Boxing Wire

Tag: Dana White

  • Dana White: Boxing Is ‘Way More Broken’ Than I Thought

    Dana White: Boxing Is ‘Way More Broken’ Than I Thought

    Dana White has spent six months running a boxing promotion and his verdict on the sport he entered is blunt: it is far more broken than he anticipated.

    Appearing on ESPN’s First Take on Friday alongside newly signed Zuffa Boxing fighter Conor Benn, White delivered a pointed critique of how traditional boxing promoters operate, arguing the industry is structurally designed to extract money rather than build lasting careers or a sustainable product.

    “This sport is way more broken than I even thought it was,” White said. “Now that I’m involved, how rinky dink the sport really is.”

    His central complaint was volume, or the lack of it. White argued that boxing promoters run their rosters like distressed assets, staging infrequent events and disappearing between them rather than developing fighters into genuine stars.

    “Every time you watch a boxing match, it’s like a going out of business sale. They’re trying to grab up as much money as they can and then they run away and hide for two years, then they pop up again and put on another fight,” White said. “I’ve already done more fights this year, my first year, than all the promoters combined.”

    He also pushed back on the industry tendency to blame fighters for being uncommercial, flipping responsibility onto the promoters themselves.

    “If you’re not putting on fights, how the hell are you making money? It doesn’t make any sense. I heard some of the other promoters when I started to sign some of the guys, they were like, ‘We could never make any money with him anyway.’ Well, that’s not his job. That’s your job. My job is to figure out how to pay him and pay me. His job is to be a badass,” White said.

    White also stated his five-year goal publicly for the first time, framing it as a return to boxing’s cultural peak when world champions were household names and major fights drew global audiences.

    “When your father was fighting, everybody all over the world knew who the champion was. When big fights happened anywhere in the world, everybody watched. Boxing was big in America back then. That is my goal: to make it that way again over the next five years,” White said, gesturing to Benn, the son of British boxing legend Nigel Benn.

    Stephen A. Smith, who has long criticized boxing’s promotional structure on the same platform, backed White’s diagnosis on air. “The promoters have ruined it, not the fighters. And now we’ve got somebody that’s gonna make sure we’re getting the fights we want to see,” Smith said.

  • Conor Benn Says Floyd Mayweather’s Undefeated Obsession Broke Boxing’s Relationship With Losing

    Conor Benn Says Floyd Mayweather’s Undefeated Obsession Broke Boxing’s Relationship With Losing

    Boxing’s cultural fear of losing was the dominant topic when Conor Benn and Dana White sat down with Stephen A. Smith on ESPN’s First Take on Friday, and all three had something pointed to say about how the sport arrived at this problem and what it would take to fix it.

    Smith set the stage by comparing boxing’s modern attitude toward losses with the generation that built the sport into a mainstream institution. “Unlike the UFC, where you could be great and have three or four losses, in boxing you have two, everybody’s having a heart attack and acting like you ain’t a top fighter in the world. Sugar Ray had losses. Tommy Hearns had losses. Mike Tyson had losses. But it didn’t stop them from being great.”

    Benn, whose lone career defeat came against Chris Eubank Jr. in their first meeting before he won the rematch, traced the shift to one fighter who fundamentally changed how the sport was marketed.

    “I feel like it changed with Mayweather when he came along and it was the undefeated record. Everyone was scared of losing,” Benn said. “Ultimately, I’d rather lose an exciting fight than win a boring fight, because then it’s like, did you even win?”

    He framed his own commitment in terms that put fan value ahead of personal record preservation. “I just want to give people value for money. I want people to want to tune into a Conor Benn fight, win, lose, or draw. I fight with my heart on my sleeve and they’re getting everything I’ve got. I pour my soul into my fights and I give them every shot I have.”

    White’s structural answer to the problem is the model he built in MMA: roster depth. The UFC framework allows fans to invest in a card rather than a single fight, making one loss a chapter rather than a career-ender.

