Dana White TRUTH on Shakur leaving Zuffa, Trump job offer & Eddie Hearn!

[0:06] Fight of the night, Bentley and Mosley, and performance of the night were Clark and Umar. [0:14] Go ahead, sir. [0:14] Hey, Dana. [0:15] Great cards and great fights tonight. [0:17] A big win for Shev Clark. [0:19] What did you make of that main event? [0:20] Yeah, yeah. [0:21] It was a great fight. [0:22] You know, he couldn't have looked any better. [0:27] Yeah, and for Chris Billum-Smith, do you think there's a way back for him now? [0:30] I'm assuming he'll take some time out, but what do you think going forward will come next for him? [0:34] Yeah, I mean, you're going to have to ask him that when he comes in. [0:37] And, yeah, take some time off, get his head together and figure out what he wants to do next. [0:44] Love the kid. [0:45] Love him. [0:46] We saw earlier today a post on True Social from President Trump saying that you've been offered the job as press secretary of the United States. [0:55] You've obviously acknowledged that on your story as well at the moment. [0:58] Can you tell us a little bit about that and your reaction to his post? [1:02] I'm flying to Washington, D.C. right now. [1:04] Yeah, straight after this. [1:06] Yeah, right now. [1:07] And you do a lot. [1:08] How do you believe you could, you know, balance what you do at the moment alongside that? [1:11] How do you believe you could balance? [1:17] You know, you do a lot with the UFC. [1:18] Yeah, I got a lot of jobs already. [1:20] Yeah. [1:21] Yeah. [1:22] Can you tell us about some of the conversations you've had with him about that? [1:25] No, I'm going to meet with him. [1:27] We have a meeting on Monday, so I'm sure I'll have more to talk about after that. [1:32] Watch this space. [1:34] Huh? [1:35] Watch this space, see what happens. [1:36] What do I expect? [1:37] No, just watch this space, see what happens. [1:40] Cheers, thank you. [1:40] Yeah, watch the space. [1:46] Sorry, just saying. [1:47] What does that mean? [1:48] Just see what happens, basically. [1:49] Yeah, yeah. [1:50] Yeah. [1:50] Yeah. [1:51] I have a meeting on Monday. [1:52] I'm flying to D.C. right now. [1:53] And I'm sure we'll have something to talk about after that. [1:57] Thank you. [1:57] Thank you. [1:58] Hi there, Dan, over here. [1:59] Mm-hmm. [1:59] The boxing business is a brutal business, but nonetheless, you guys have done a fantastic [2:04] job. [2:05] We spoke about this yesterday, but in less than a year, you guys have managed to put on [2:09] more shows than majority of the major promoters. [2:12] You've also managed to have one of the largest rosters of active fighters. [2:17] On top of that, you signed massive network deals with some of the biggest broadcasters [2:20] in the world. [2:22] How would you describe your first year in the boxing scene? [2:24] Well, thank you, sir. [2:26] I think you just summed it up for me. [2:28] We have, you know, we have 25 deals in 95 countries right now. [2:32] One of the big things that I always tell fighters, obviously making money and, you know, all these [2:38] things are important when you're a professional athlete, but how many people see the great things [2:44] that you accomplished during your career, too? [2:46] I mean, you heard Ryan Rizinski saying, I fight like this all this time after the last [2:50] CBS fight, but nobody ever seen it. [2:52] This is the first time people have actually got to see, you know, the way that I fight [2:58] and my style of fighting. [2:59] So I'm happy with where we are, you know, in just under a year. [3:04] Really happy. [3:06] We're ahead of where I thought we might be. [3:09] All right, Dana. [3:10] This was your fourth show. [3:12] How did this show compare to the others you've done? [3:16] Good. [3:16] It was a great show. [3:17] I like the fights. [3:19] Do you like the fights? [3:20] Yeah. [3:21] Yeah. [3:21] Especially the last one. [3:22] Yeah. [3:23] Yeah. [3:23] I like the girls' fight, too. [3:25] The girls' fight was competitive and fun, and yeah, it was a good night. [3:29] Any more plans for London, England? [3:31] Yeah, yeah. [3:31] I mean, we're on the network here, so we're in business with these guys, and I love it [3:38] over here in London, so yeah, we'll be back. [3:40] Thank you. [3:41] Yes, sir. [3:42] Hi, Dana. [3:42] And just, you mentioned Bentley and Mosley as the fight, fight of the night. [3:47] You probably, in that second round, you had a contender for maybe round of the year, basically, [3:53] and how good that second round was. [3:54] That was a beautiful one-two we dropped them with, and the fact that Mosley got