Is Dana White making the leap from UFC promoter to boxing promoter?
On Tuesday, UFC President Dana White told the LA Times that the UFC is “getting into boxing, 100 percent.” The interview occurred at boxing coach Freddie Roach’s Wild Card West gym in Santa Monica.
White went on to clarify the statement,
“No, no, no, I’m not leaving the UFC. I’m getting into boxing with [WME head] Ari [Emanuel] and the UFC will be doing boxing, too,” he said. “It’s still early. We’re still working on it. I’ve got to get my s**t together, but I’m getting into boxing, man. It’s coming.”
White has been hinting at a potential move into boxing for months. After all, boxing was White’s first introduction to combat sports. Many fans noticed that he wore a ‘Zuffa Boxing’ shirt to several of the Mayweather vs. McGregor promotional events and discussed the possibility of promoting boxing events with the UFC. Now it’s official, and the MMA tycoon has announced he is in the process of applying for a boxing promoter’s license in several states.
“We’ll see who’s interested when I say let’s do this,” White said. “It’s harder than saying we’re getting into boxing. We still have to get some homework done. I feel like I can do it better than everyone else. I love the sport. If you look at what we’ve done over the last 15 years, we’re not afraid to try new things.”
This move raises a ton of questions. Is the announcement simply a negotiating tactic? The UFC is currently in negotiation for television deals with massive broadcasting corporations. How will the introduction of boxing affect MMA? Well, in the near future it is unlikely to affect it much. The UFC’s owners WME-IMG have very aggressive PPV numbers they want and so it’s not likely that a new venture will take much steam away from the UFC cards.
Honestly who knows how this will turn out? Dana is notorious for making unfounded, spur-of-the-moment assertions. However, as a business move, this has some real legs. Many believe that boxing is critically hampered by it’s promotional structure. There is an incredible amount of time and money wasted in the promoter politics. Under the UFC model – one promoter- there is no drama, the best fight the best. Old school boxing fans are sure to complain, but the reality is that the UFC’s platform has helped catapult MMA over boxing in the last several years. It could give the same boost to boxing.
What do you think about the UFC getting into boxing?
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