    “We’re starting to build a roster of guys now. In the UFC, you can have the main event, the co-main. Sometimes the fans are more excited about the undercard fights,” White said. “There hasn’t been a middle class in boxing in a long time, and that’s what we’re going to bring. When the best fight the best, not every fight’s going to be the greatest fight you’ve ever seen, but people want to see good fights. A loss doesn’t mean you’re done.”

    Smith closed the segment with a simple blueprint for what Zuffa Boxing needs to execute on the vision. “Two ingredients to success for Zuffa Boxing: Number one, more guys with his attitude in your stable. Number two, two to three main events a year, mega fights.”

  • Details on Conor Benn’s 5-Fight Deal with Zuffa Boxing

    Details on Conor Benn’s 5-Fight Deal with Zuffa Boxing

    Conor Benn Re-Signs with Zuffa Boxing

    Conor Benn is staying with Zuffa Boxing. Dana White’s promotion announced Friday that Benn has signed a five-fight deal covering the next two and a half years, with the news breaking as both men sat down with Stephen A. Smith on ESPN’s First Take live from Las Vegas.

    The deal ends a week of speculation after Benn’s April 11 unanimous decision over Regis Prograis at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. That fight, the co-feature to Tyson Fury’s Netflix comeback against Arslanbek Makhmudov, was a one-off. Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) emerged from it a free agent with every major promoter circling.

    He picked Zuffa. And his reasoning on First Take pointed straight at the parent company’s track record.

    “You look at what they’ve done with UFC. Look what they’ve done with WWE. They plan on taking over and we all share the same vision,” Benn said. “It’s a different audience, a massive platform, and something I’m really excited about. It wasn’t an easy decision, but I’ve made the right decision and it feels right in my heart.”

    Team Approach and Long-Term Vision

    Benn, who split with long-time promoter Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing earlier this year, framed the signing as a collective decision rather than a solo business move.

    “There’s no ‘I’ in team. I don’t do things on my own, I do things with my team. We all share the same vision; that’s a must,” Benn said. “We’ve got a long-term plan and no doubt we’ll execute it. My job is to stay in the gym, give 100% in training, and let the team allow me to fully focus on being the best fighter I can be and deliver entertainment to the public.”

    Five fights across 30 months works out to roughly one appearance every six months, a cadence consistent with Zuffa’s repeated emphasis on keeping its boxers active rather than letting them disappear between paydays.

    White’s Global Platform Pitch

    White made clear the selling point for Zuffa’s roster is distribution as much as money. TKO’s pending Warner Bros. merger is projected to add 200 million homes. The recently announced Sky deal expands European reach, and Zuffa is already airing in more than 90 countries less than six months into its boxing operation.

    “When you’re a professional fighter, obviously making as much money as you can during your short window of opportunity is important, but you want as many people around the world to see the things that you’ve done, too,” White said. “That’s just as important as the money.”

    Benn now joins a growing Zuffa Boxing roster that already includes Richardson Hitchins and Edgar Berlanga on multi-fight deals. He remains the WBC mandatory challenger at welterweight, with Ryan Garcia the clear target for his next outing.

  • Eddie Hearn Rips Zuffa Boxing: ‘No Strategy,’ Benn Deal ‘Worst Business’

    Eddie Hearn Rips Zuffa Boxing: ‘No Strategy,’ Benn Deal ‘Worst Business’

    Eddie Hearn has delivered his sharpest take yet of Zuffa Boxing, telling The Ariel Helwani Show that five months into Dana White’s boxing venture, the promotion has produced nothing worth pointing to and may have already committed one of the worst deals in recent boxing history.

    “These guys are very powerful and smart, but I actually don’t think they know what they’re doing,” Hearn said. “The more I look at it, I’m not sure there even is a strategy. It’s kind of like ‘sign who you can sign and then go from there.’”

    The centerpiece of Hearn’s criticism was the reported Conor Benn deal. According to reports, Zuffa paid $15 million for Benn’s 10-round fight against Regis Prograis on the Fury-Makhmudov Netflix card, with no future options attached. Matchroom is demanding full financial disclosure to confirm the figure, but Hearn was unsparing in his assessment if the number is accurate.

