed to today.
"The Hulk" Easton Makes UFC Debut against Hougland in October
Winner of five in a row, bantamweight prospect Mike "The Hulk" Easton will return to competition for the first time since 2009 and he will do it in the UFC Octagon as he makes his debut in the organization against Jeff Hougland on October 1st's UFC Live on Versus card in Washington D.C. Easton, a stablemate of 135-pound champ Dominick Cruz, will be in tough against Hougland, who was successful in his UFC debut in July, defeating Donny Walker.Skyscraper vs. Pat Barry at UFC on Versus
“Verbal agreements are in for a titanic battle between Stefan ‘Skyscraper’ Struve and Pat ‘HD’ Barry October 1st on UFC Live On Versus,” said UFC president Dana White. At 6'11", Struve is the tallest fighter among UFC heavyweights, while Barry, a full foot shorter, clocks in as the division's shortest. Cruz Defends Bantam Belt Against "Mighty Mouse" on Oct. 1 updated July 21Following his exciting five round win over Urijah Faber in July that allowed him to avenge the only loss of his pro career, UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz will jump right back into the fire on Saturday, October 1st, as he defends his crown against number one contender Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. The bout, the first championship fight aired on free cable television since the UFC 75 match between Rampage Jackson and Dan Henderson in 2007, will be televised on Versus.Sass-Johnson added to UFC on Versus 6“Verbal agreements are in for a lightweight bout featuring English submission specialist Paul Sass vs. powerful wrestler and TUF 12 finalist Michael ‘The Menace’ Johnson," said UFC president Dana White today.Brenneman-Johnson and Danzig-Wiman Set for UFC on Versus updated July 16Coming off of his amazing late-notice victory over highly regarded Rick Story, Charlie "The Spaniard" Brenneman has verbally agreed to face one of the most powerful men in the welterweight division, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson. The bout will occur at this fall's UFC on Versus 6 event - the date and location will be announced in the coming weeks. Brenneman was originally on the June 26 UFC Live undercard and bumped to the co-main event on one day's notice when Nate Marquardt was unable to compete. He then fought and beat Story, who had been brought in weeks before to replace Johnson, the original headliner. Plus, in a rematch of their controversial fight from UFC 115, Ultimate Fighter winner Mac Danzig and "Handsome" Matt Wiman have agreed to fight on that same card, UFC president Dana White confirmed today. The lightweights' first outing ended prematurely after the referee mistakenly thought
Danzig had been rendered unconscious by a choke and
halted the bout. The rematch was originally set for last fall, but both men were forced to pull out due to injuries.
Posted in: ufc, washington, st, dana, october
Read the full article at UFCDana White Says He Will Work To Get 'Rampage' Jackson On Japan Card
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Posted in: rampage, jackson, dana, littlehos, japan card
Read the full article at RedditDana White ready to give Jon Jones “pound-for-pound” props
Consider Dana White among the numerous people beyond impressed by Jon Jones’ dismantling of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the main event last night at UFC 135.
White spoke about the wunderkind’s performance in the post-event press conference where he started things out by eating a bit of crow in regards to recent comments about Jones not being in the “pound-for-pound” discussion along with Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre.
“When I went into the ring (after the fight), he grabbed me and said, ‘Will you give me my pound-for-pound respect now?’ And I said, ‘I will shut the hell up now. You did it.’,” White joked.
“The great thing about (the outcome) is how serious ‘Rampage’ took this fight. He’s been up here in Denver for a long time…he was in great shape. His face was lean, he had abs. He came to win this fight. (Jackson) only cut six pounds for the fight the day of the weigh-ins which is incredible,” White continued. “Let me tell you what – Jon Jones is the man.”
As far as whom White feels could be the one to pose a serious challenge to Jones, the UFC President remained fairly neutral while giving credit to the light heavyweight division’s depth.
“The beauty of the 205-pound division is that it’s stacked. There’s a lot of tough guys out there. And I’ll tell you what, Rashad (Evans) just came off an awesome performance against Tito (Ortiz). He looked really good. Both these guys want this fight, there’s been a lot of smack-talk leading into this fight, and then we’ll see what happens with (Mauricio) “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson.”
However, White left the door open too in terms of Jones potentially cleaning house during a Silva-like run, saying he’s already talked to the 24-year old champion about possibly giving heavyweight a go in that type of scenario.