back up [3:58] and continued to fight and went the distance in that fight is pretty awesome. [4:07] Dana, could we see Denzel Bentley fight either Callum Orchard or Aaron McKenna next? [4:12] Obviously, they're both probably the next biggest middleweights in the Zufa roster. [4:16] I could. [4:17] Yes, sir. [4:19] And Jai Opatia announced to fight Deontay Wilder as well. [4:22] What was the thought behind that? [4:23] Obviously, Jai being a cruiserweight going up to heavyweight for that fight card. [4:28] Yeah. [4:28] Well, I just think that the cruiserweight division is pretty exciting right now. [4:34] A lot of good guys, and Jai Opatia is willing to fight anybody and fight all the time. [4:39] So that fight, and you're hearing about Usyk talking about moving down. [4:45] So interesting and fun, and a huge fight for Jai. [4:50] I mean, to be on that card and to have a fight with such a globally well-known guy like Deontay, [5:00] it's a good fight for him. [5:02] With Jai being such a good position at cruiserweight, is there a bit of jeopardy going into a fight [5:06] like Deontay Wilder? [5:07] Yeah, yeah. [5:08] I don't disagree with you. [5:10] I don't disagree with you, but he wanted to do it. [5:13] And we've seen you've signed a WBC world champion, Carlos Adames, as well. [5:19] Obviously, it was announced on the poster that he was WBC champion, [5:22] where previous champions, when they've held previous titles, [5:25] haven't been announced as such with Zufa. [5:28] Have Zufa changed their stance on the kind of quote-unquote traditional titles? [5:34] Has it changed my stance? [5:35] Listen, I've talked about this a bunch of times. [5:38] We're sort of dealing with that on a case-by-case basis. [5:43] And if we can work it out, we'd like to for the fighters. [5:47] If we can't, then we won't. [5:50] Would that ever get in the way of Zufa signing a fighter? [5:54] No. [5:54] No, definitely not. [5:56] Thanks, Dana. [5:56] Yep. [5:57] I think they would get in the way of signing a fighter if he's under contract with somebody else. [6:02] Dana. [6:02] Just on Carlos Adames there, obviously, the fight was announced quite late. [6:08] Has there been any drug testing ahead of this fight between Carlos Adames and Jerome Warburton? [6:14] Not that I'm aware of. [6:15] Okay. [6:16] So, for a WBC world champion, do you think that's appropriate to not be drug tested? [6:23] For a WBC world champion, don't you think that's appropriate to not be drug tested? [6:31] No, that it's not appropriate to not receive drug testing. [6:38] Well, everybody's going to be drug tested. [6:39] But you just said you don't know if there's drug testing. [6:43] Well, everybody's going to be drug tested as they lead up to a fight. [6:48] But you don't know if it's happening. [6:52] Okay. [6:53] So, what are you asking me? [6:54] I'm asking if there's been any drug testing. [6:56] I don't know. [6:56] We'll find out for you. [6:57] We'll get you that information. [6:59] Okay, thanks. [7:00] You're welcome. [7:01] Dana. [7:02] Dana over here. [7:03] Over here, mate. [7:04] Yep. [7:04] A brilliant night at boxing. [7:07] I presume the next time you're going to be in the UK is for AJ vs. Fury. [7:13] First of all, in your words, you are promoting the fight. [7:17] Is there a world where you and Eddie Hearn can just get along with each other and promote the fight together and shake hands? [7:23] Or have we just gone too far for that? [7:25] Yeah, I don't have a problem with Eddie Hearn. [7:30] When's the last time you guys heard me talk about Eddie Hearn? [7:32] I mean, I don't have a problem with Eddie Hearn. [7:34] Well, you spoke about him a few days ago about, you know, potentially boxing in a random London gym. [7:41] First of all, did you genuinely mean that? [7:42] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [7:43] Well, because the guy asked me about it. [7:45] When have you ever heard me just walk in a room and start talking about Eddie Hearn? [7:48] Unless you guys, you're asking me about Eddie Hearn right now. [7:54] Overall, we've finished almost at the end of 2026 with Zufa Boxing. [8:00] How would you rate the year? [8:03] Because you told us a few times to, you know, judge us by the end of the year. [8:08] And now we are at the end of the year. [8:09] So how would you, you know, rate Zufa Boxing? [8:11] I'm happy with our first year. [8:12] And for me, you know, I've actually had a good time this year. [8:16] I've had a good time, you know, working in the sport, on the sport with the team that I've built. [8:25] Well, we've had a good time. [8:27] We're happy with where we're at just