    “If you want to get sucked into the fact that someone would pay $15 million for a 10-round fight where it’s probably worth a million dollars, and have no future options, no deal in place, you are probably the biggest idiot on the planet,” he said. He called it potentially “one of the worst pieces of business” in boxing and expressed disbelief that no senior Zuffa executives attended the fight or visited the changing room despite the scale of the investment. “You must have some serious money if you’re just willing to spunk 15 million up the wall in a 10-round fight and not even send anybody to try and secure that deal,” Hearn said.

    Beyond the Benn situation, Hearn challenged anyone to name a genuinely impressive Zuffa show since the promotion launched. He pointed to small crowds, inconsistent scheduling, and underwhelming matchups as evidence that the execution has not matched the ambition. He also questioned the status of the boxing league concept Zuffa initially promoted, noting that governing bodies are already calling mandatories that complicate the model. While acknowledging that the roster includes legitimate names like Richardson Hitchins and Edgar Berlanga, Hearn argued the shows themselves have not reflected the promotional firepower behind them.

    “If I did those shows I would get screamed out of town by five fans,” he said. “‘What is this? There’s 150 people here in this room. Who are these people? What are these fights?’”

  • Eddie Hearn Accepts Dana White Boxing Fight: “I’m All Over It”

    Eddie Hearn Accepts Dana White Boxing Fight: “I’m All Over It”

    Eddie Hearn has officially accepted Dana White’s challenge to a boxing match, telling The Ariel Helwani Show he’s started training, visualizing his ring walk, and is very motivated by the payday.

    “He called me out on the Piers Morgan show. I explained that I’m pretty useless. I’ve seen him spar; he looks quite decent,” Hearn said. “So I’ve gotten into a little bit of training. I’ve started to visualize my ring walk music. And I’ve started to get very excited by the money.”

    Turki Alalshikh has reportedly asked both men if they’d do it, and Misfits Boxing has also made an offer. Hearn said the financial projections have him fully committed.

    “Stick Me In, Find Me a Pair of Shorts”

    Hearn didn’t hold back when discussing White’s repeated provocations. The ongoing feud between the two has escalated from business trash talk to a genuine fight challenge, and Hearn says he’s done deflecting.

    “He keeps calling me a p***y. But I’m like, well, let’s see if I’m a p***y,” Hearn said. “Would this be gigantic? We would make 30 million each. So I’m all over it. Stick me in, put my name down, find me a pair of shorts, and I’ll travel. He called me out. I accept.”

    The Matchroom chairman gave a characteristically self-aware assessment of his chances. He acknowledged being “very limited” as a fighter but said his size could be an advantage.

    “I’m a big lump and I think I’ll knock him out,” Hearn said. “But also, if I get knocked out and I make $30 million, it’s not the saddest day in the world and people would find it quite amusing.”

    No date, venue, or formal promotion has been attached to the potential bout. Hearn’s acceptance puts the ball squarely in White’s court to formalize the offer through their already heated rivalry.

  • Conor Benn Targets Ryan Garcia for WBC Title

    Conor Benn Targets Ryan Garcia for WBC Title

    Conor Benn is a free agent with one name on his lips: Ryan Garcia.

    Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) defeated former two-time junior welterweight champion Regis Prograis (30-4, 24 KOs) by unanimous decision on Saturday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. All three judges scored the bout 98-92 in Benn’s favor in a 10-round catchweight contest at 150 pounds.

    The fight was Benn’s first under the Zuffa Boxing banner after his split from Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing earlier this year. He completed a one-fight deal reportedly worth upwards of $10 million and is now free to negotiate with any promoter, though Zuffa is expected to be the frontrunner moving forward.

    Benn Calls for September Showdown

    Benn wasted no time calling out WBC welterweight champion Garcia after the fight. “Garcia, I want my belt! Keep my belt warm,” Benn said. “September. Let’s go. Any day of the week. Twice on Sundays. 10 rounds, easy. Garcia, you’re next.”

    Garcia, who won the WBC title with a decision over Mario Barrios in February, responded on social media the same night. “I’m down. Garcia vs. Benn. Let’s do it!” Garcia wrote.