PHOTO CREDIT – UFCSimilar Posts:
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Mauricio “Shogun” Rua: I’d fight Anderson Silva; we were never friends
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Rashad Evans rumored as replacement for Thiago Silva at UFC 130
Tweetgovernment,politics news,politics news,politics
Posted in: ufc, fight, jon, jone, dana
Read the full article at Five Ounces of PainUFC 135: Dana White Video Blog, Day 2
Highlights:
0:00 - UFC 135 weigh-ins.
0:47 - Junior Assuncao gets a little too aggressive and needs to be separated from Eddie Yagin.
1:12 - Nick Rings steps in Tim Boetsch's face and gives him a bit of a butt with the head. Boetsch is not amused. Dana White separates the two.
1:45 - UFC President Dana White rebuffs a handshake from Tony Ferguson, claiming that he hasn't been feeling good this week.
2:00 - Nick Diaz mean mugs Takanori Gomi.
2:43 - Josh Koschek is booed on the scale.
3:15 - Quinton Jackson steps off the scale and does his best "Ravishing" Rick Rude.
3:30 - Jon Jones flexes to a mixed chorus of cheers and jeers.
4:50 - White wraps up a meeting with the fighters. Junior Assuncao apologizes profusely for his weigh-in altercation with Eddie Yagin.
6:10 - Dana White and Ed Lover (of "C'mon Son!" and Yo! MTV Raps fame) run down the card.
Posted in: ufc, nick diaz, dana, eddie yagin, josh koschek
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White’s UFC 135 Video Blog: Part Two
Behind the scenes of the UFC 135 weigh-ins in this second installment of Dana White’s UFC 135 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, weigh-in
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White video blog for UFC 135: 'Jones vs Rampage' (Episode two)
UFC 135: "Jones vs. Rampage" takes place TONIGHT (Sat., Sept. 24, 2011) at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. And with that, UFC President Dana White's video blogs have begun to prime us for the pay-per-view (PPV) event. The second episode features plenty of backstage, behind-the-scenes footage of the UFC 135 weigh in, as well as White's message to the fighters who will compete in "The Mile High City" later this evening. To watch episode one of Dana White's UFC 135 video blog series click here.
Posted in: ufc, dana, pepsi center, blog, episode
Read the full article at MMA ManiaDana White UFC 135 VLOG Day 2
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Posted in: ufc, day, dana, killzy, vlog
Read the full article at RedditDana White UFC 135 Video Blog – Day 2
UFC President Dana White presents the latest edition of his UFC 135 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, edition
Read the full article at MMA WeeklyBob Arum fires back at Dana White: UFC fighters get paid 'nothing'
Tit, meet tat.
Primeval pugilist promoter Bob Arum is coming out swinging after UFC President Dana White flamed him for calling the Zuffa regime a "monopoly." White also said Arum didn't have the brains (or the balls) to get in on the ground floor when MMA was in its infancy and his attacks on the UFC were borne from jealousy.
Arum responds (via Max Boxing):
"I don't know where Dana is coming from, I never said anything bad about him. But Dana has to realize, because of the monopoly the UFC has, they pay their fighters maybe 20-percent of the proceeds that come in on a UFC fight and we pay fighters over 80-percent. So that's the difference, so talk about giving back to the sport, when you pay your talent 20-percent and boxing promoter's like myself and others pay over 80-percent, who's giving back to whom? It's very easy (to make network deals) when his athletes get paid nothing. Our athletes get paid but yeah, we're negotiating now with a major network to do boxing in prime time on the network."
This one is starting to get ugly. More from the "Scumbag Promoter" (Dana's words, not mine) after the jump.
This being a mixed martial arts blog, we already know where your allegiance lies, but can anyone step outside their own bias and side with Arum?
Or is he just a clueless captain of a sinking ship?
Thoughts?
Posted in: ufc, dana, arum, percent, ground floor
Read the full article at MMA ManiaGSP, not Lesnar, is the biggest PPV draw in MMA - Dana White
submitted by xtr3m [link] [1 comment]
Posted in: mma, ppv, gsp, dana, xtr
Read the full article at RedditDana White does his best Chuck Liddell impersonation, reacting violently to the action tonight on...
