Tag: Dana White

Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC Gold

Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC GoldIslam Makhachev may have to tuck away his dreams of holding middleweight gold. Following his fourth successful defense of…

Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC Gold

Islam Makhachev may have to tuck away his dreams of holding middleweight gold.

Following his fourth successful defense of the lightweight championship at UFC 311 in Los Angeles, the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ made waves during his post-fight interview, claiming that he could jump up from 155 to 185 in a bid to take Dricus Du Plessis’ middleweight gold.

While a move to welterweight, the next weight class up from where he currently fights, has always been in the cards for Makhachev, moving up 30 pounds is a pretty tall order and one that UFC CEO Dana White isn’t exactly willing to fulfill.

“He—he would move up to middleweight? Middle? Yeah, I don’t know about that,” White said during the Power Slap 11 post-fight press event in Riyadh. “Look, he wants to move up to 170—we can talk. Uh, moving up to 185 is a whole other level.”

Of course, you can never say never in the UFC. Perhaps if Makhachev moves up to 170 and absolutely decimates the top five, White could be convinced to give him a crack at middleweight. But as White said, 185 is a whole other level with some big competition — literally.

‘DDP’ puts his middleweight gold on the line against Sean Strickland in The Land Down Under

Next up for middleweight titleholder Dricus Du Plessis is a rematch with the man he took the title from around this same time last year, Sean Strickland. The two will run it back on February 8 when the promotion heads back to Sydney, Australia for UFC 312.

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‘Stillknocks’ remains unbeaten under the UFC banner, going 8-0 including wins over Strickland to claim the middleweight crown and a successful title defense against former two-time champ Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August.

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Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC Gold

Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC GoldIslam Makhachev may have to tuck away his dreams of holding middleweight gold. Following his fourth successful defense of…

Dana White Comments on Islam Makhachev’s Middleweight Move For Triple UFC Gold

Islam Makhachev may have to tuck away his dreams of holding middleweight gold.

Following his fourth successful defense of the lightweight championship at UFC 311 in Los Angeles, the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ made waves during his post-fight interview, claiming that he could jump up from 155 to 185 in a bid to take Dricus Du Plessis’ middleweight gold.

While a move to welterweight, the next weight class up from where he currently fights, has always been in the cards for Makhachev, moving up 30 pounds is a pretty tall order and one that UFC CEO Dana White isn’t exactly willing to fulfill.

“He—he would move up to middleweight? Middle? Yeah, I don’t know about that,” White said during the Power Slap 11 post-fight press event in Riyadh. “Look, he wants to move up to 170—we can talk. Uh, moving up to 185 is a whole other level.”

Of course, you can never say never in the UFC. Perhaps if Makhachev moves up to 170 and absolutely decimates the top five, White could be convinced to give him a crack at middleweight. But as White said, 185 is a whole other level with some big competition — literally.

‘DDP’ puts his middleweight gold on the line against Sean Strickland in The Land Down Under

Next up for middleweight titleholder Dricus Du Plessis is a rematch with the man he took the title from around this same time last year, Sean Strickland. The two will run it back on February 8 when the promotion heads back to Sydney, Australia for UFC 312.

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‘Stillknocks’ remains unbeaten under the UFC banner, going 8-0 including wins over Strickland to claim the middleweight crown and a successful title defense against former two-time champ Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August.

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Dana White ‘Beyond Disgusted’ By UFC Fighter Bryce Mitchell Praising Hitler

Dana White is having none of the nonsense Bryce Mitchell recently spewed. Mitchell has carved out a unique reputation in the MMA world as a staunch advocate for a variety of conspiracy theories, often voicing such outlandish opinions that even the most rational minds wouldn’t entertain. “Thug Nasty” has repeatedly sparked controversy with his provocative […]

Dana White is having none of the nonsense Bryce Mitchell recently spewed.

Mitchell has carved out a unique reputation in the MMA world as a staunch advocate for a variety of conspiracy theories, often voicing such outlandish opinions that even the most rational minds wouldn’t entertain.

“Thug Nasty” has repeatedly sparked controversy with his provocative views, exploring subjects like promoting the flat Earth theory, rejecting the concept of human evolution, and claiming that wearing seat belts in cars is pointless, alongside a slew of other equally shocking opinions.