    The 29-year-old Benn plans to return to 147 pounds for the fight after competing above the welterweight limit in his last three bouts, including two middleweight fights against Chris Eubank Jr. He was back in the gym by Monday morning, posting a treadmill video with visible swelling around both eyes from accidental head clashes during the Prograis fight. He indicated he would be ready to fight by July or August.

    Prograis Retires After the Loss

    Prograis, 37, announced his retirement in an interview with Ring Magazine after the fight. The loss was his third in four outings since losing the WBC junior welterweight title to Devin Haney in 2023.

    Benn controlled the early rounds with his jab and movement before Prograis found some success in the middle rounds as accidental head clashes opened cuts around both of Benn’s eyes. Benn dug deep with body work in the championship rounds and swept the final five rounds to secure the decision.

    With Benn now positioned as the WBC mandatory challenger at welterweight, the Garcia fight carries both a title and a massive commercial draw on both sides of the Atlantic. Other potential opponents include Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson, and Rolando Romero, but Benn has made clear that the WBC belt is his only priority.

  • Top Rank Nearing DAZN Deal Amid Matchroom Tensions

    Top Rank Nearing DAZN Deal Amid Matchroom Tensions

    Top Rank is closing in on a new broadcast home. Front Office Sports has confirmed that DAZN is finalizing a multiyear streaming deal with Bob Arum‘s promotion, with an official announcement expected later this week. The news was first reported by Ring Magazine, which has since deleted its original story.

    Update: Top Rank and DAZN’s new partnership is official

    DAZN declined to comment directly. “As company policy, we do not confirm, deny, or comment on market rumours or speculation regarding M&A, partnerships or rights deals,” a DAZN spokesperson told FOS.

    Per The Ring’s original reporting, the deal calls for eight to 10 events per year at license fees of $1 million to $1.25 million per card — a steep drop from the roughly $85 million annually ESPN paid Top Rank under their eight-year partnership, which ended in July 2025.

    DAZN Seeking More Content Amid Matchroom Frustrations

    The Top Rank pursuit isn’t just about adding fights. According to FOS sources, DAZN has grown frustrated with Eddie Hearn‘s Matchroom Boxing and is actively seeking to expand its events inventory as it plays defense against the rising threat of Zuffa Boxing.

    At the heart of the friction is a perception within DAZN that Hearn has been “double-dipping” — placing Matchroom fighters on outside cards while collecting nine figures annually from DAZN. Fighters including Anthony Joshua, Dmitry Bivol, Conor Benn, Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, and Jai Opetaia have all competed on Riyadh Season and/or Ring cards. Katie Taylor fought Amanda Serrano twice on Netflix cards under Jake Paul’s MVP banner. Benn and Opetaia have since departed Matchroom for Zuffa.

    In a notable case, Hearn told Alalshikh’s Ring Magazine that a Callum Smith vs. David Morrell fight was expected in Saudi Arabia — only for it to later be announced as a Matchroom card in Liverpool on April 18. DAZN holds a 40% stake in Matchroom.

    A DAZN spokesperson pushed back on the friction narrative. “There’s absolutely no truth in the suggestion that DAZN is frustrated with Matchroom. We have just signed a new five-year deal with Matchroom, and we are very happy with our strong relationship and long-standing partnership.”

    The Broader War: DAZN vs. Zuffa

    The move for Top Rank comes as the boxing broadcast landscape grows increasingly combative. Zuffa Boxing — the joint venture between Saudi Arabia’s Sela and TKO Group Holdings, with leadership including Turki Alalshikh, WWE president Nick Khan, and UFC CEO Dana White — launched on Paramount+ in January and has been aggressively signing talent.

    Zuffa signed Opetaia away from Matchroom in January and made a move on Rodriguez before Matchroom exercised a matching clause. It then signed Benn on a one-fight deal reportedly worth $15 million that Hearn declined to match. The bidding war has spilled into public sniping: White said Hearn “works for his dad,” while Hearn fired back that White’s “dad for many years has been the Fertitta brothers, and now he’s got a new daddy called Turki Alalshikh.” Alalshikh himself weighed in on social media, writing to Hearn: “I am always here for you. And if you call me, unlike Conor Benn, I will answer the phone.”