Dana White does his best Chuck Liddell impersonation, reacting violently to the action tonight on the debut of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 14 on Spike TV. Were the fights tonight to get into the house worthy of a two-hour special and perhaps the "best Dana shot in TUF history?" For detailed recap of TUF 14 click here.
Posted in: dana, tuf, spike tv, dana shot, .... dana
Read the full article at MMA ManiaFight Day: Dana White UFC 135 Pre-Fight Interview
We caught up with Dana to chat about Nick Diaz, the status of Strikeforce, UFC 135 and much more. Check out the exclusive interview.
Posted in: ufc, nick diaz, dana, interview, fight day
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White Talks Floyd Mayweather, Strikeforce/Showtime, Nick Diaz, Hendo-Shogun, Wand-Le & More
As usual, Dana White chatted with the press about all the hot topics in MMA following today’s UFC 135 pre-fight press conference. MMA Nation has video of the chat above. Below, rundown of all the news and notes along with Dana’s interview with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani.
— Now that Nick Diaz, Alistair Overeem and Dan Henderson have all officially left Strikeforce, pretty much no one expects the organization to stick around in its current form when the Showtime deal ends in Feb. 2012. Dana White says however that Strikeforce’s future is completely in Showtime’s hands.
“Who knows what’s going to happen? The way this thing works is, it depends on Showtime. The ball’s in their court. They need to decide whether they want to keep Strikeforce around or not.”
“It depends on whether they seriously want to stay in the business, the mixed martial arts business,” White said, before hinting that he thought Strikeforce had signed a bad deal when it aligned itself with Showtime.
“Everybody that comes into this business thinks that pay-per-view or free TV is the holy grail, the answer to everybody’s problems. Bulls–t. Either of those two things will put you out of business. You get into a bad deal with one of these companies, and the next thing you know you’re $30 million in the hole.”
“I would classify everybody who’s done a television deal out there besides us has done a bad deal. Everyone.”
Dana added that Showtime only has about a month left to decide whether or not they want to extend the contract with Showtime, but reading between the lines it doesn’t sound like Zuffa is just going to agree to the same terms that Scott Coker and Co. did even if Showtime is interested. If you ask me, the writing’s on the wall.
— Nick Diaz is officially off Dana White’s shit list. Dana says he’s spent some quality time on the phone with Diaz since the press conference incident and has come to the realization that he’s just going to have deal with him differently than the other fighters.
“Here’s the thing with Nick Diaz, which I’m not used to, but I’m going to get used to it: He’s just a different guy,” White today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I’m going to have to handle him and deal with him differently than I do every other guy in the UFC.”
“It’s not that he has to,” he said. “But you have to play by some of the rules. I’m not asking you to not be yourself … or come up to me and say ‘hi’ to me when you see me. It doesn’t matter. But I think I can work with it, and I think we can figure this thing out. I respect him as a fighter, people like to see him fight, there’s no doubt he’s got a little nutty side to him, but we’ll figure this thing out.
“What I’m more worried about are the things that he has to do, like follow the rules that the athletic commission of whatever state we’re in lays down. You’ve got to follow those rules. There’s no bending or curving on that. All the other stuff is all, who cares. The kid’s a fighter.”
Dana hasn’t confirmed that Diaz will get another title shot if he beats BJ Penn, but he hasn’t ruled it out either.
— Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Wanderlei Silva vs. Cung Le are the official main and co-main events for UFC 139. As expected, Dana White hinted that Hendo and Shogun could very well determine who fights for the UFC light heavyweight title after Rashad Evans.
“It would be tough not to give the winner of that fight the next shot after Rashad (Evans),” White said. “Rashad’s next.”
Dana confirmed that the potential number one contender’s bout will be a five-rounder.
— Wanderlei Silva’s future in the UFC could be on the line when he faces Cung Le at UFC 139. Dana stopped short of saying that he would definitely force Wand to retire if he loses to Le, but he definitely hinted that it’s a real possibility.
“It’s one of those things,” White said. “There’s this fine line between telling a guy you’ve got to hang it up and him actually wanting to hang it up. We’ll give him this fight with Cung Le, and we’ll go from there.”