a few months into, you know, into our first year. [8:33] And what are we expecting in 2027 with Zufa Boxing? [8:35] More American cards? [8:38] Yeah, I think more cards, period, everywhere. [8:41] You know, I think, you know, you'll see us just like we do with the UFC, [8:46] taking the fights everywhere all over the world. [8:49] Not just the US and the UK. [8:52] You said in a Deontay Wilder podcast that you're, you know, [8:55] you're trying to make sure that American boxing, you know, takes over the world of boxing like Britain has. [9:03] With the likes of, you know, letting Shakur Stevenson go without a fight, [9:06] how are you exactly planning to do that for 2027? [9:11] Trying to make sure that American boxing, you know, takes over the world of boxing like the British has. [9:17] But letting Stevenson go without a fight, are you exactly planning to do? [9:24] Well, I don't think that we let Shakur go without a fight. [9:29] You know, we work together and we're on a call one day and I said, [9:33] maybe it's better if we all just go our separate ways. [9:36] And everybody agreed. [9:38] I don't know what your question is. [9:41] What's your question about American boxing? [9:43] My question when you... [9:44] My goal is to bring, you know, boxing back to America for people to care about the sport again in the United States. [9:53] You're asking me if I can do that without Shakur? [9:55] Well, I'm asking you more about how do you exactly plan to do that when you sign Shakur Stevenson and, you know, [10:02] and he was your marquee siding and, you know, you let him go straight away without a fight. [10:08] Can you understand why that does... does it look like... [10:11] That just didn't work out. [10:12] You win some, you lose some. [10:15] Thank you. [10:16] Dana. [10:17] Dana, just here. [10:18] A follow-up on that question about American boxing. [10:21] You said you want to sign all the top talent in America. [10:25] The most marketable names in American boxing, David Benavidez, has re-signed with PBC. [10:30] Boots Ennis has re-signed with Matchroom. [10:32] Bam's with Matchroom. [10:33] Haney's with DAZN. [10:34] If Tank comes back, he's probably going to be with PBC. [10:38] How do you intend to sign all those guys and work with them if they're all tied up in contracts? [10:44] Well, we're like eight or nine months into this thing. [10:47] We'll see how it all plays out. [10:49] Dana, Eddie said if you want to go on fight week, [10:52] will that be your decision? [10:55] Yes. [10:56] Thank you. [10:57] Dana, congratulations on a good show tonight, just over here. [11:01] We saw Denzel Bentley call out Conor Benn tonight. [11:04] Is that something you would like to see? [11:05] And is there any discussions about it? [11:09] I don't know. [11:10] I mean, that just happened 30 minutes ago. [11:13] We'll see what happens. [11:14] And is there any plans in the next six months for Conor Benn to get out there? [11:19] Yeah, yeah. [11:19] We're talking about Conor. [11:20] Yep. [11:21] Just back onto the topic of Andy Hearn. [11:23] When we spoke to him a few weeks ago, he reckoned that zipper could be extinct within 10 months. [11:28] What's your comment on that? [11:33] Just back onto the topic of Eddie Hearn. [11:36] We spoke to him a few weeks. [11:37] He reckoned that zipper could be extinct within 10... [11:41] Oh, was that Zufa? [11:42] Yeah. [11:43] Oh, okay. [11:48] Any comment? [11:49] Any word on that? [11:50] What would be my comment on that? [11:52] Guys, I don't care what Eddie says. [11:54] I don't hear this shit unless I come here in front of you. [11:57] I don't care what Eddie Hearn says. [11:59] And last one from me. [12:00] Just back onto Mazzy. [12:02] Great performance again tonight. [12:04] You reckoned he could be on that AJ Fury undercard. [12:08] Was that just a tease or is that something that could be possible? [12:11] No, I'm probably going to do it. [12:14] Dana, I know you don't make fights straight after an event, but Denzel... [12:18] But I did that one. [12:19] But Denzel fought tonight, and I know you've got Aaron McKenna and Carlos Adamas. [12:25] If he was to fight Aaron McKenna, would you rather do that in London or in Ireland? [12:30] Well, I don't even... [12:31] I mean, there's a few options for him. [12:33] I don't know which one yet or where. [12:35] I haven't even thought about it. [12:36] But those are definitely good options. [12:38] Yeah, Dana, how you doing? [12:42] Hi. [12:42] Just a quick one. [12:43] Shev Clark beat, obviously, Callum Smith, former world champion. [12:48] What's next for Clark now? [12:54] What's next for