    Adding Top Rank and its deep roster would give DAZN more leverage in that fight. Arum, 94, famously called DAZN a “Dead-Zone which nobody watches” back in 2022. By late 2024, he had softened considerably: “DAZN are doing a great job in boxing and the people who run DAZN are friends of ours.”

    Top Rank’s Roster Ready to Return

    Top Rank’s stable gives DAZN significant upside despite the modest license fees. Xander Zayas, Emanuel Navarrete, Keyshawn Davis, Bruce Carrington, Emiliano Vargas, and Abdullah Mason headline a roster that has been largely sidelined from consistent live streaming since ESPN’s exit. An official announcement from both sides is expected this week — BoxingWire will update this story when confirmed.

  • Oscar De La Hoya: UFC Suppresses Fighters to Protect Its Brand

    Oscar De La Hoya: UFC Suppresses Fighters to Protect Its Brand

    Oscar De La Hoya says the UFC’s business model is built on keeping fighters small — and that Jon Jones requesting his release is proof the cracks are finally showing.

    Speaking on FightHype on March 12, 2026, De La Hoya weighed in on Jones seeking his UFC release after being lowballed for the White House card, offering a blunt take on the organization’s philosophy toward its own athletes.

    “Every fighter in the UFC is finally starting to realize,” De La Hoya said. “I’m glad he’s speaking up. I’m glad he’s in the right. Wish him all the best — he’s a great fighter. He’s their greatest fighter.”

    UFC Doesn’t Want Any Fighter Bigger Than the Brand

    De La Hoya argued the suppression isn’t accidental — it’s structural. The UFC, he said, has always prioritized the organization’s identity over any individual star, and that strategy is now backfiring.

    “They want to suppress other fighters. They don’t want any fighter to be bigger than the UFC. And that’s why the UFC is going tanking down.”

    He tied the UFC’s recent push into boxing directly to that instability, framing it as a financial lifeline rather than a strategic expansion.

    “That’s why they’re involved in boxing now — because they want to start a new entity to help their bottom line. That’s it.”

    Boxing Pays Fighters. The UFC Pays Executives.

    De La Hoya drew a sharp contrast between how the two sports distribute revenue. In boxing, he said, fighters capture the largest share of earnings. In the UFC, the pyramid is flipped.

    “Fighters are starting to understand that when you have such a global company and presence making tons and tons of money — not for the fighters, but for the bottom line and for the executives — there’s something wrong there,” he said.

    “In boxing, it’s structured the other way around. The fighters make all the money. In the UFC, it’s the other way around. And that’s wrong.”

    He pointed to the ongoing uproar over UFC fighter pay as evidence of a systemic failure. When Conor Benn’s reported $15 million payday became a flashpoint across the roster, De La Hoya saw it as revealing — not about McGregor, but about everyone else.

    “Good for him, he’s getting his paycheck. It’s a one-off. But what about the UFC fighters who’ve been fighting all their lives, putting their lives on the line and getting a fraction of what the event totals for the night? It’s just not fair.

    The fact that every single UFC fighter is complaining about $15 million goes to show you that no UFC fighter has made $15 million — and they deserve way much more than what the UFC overall is taking in.”

    Ronda Rousey, the Antitrust Suit, and the Legal Tide Turning

    De La Hoya also validated Ronda Rousey’s recent comments framing Dana White as merely an “employee” with limited structural power. “She’s totally right,” he said. “She made the clap back in a positive way.”

    On the ongoing antitrust lawsuit brought by UFC fighters, De La Hoya expressed confidence that the legal momentum is on the athletes’ side. “It’s a great thing for the fighters’ league that is suing the UFC. They won one time, they’re probably going to win again.”

    For De La Hoya, the broader point is that the reckoning has been a long time coming — and the UFC’s expansion into boxing is a sign of an organization scrambling, not thriving.