This time, however, the UFC featherweight fighter surpassed all bounds of utter absurdity during the debut episode of his ArkanSanity Podcast. Mitchell unleashed a shocking Adolf Hitler diatribe, bizarrely praising the Nazi dictator as a well-meaning figure with noble intentions.

“I really don’t think that he was, because I honestly think that Hitler was a good guy based upon my own research, not my public education indoctrination,” Mitchell said. “I really do think before Hitler got on meth, he was a guy I’d go fishing with. He fought for his country.”

During the post-event press conference for Power Slap on Thursday, White castigated Mitchell’s outrageous remarks.

The UFC CEO vehemently blasted the 30-year-old Arkansas native, calling it the most idiotic opinion he had ever encountered.

“I’ve heard a lot of dumb, ignorant sh*t in my day, but this one is probably the worst,” White said. “Second of all, Hitler is one of the most disgusting and evil human beings to ever walk the earth, and anyone who even tries to take an opposing position is a moron. That’s a problem with the Internet — and social media. You provide a platform for a lot of dumb, ignorant people. We’ve obviously reached out to Bryce and when we read what he said and let him know how we feel about it … we’re beyond disgusted.”

Despite mounting calls from the MMA community to axe out Mitchell from the UFC, White further stated that “Thug Nasty” wouldn’t face any disciplinary action or be released from the promotion.

“That’s what everybody wants to hear about, punishment. It’s free speech, I don’t have to love it, you don’t have to love it… That’s the beautiful thing about this business, for all of you who hate Bryce Mitchell, you get to see him hopefully get his a** whooped on global television. What do you want me to say about it? You know where I am with free speech. We’re disgusted by it.”

Ex-Heavyweight Champion Blames ‘Insane Weight Cutting’ on Arman Tsarukyan’s UFC 311 Exit

Ex-Heavyweight Champion Blames 'Insane Weight Cutting' on Arman Tsarukyan's UFC 311 ExitHours away from his first UFC title opportunity, Arman Tsarukyan was forced to bow out of his lightweight headliner…

Ex-Heavyweight Champion Blames 'Insane Weight Cutting' on Arman Tsarukyan's UFC 311 Exit

Hours away from his first UFC title opportunity, Arman Tsarukyan was forced to bow out of his lightweight headliner with Islam Makhachev.

Tsarukyan ultimately withdrew from his UFC 311 headliner against the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ citing a back injury. However, some have suggested that there may be more to the Armenian’s exit than what he’s letting on.

During an in-studio appearance on Monday’s episode of The Ariel Helwani Show, former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett suggested the blame could potentially be placed on “insane weight-cutting” measures that resulted in ‘Ahalkalakets’ sustaining the unforeseen injury.

“You don’t get Arman Tsarukyan having back problems if you don’t have insane weight cutting,” Barnett said. “I truly believe that in doing his weight cut, he probably did hit a huge back spasm out of nowhere that completely took him by surprise. And was bad enough that, one, it was obviously going to impact his ability to cut weight, so how is he gonna make the weight class? And, two, could could be severe enough that he wouldn’t feel up to being able to compete the next day.”

“And this all comes from fighting under a ruleset that encourages you to game the system because everyone is doing it and there’s no way around it really.”

Dana White Implies Tsarukyan could have competed at UFC 311

Barnett isn’t the first person to imply that there was something a little suspicious behind Tsarukyan’s withdrawal.

During the UFC 311 post-fight press conference, CEO Dana White made it clear that he never wants to encourage a fighter to compete injured before revealing that ‘Ahalkalakets’ would have to “go back to the drawing” board if he hopes to get another crack at the 155-pound crown.

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Tsarukyan has since snapped back at White during his own interview with Helwani, claiming he “couldn’t walk,” let alone compete on Saturday night in Los Angeles, but is more than willing to work his way back up the contender’s ladder if necessary.

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Tom Aspinall Reacts To Dana White ‘Jumping Ship’ From Jon Jones To Islam Makhachev In P4P Debate

Tom Aspinall, like many fans and fellow fighters, tuned into UFC 311 to watch a man that many believe is at the very top of the sport right now. Islam Makhachev may have undergone a change to his opponent literally the day before fight night but this didn’t affect him one bit. The lightweight champion […]

Tom Aspinall, like many fans and fellow fighters, tuned into UFC 311 to watch a man that many believe is at the very top of the sport right now. Islam Makhachev may have undergone a change to his opponent literally the day before fight night but this didn’t affect him one bit.