him? [12:55] Yeah, what do you reckon's next for Clark? [12:57] I don't know. [12:58] I mean, he just fought 30 minutes ago. [13:00] We'll see. [13:02] Obviously, a great win for him. [13:03] He couldn't have looked better and put himself in a great position. [13:07] Hi there, Dan. [13:08] Over here. [13:08] Figure it out. [13:09] Yeah, yeah. [13:09] So someone mentioned Carlos Adamas and the drug testing. [13:12] So I just thought I'd clarify things. [13:13] The WBC all champions are signed to a clean boxing program where they have to be enrolled [13:19] for year-round testing. [13:20] So drug testing is not an issue for the WBC champion, Carlos Adamas. [13:25] So I'd clarify that. [13:29] Okay. [13:30] Hi, Dana. [13:30] Just one last thing there. [13:32] You mentioned about Denzel and it was mentioned there about Aaron McKenna and the possibility [13:36] of Ireland, given the recent event where we saw in Croke Park, the massive exhibition. [13:43] Would that be something you would like to revisit if maybe if it was in Ireland, Croke Park? [13:47] I've been talking about Croke Park for years. [13:50] You know, we've talked about Conor McGregor going there too. [13:54] So I am always looking to do the biggest, you know, possible fights that we can do. [14:02] So yeah, Croke Park would be great. [14:06] Dan, a couple of questions here, just like here. [14:09] At the Fury vs. Anti-Joshua launch press conference, unfortunately, when your name was [14:14] mentioned, it was met with resounding boos from the British boxing public. [14:17] Do you feel that you have to make up anything to the British boxing public that might resent [14:22] you for trying to take the fight away from the UK? [14:32] Do I feel that I have to make up anything to the British boxing public that might resent [14:37] me for trying to take the fight away from the UK? [14:40] No. [14:41] I think that obviously, you know, when tickets went on sale, it killed it. [14:48] It did incredibly well. [14:49] And I think it would have done well at Madison Square Garden too. [14:54] Are you concerned about the current situation regarding some of the investment to some of the [14:58] Saudi projects, the likes of Live Golf have recently on the way to dissolving? [15:03] Are there any concerns about the investment into Zufa boxing and the future of that, considering [15:07] what's going on in the Saudi climate? [15:11] Why would I be concerned about Live Golf? [15:15] What's that got to do with me? [15:16] It's about PIF and their willingness to invest in forms of entertainment, including sports, [15:22] including boxing. [15:24] Yeah, I'm not in business with the PIF. [15:25] No, I know, but it seems like the general direction from Saudis are to pull back investment [15:34] to sports and entertainment. [15:37] Yeah, no, I'm not concerned at all. [15:40] Outside of that, there have been conversations surrounding Denzel Bentley and his position [15:44] with the world title. [15:46] Of course, he didn't fight or defend for the world title. [15:48] What was your thoughts about Denzel not being able to continue to be champion tonight and [15:53] moving forward? [15:55] I don't know. [15:56] We'll have to work on that and figure out what everybody wants to do. [15:59] So who's deciding who's on the undercard for Fury versus Joshua? [16:04] You announced recently Wilder vs. Top Tide, but who's currently controlling the decision-making [16:08] regarding that undercard? [16:13] Well, we made some fights on the undercard. [16:15] The likes of Ed Heer and Frank Warren want their fighters on the undercard to pitch a few [16:21] for that card, including prospects and bigger names, like I think Joe Cordy and Pacquiao was [16:26] one of them. [16:27] Is that something that you all get together and discuss, or is there someone that's designated [16:30] to make that final decision? [16:32] Is there someone that's designated to make that final decision? [16:39] Meh. [16:41] I'm not going to get into this stuff. [16:44] I'll see you in Cardiff, though. [16:45] Could you say how much input you have into that? [16:48] No. [16:50] I know. [16:51] Eddie Heeran said a couple of weeks ago, just one on this. [16:55] I don't care. [16:56] I don't give a shit. [16:58] Why do you guys keep talking to me about Eddie Heeran? [17:00] I don't care. [17:01] What Eddie Heeran is doing, saying, where he's going, what the fuck he's doing, I could [17:06] care less. [17:07] He said something significant about Conor Benn. [17:09] He feels that you will not be able to reach an agreement for his next fight because he'll [17:13] want too much money and you'll try and