“He knew going into that last fight how I felt about it,” White told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “The thing with me is, I love Wanderlei. Wanderlei has been awesome ever since he’s come to the UFC. You couldn’t ask for a nicer guy and a guy who goes in and gives it all. But listen, I don’t want to see a guy go in and get hurt. You guys have heard me say it a million times: I don’t want to make one dollar of that kind of money. I don’t. Otherwise, if that was the case, Chuck Liddell would still be fighting.
“People get pissed off every time I say this – people are like, ‘Who are you?’ Unfortunately for people who don’t like it, I am the one who makes those decisions. Whether you like it or not, too [expletive] bad.”
— Neither Dana White nor Matt Hughes knows what’s next for him after the Koscheck fight, but neither are talking like this is the end if Hughes loses. All Hughes would say is he doesn’t want to fight in his 40′s. He’s 37 now. You do the math.
— Don’t tell Clay Guida and Ben Henderson, but Dana White seems to be favoring Melvin Guillard for the next lightweight title shot if he beats Joe Lauzon at UFC 136.
Posted in: ufc, guy, dana, showtime, thing
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC on Fox: Oscar De La Hoya Congratulates, Applauds Dana White
Oscar De La Hoya has a pretty big dog in the boxing fight. Golden Boy Promotions was at the center of this past weekend's fight between Victor Ortiz and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. with Golden Boy promoting Ortiz. Oscar gave a recent interview to FightHubTV where he explained exactly why he thinks that the UFC's success and move to have fights shown on Fox could be good for the sport of boxing as well:
Some quotes from the video (transcribed by Scott Christ of Bad Left Hook):
First of all, I congratulate Dana White for doing an amazing job. My utmost respect to Dana White, I believe he's a brilliant guy, he's a tremendous person to have in a combat sport. I think they did an outstanding job in promoting the UFC, and look at where it's at now. They struck a deal with Fox, which is amazing for the UFC, for MMA, my hat's off to him. Boxing will be back on network television, I can feel very confident in saying that. Sooner than later, it will be back on network television. When you put good fighters together, people want to watch. And when you have any type of network behind boxing, you will create ratings. And it's a matter of when, and we're working that -- with Golden Boy Promotions, we're working on taking those next steps. What Dana White has done has been amazing, outstanding. I salute him, and keep on doing a great job.
...
He's been doing tremendous deals and this goes to show you that Dana White and the Fertitta brothers are brilliant. They know what they're doing, and they've obviously taken it to the next step, to the next level. And who knows where the MMA's gonna go? Sky's the limit.
...
And Dana White has done an amazing job. What that can do for boxing is just open doors, because it's a combat sport. And I salute him. I believe he's doing some big things. More power to him.
The idea of boxing returning network TV coming out of the UFC on Fox is something Scott Christ has talked about recently:
I mentioned when I did the MMA Nation show on Sunday with Luke Thomas that I'm really rooting for UFC to score great ratings on Fox on November 12, because I think their potential success could cause a network like ABC or NBC or CBS to go, "Hey, this did well. What about doing boxing?" There are no other truly viable MMA promotions right now, but there are a load of established boxers out there, and it would be, of course, truly great to see boxing back on network television. With that as a potential outlet, maybe nobody winds up being forced into sticking a fight like Bernard Hopkins vs Chad Dawson on pay-per-view simply because HBO ran out of budget.
Posted in: ufc, boxing, dana, network television, network
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White: Dan Henderson's Contract is Exclusive to the UFC
It looks like Dan Henderson's dream of being able to fight in the UFC and defend his Strikeforce light heavyweight title back in that promotion isn't going to happen. UFC president Dana White did an interview with Tom Ngo of 5thRound.com after the UFC on Fox press conference today, and he might have offered up the shortest Dana White answer of all time whe he was asked if Hendo will only be fighting in the UFC after he signed a new contract to face Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139:
Ngo: "Does that mean that Dan Henderson is exclusive with the UFC now?"Dana: "Yup."
Dana is also asked about Hendo's Strikeforce title, but had no idea what was going to be done with it. Ngo asks a few more interesting questions as well, such as why the national anthem isn't played at UFC events, whether the fact that Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos are able to speak English was a factor in them being chosen for the UFC on Fox 1 main event, and more. You can check out the whole interview after the jump.
Posted in: ufc, dana, henderson, dan henderson, ngo
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White Confirms Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua at UFC 139, Alistair Overeem vs. Brock Lesnar For Title Shot
Following today’s UFC on FOX 1 press conference, Dana White confirmed to 5thRound.com that Dan Henderson has in fact signed an exclusive contract with the UFC and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will welcome him back to the Octagon at UFC 139 as reported yesterday.