The lightweight champion still went out there like it was business as usual and submitted Renato Moicano in the first round. It may not have been the Arman Tsarukyan rematch that people have wanted to see for such a long time but it once again showed that when Makhachev says it doesn’t matter who you put him in there with, he means it.

At 33-years old, he’s now the record holder for the most consecutive lightweight title defenses with four and by earning his 15th consecutive win inside the Octagon, he is tied at second with Kamaru Usman for the longest winning streak in UFC history with one spot to go until he draws level with Anderson Silva.

Another Makhachev win meant more people making the case for why he is the pound-for-pound number one fighter in the sport today. Whilst some may argue that the accomplishments of Jon Jones speak for themselves, others might state that “Bones” hasn’t been overly active or facing the same level of opposition.

It was only a matter of time before Dana White was once again asked about this topic having been very vocal in the past that it’s Jones with no room for debate. After seeing the UFC boss change his answer, Aspinall commented on this during a video on his YouTube channel.

“Now we’re seeing Dana White coming out and saying that he’s the pound-for-pound No. 1 in the world, Islam Makhachev,” Aspinall said. “As we all know, to me, pound-for-pound is a lot of made-up stuff. I don’t look into that. But it’s just funny that he’s kind of jumped ship now from Jon Jones to Islam.”

Regardless of whether or not Makhachev was able to convince anyone else that he is the best fighter in the sport today, Aspinall was happy to see him go out there and get the win. In many ways, it felt like a fairly routine outing for the 155-pound king but that doesn’t bother the Brit one bit.

“Islam did what he was supposed to do: went out there, fought whoever was put in front of him, which is what a champion is supposed to do. Fought a guy that the UFC told him to fight, got the win, and he’s levels above anybody else in that division. He’s going to hold the belt for a long, long time, and that is something that I’m very excited for because I’m a massive Islam Makhachev fan.”

UFC Stars Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, and More Attend Trump’s Inauguration Day

UFC Stars Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, and More Attend Trump's InaugurationA whole host of UFC stars were on hand to witness the inaugural of President-elect Donald Trump on Monday….

UFC Stars Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, and More Attend Trump's Inauguration

A whole host of UFC stars were on hand to witness the inaugural of President-elect Donald Trump on Monday.

Trump secured his second term as President of the United States in November with a landslide victory over Kamala Harris. Throughout his campaign, UFC notables like Colby Covington, Jon Jones, Jorge Masvidal, and CEO Dana White all expressed their support for the business mogul turned political icon. So it should come as no surprise that a majority of them were on hand in Washington D.C. to see ’45’ take his rightful place as ’47.’

Spotted standing between former U.S. presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama was Dana White, a longtime friend and supporter of Trump who had spoken at a rally just hours before the inauguration.

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Also there was Joe Rogan, the longtime UFC color commentator who hosted Trump on his popular JRE podcast weeks before election night. Before that, Rogan had long declined to have Trump appear on his program, but since sitting down with the POTUS, the former Fear Factor host appears to be all in on the ‘DJT’ hype train.

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And, of course, you can’t have a Trump inauguration without one of his most staunch supporters, three-time UFC title challenger Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington.

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UFC Megastar Conor McGregor Rides with Jake and Logan Paul to Trump Inauguration

Also making their way to the festivities were Jake and Logan Paul who found themselves hitching a ride with none other than Irish megastar and former two-division UFC champion, Conor McGregor.

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Check out McGregor’s comments while attending Monday’s inauguration ceremony below:

“Amazing to be here. I’m very excited; very optimistic about the future,” McGregor said during a media scrum. “And it’s a good time here in the United States. I was here the last time Donald Trump became president in 2016. And the energy and the response is night and day, which is a testament to how he’s done as a president, his last run, and how he’s handled himself since.”

McGregor also met up with political commentator Ben Shapiro at the event.

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If you missed any of the festivities, you can watch the entire Trump inauguration online via YouTube and through various streaming sources, including Hulu and Disney+.