  • Eddie Hearn Fires Back at Dana White, Zuffa Boxing: ‘Ain’t Out The Garage Yet’

    Eddie Hearn Fires Back at Dana White, Zuffa Boxing: ‘Ain’t Out The Garage Yet’

    Eddie Hearn recently responded to Dana White’s criticism of him and Zuffa Boxing, dismissing White’s claims of creating successful boxing shows and arguing that Zuffa Boxing hasn’t achieved anything significant yet. The exchange follows White’s comments at the Zuffa Boxing 04 post-fight press conference.

    Hearn slammed Zuffa Boxing’s events as ‘bang-average’ or ‘absolute dog crap’ compared to his Matchroom Boxing shows, noting mismatches and poor quality.

    White had previously downplayed Hearn as a rival promoter, calling him a manager. The public back-and-forth has included suggestions of resolving differences in a boxing match.

    Hearn Blasts White’s Boxing Venture

    Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show on March 9, 2026, Hearn responded to White’s claims, stating:

    “He’s sitting there and spinning the narrative like he’s creating these unbelievable blockbuster shows in stadiums. He ain’t out the garage yet. Literally, four shows in, and absolute bang-average content… They have done nothing at all. And Dana coming out, losing his rag, blood pressure going through the roof, calling me this and calling me that, but not actually doing anything… Show me what you are doing is special.”

    Hearn believes that Zuffa Boxing has provided fans with “bang-average content,” so White has nothing to be proud about as he and his very own boxing promotion are not even “out of the garage yet,” as sell-out stadium shows can’t be compared to events at the Meta APEX.

  • Mike Tyson Talks Ali Boxing Reform Act, Dana White, Donald Trump

    Mike Tyson Talks Ali Boxing Reform Act, Dana White, Donald Trump

    Mike Tyson has always been more than just a fighter — he’s a cultural figure with strong opinions on food, power, loyalty, and the business of boxing. In a revealing interview with Ring Magazine’s Manouk Akopyan, Tyson spoke candidly on topics ranging from ultra-processed food to President Trump, Dana White, and his personal philosophy on fighter pay.

    On Dana White: “I’m Pro Boxing”

    Tyson pushed back on perceptions that he’s a Dana White loyalist, framing his support for the UFC president’s move into boxing with Zuffa Boxing as purely sport-driven advocacy.

    “Everybody thinks that I’m pro Dana. I’m just pro boxing.”

    Tyson said he believes White should be in boxing, but made clear the endorsement isn’t personal — it’s about bringing more competitive infrastructure and money into the sport.

    Open Markets Over Regulation

    On the subject of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act and fighter protections, Tyson took a free-market stance, describing the legislation as being in its early stages during his career and advocating instead for open competition to drive up fighter pay.

    “I want to have open markets. Whoever’s going to pay me the highest bid.”

    For Tyson, the answer to boxing’s systemic problems isn’t more regulation — it’s more competition, more clubs, more fights, and more legitimate money flowing to the fighters who earn it.

    One Word on Trump: “Loyalty”

    Asked what makes President Donald Trump a unique figure in his life, Tyson kept it short: “Loyalty. Loyalty.”

    The two go back decades. Tyson recalled the heyday of Trump’s Atlantic City casino era as a golden period for boxing — and for both men personally. “The whole world focused in on us every time we fought in Atlantic City at Trump’s casino.”

    He offered a stark contrast when asked about Atlantic City today: “I went there to do a show. I was nervous. I thought I was going to get shot.”

    On what boxing might look like if Trump had stayed more directly involved in the sport, Tyson was straightforward: “Boxing would be a lot better, and most boxers would perhaps have more money as well.”

    The Fight Against Ultra-Processed Food

    Tyson, who appeared in a Super Bowl advertisement promoting healthier eating choices and once weighed 350 pounds himself, didn’t exempt himself from criticism on this front.

    “I’m guilty of it too. We have to stop ultra-processed foods. It tastes so good because it’s so addicting — it’s a narcotic. Everything the FDA [approves] is narcotics.

    It’s normal for us to eat it, especially if you’re in a low-income neighborhood. Processed, ultra-processed food is a necessity to us. We’re so happy to have that because it tastes good — and that’s how they get us.”

    The remarks aligned Tyson with a broader national conversation about food policy and the health impacts of the modern American diet, particularly in underserved communities.