Dana also told MMA Weekly that the upcoming heavyweight fight between Alistair Overeem and Brock Lesnar at UFC 141 will determine the next number one contender in the heavyweight division.
UFC president Dana White on Tuesday confirmed to MMAWeekly.com that not only will the two square off, but there is also a lot more than bragging rights on the line. The victor will earn a title shot against the winner of the UFC heavyweight championship fight between current titleholder Cain Velasquez and No. 1 contender Junior Dos Santos.
“I’m excited to see what Alistair Overeem has,” the UFC boss told MMAWeekly.com. “And people can yap and say whatever they want, when these guys come over to the UFC, it’s a whole other ballgame. It’s going to be a really good gauge to find out where Alistair really sits in the heavyweight division.”
Dana didn’t say if the same goes for Hendo vs. Shogun.
Posted in: ufc, title shot, dana, alistair overeem, brock lesnar
Read the full article at MMA ConvertUFC on FOX 1 Press Conference Notes: Ad Inventory Sold Out, Still Working Out Undercard Broadcast Details
The UFC and FOX held a press conference today to get the ball rolling on ticket sales for the Nov. 12 UFC on FOX 1 show in Anaheim.
Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos both gave the type of modest, respectful answers that we’ve come to expect from them. Dana White said he chose this match-up to kick off the FOX deal because there’s no doubt in his mind that this is going to be a great fight whether it lasts 25 seconds or 25 minutes.
No major news was announced at the press conference, but FOX Sports president Eric Shanks did reveal that they’ve already sold-out all their ad inventory for the show, which is a good sign. When asked what they’re ratings expectations are, Shanks joked that it had to beat the “Two and a Half Men”premiere last night that did nearly 30 million viewers, but obviously no one is expecting that.
Dana White says they’re still working out the details on how the rest of the card will be broadcast, but says the fights will be shown one way or another, possibly through Facebook or Fox.com. The one thing Dana is sure about though is how lucky they are to have great partners in FOX.
“When I say Fox has been an amazing partner, they’re not even our partners yet. The deal doesn’t start till January, these guys have gone above and beyond what we ever expected,” said White. “The next seven years are going to be amazing.”
Image via Scott Hirano for LowKick
Posted in: fox, conference, dana, ad inventory, partner
Read the full article at MMA ConvertAll the notes you need from the UFC on FOX press conference today
In honor of Cliffnotes enabling me to consistently pass English Literature throughout high school, I've compiled a list of a few notes of the UFC on FOX press conference that happened at the W Hotel in Hollywood, California today. I've been doing this MMA stuff for a while and I've never been in a press conference with fans that were this boisterous. They were literally going nuts at every mention of Cain Velasquez and when someone from the audience screamed 'I love you Dana,' the entire room reverberated with cheers.
Dana says the UFC on FOX show will have a few added 'bells and whistles,' production wise.
When Junior Dos Santos entered the conference, the fans screamed 'culero' which is apparently Spanish for a very dirty place on the human body.
Dana says they've had more meetings with FOX than any other television entity they've ever dealed with. Admits the pressure is on them to deliver, but JDS and Cain will do what they always do.
Still working on broadcasting/streaming the other fights -- mentions Facebook or FOX.com.
The ad sales are really, really high for the event.
Dana says the UFC has already received more credibility being associated with FOX.
When discussing advertisers, someone yelled 'Pinkberry' and everyone went nuts -- again.
Josh Gross from ESPN made it to the front row of the UFC on FOX press conference. Looks like Dana and Josh finally squashed their beef from the entire TUF 4 debacle.
Eric Shanks of FOX said that MMA is a sport that he always wanted to get into.
Dana opens the questions up to the fans, one person asks if Cain thinks Junior Dos Santos hits harder than Cheick Kongo.
Another fan asks Cain if he can envision himself fighting Alistair Overeem. The crowd goes nuts, again.
Posted in: ufc, fox, conference, dana, press
Read the full article at Middle EasyUFC 135: Dana White Video Blog, Day 1
The UFC's giant tie-dyed sign, presumably in the lobby of their Las Vegas offices, never ceases to amuse me. It's so bizarre and tacky and so far removed from the UFC ethos. And who made it? Who tie dyes on commission? White and the Fertittas must have slummed it at the North Vegas Swap Meet (I highly recommend this link) and found some old hippie dude who specializes in this sort of thing.