match him with a high-risk opponent. [17:16] What's your response to that? [17:18] Okay. [17:20] Is there any truth to that? [17:24] I don't give a shit what Eddie Heeran thinks. [17:26] You guys love the Eddie Heeran thing. [17:28] I'm over the Eddie Heeran thing. [17:32] I get it. [17:32] He lives here. [17:33] You guys love it. [17:35] I don't care. [17:36] Literally, the only way I hear what Eddie Heeran says is if she tells me what Eddie Heeran [17:40] says. [17:40] I don't hear any of this shit. [17:41] Or unless I come over here and you guys say it. [17:44] And just one on Conor, he was reportedly paid $15 million for the pro-grade fight. [17:50] Some people believe that the figure he's paid is affecting guys like Shakur who want [17:56] similar money. [17:57] Is there, what's your response to people who say that? [18:03] Well, what we paid Conor is affecting the Shakur. [18:08] That's completely natural. [18:11] Completely natural. [18:13] He didn't request anywhere near that for any of his fights? [18:17] I mean, that's between us. [18:19] I mean, that's business shit behind the scenes. [18:24] If you want to ask Shakur that question, ask him that. [18:27] I'm not going to talk about it. [18:28] We all decided to go our own ways and everybody's happy with the decision. [18:33] And, you know, if you want to ask about money, ask Shakur. [18:39] Hey, Dana. [18:39] Just here. [18:41] Yeah. [18:42] Brilliant event tonight. [18:43] Just how happy are you with the talent pool that's currently in the UK? [18:46] Very. [18:47] This has been fun for me this year. [18:48] I've had a good time. [18:49] And, you know, we're happy with the position that we're in heading into our, you know, [18:55] first year. [18:56] And we're excited about next year. [18:58] Van Hooter went 14-0 tonight. [19:01] Just here, Dana. [19:03] Van Hooter went 14-0 tonight. [19:05] What's your plans with him building him in America? [19:08] Yeah. [19:09] I mean, this kid is an absolute stud. [19:11] So young. [19:13] Handled the pressure well. [19:15] And, yeah, I want to put him on the A.J. Fury card. [19:20] So just got to find an opponent who's next. [19:24] Again, Dana, just here. [19:27] How likely are we to see more Zufa cards elsewhere other than London? [19:30] I know we've seen Bournemouth. [19:32] And then obviously in Ireland as well. [19:34] How likely we'll see them in Birmingham or Manchester? [19:36] That's pretty good in our first eight months. [19:37] Yeah, very good. [19:39] Yeah. [19:40] I think we're going to go everywhere. [19:41] I want to go to Australia too. [19:43] So, yeah, we're going everywhere. [19:47] Maybe Europe? [19:50] Yeah, everywhere. [19:53] Dana, could we get a comment on the rumour regarding an injury, [19:56] an apparent injury to Tyson Fury? [19:57] Is there any truth in that rumour that's come out? [20:00] Yeah, I don't know anything about that. [20:02] I didn't hear that rumour until I landed here. [20:06] I think a guy from Sky Sports asked me the question. [20:09] But I haven't heard it, and I haven't heard it since. [20:14] Heard nothing negative. [20:16] All right, Dana, could I just ask how you found your experience [20:19] in promoting boxing compared to UFC? [20:25] I mean, it's been great. [20:27] I've had a good year. [20:27] I've had fun. [20:28] So, I don't have anything bad to report about being in the business [20:32] my first eight or nine months. [20:36] And I didn't think that would be the case. [20:38] But it's been great. [20:41] No complaints. [20:42] Dana, Connor Ben did say he was offered a fight [20:47] on the AJ Fury card for Manny Pacquiao. [20:49] Is that something you'd be looking to make early next year? [20:51] Connor Ben said he was offered a fight on the AJ card with Manny Pacquiao. [21:01] Is that something you'd be looking to do? [21:04] I don't know. [21:04] We'll see. [21:05] Thank you. [21:06] We're definitely, you know, obviously talking to Manny too. [21:10] Thank you. [21:10] Yeah. [21:12] Dana, sorry, another quick one. [21:14] Chris Billsworth's team seemed to be disappointed in the immediate aftermath [21:17] that the referee came in and stopped the fight. [21:20] From your opinion, from where you were at ringside, [21:22] do you think it was potentially an early call at all? [21:28] I thought it was. [21:30] Yeah, I thought it was. [21:31] My guy Harrison disagreed with me and said that he thinks CBS was really hurt [21:36] and it was a good stoppage. [21:39] But I thought it was early. [21:41] Only CBS can answer that question when he comes in here. [21:47] Good. [21:48] All right, guys. [21:49] Thanks. [21:49] Good night.