Highlights:
UFC President Dana White runs through the video blog's content.
Footage from UFC 134: Dana enters the arena. He complains about the referee's late stoppage in the Luiz Cane fight. Backstage with Yushin Okami and Anderson Silva as they make their way into the arena. White and Lorenzo Fertitta greet Silva in his locker room after the fight. Dana congratulates and thanks Okami for a great fight. White and Junior dos Santos joke with Erick Silva about Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira robbing him of knockout of the night. Nogueira is ecstatic at the news, lifts Dana White over his shoulder, and promises to give Silva $5,000.
Footage from UFC Fight Night 25: Matt Riddle congratulates Lance Benoist on his win. Shamar Bailey asks to train with Evan Dunham. Cody McKenzie is not happy with the cameras. Jake Shields and Jake Ellenberger approach the entrance. Jake Shields complains about the stoppage to a commission official, who tells Shields his eyes were glazed over. The official talks about getting a CAT scan; Shields asks about radiation. Ellenberger is calm, cool, and collected after his big win.
Footage from UFC 135 press conference: Reporter: "When can we expect you back [in Colorad]?" Dana: "We haven't come yet." Quinton DIES. We see the infamous faceoff, where "Rampage" clowns on Jon Jones' stare-away tactic.
Posted in: ufc, jake shields, shield, dana, video blog
Read the full article at Bloody ElbowDana White’s UFC 135 Video Blog: Part One
Behind the scenes footage of UFC 134 and UFC Fight Night 25 in this first installment of Dana White’s UFC 135 video blog.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, blog, scenes footage
Read the full article at MMA ConvertDana White’s UFC 135 Video Blog Day 1
Dana White's UFC 135 video blog gets off with a bang, looking back at UFC 134 and Fight Night 25 before heading to Denver.
Posted in: ufc, night, video, dana, blog
Read the full article at Heavy MMADana White UFC 135 Vlog Day 1
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Posted in: killzy, ufc, vlog, day, dana
Read the full article at RedditDana White UFC 135 Video Blog – Day 1
UFC 135 is just around the corner so UFC President Dana White is presenting his latest video blog as he leads up to the fights in Denver this weekend.
Posted in: ufc, video, dana, video blog, blog
Read the full article at MMA Weekly
Opportunity Knocks for Carlos Condit
By Darnell Myrick
Today at the special press conference in Las Vegas, Dana White announced that will not be headlining the card next month against Georges St. Pierre for the UFC Welterweight Championship. Georges St. Pierre will now defend his Welterweight Championship against former WEC Welterweight Champion, Carlos Condit.
The news broke after Nick Diaz failed to appear at two press conferences to promote . The press conferences were held in Toronto and the host city for UFC 137, Las Vegas. Diaz reportedly missed a flight to Toronto and asked to be booked on another flight. Diaz missed the second flight and asked for a third flight and missed that one, which cost him his shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship. Diaz has not returned any of Dana White’s calls. Dana has also called Nick’s friends and his brother, Nate, and they do not what Nick is doing. Cesar Gracie, Diaz’s manager, called Dana White at the press conference and apologized on Nick’s behalf and he agreed with the decision that Dana made to replace Nick.
was already training for a fight at UFC 137. He was supposed to face BJ Penn on the same card in the co-main event, in a fight that would have made him the number one contender for the Welterweight Championship if he would have beaten BJ Penn. Condit currently is riding a four fight winning streak against Jake Ellenberger, Rory MacDonald, Dan Hardy, and Dong Hyun Kim, three of the wins have come by KO/TKO (MacDonald, Hardy, Kim). Dana White believes that Condit deserves a crack at the UFC Welterweight Championship and he was the only person that the UFC considered for replacing Nick Diaz. Dana White said that when Condit was offered the fight, he started crying as he was excited about the chance to face GSP for the title.
It is unknown what they will do now with Nick Diaz and BJ Penn. watch?v=dTtfhYvQBUI&feature=channel_video_title
Posted in: ufc, diaz, nick, dana, welterweight
Read the full article at Octagon Mania