Dana White was unable to keep his cool while being questioned by a reporter during the pre-fight news conference for Canelo Alvarez’s blockbuster bout with Terence Crawford.
The Mexican boxing legend will take on 37-year-old Crawford at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday, in an event that has been hyped up as one of the fights of the modern era.
Alvarez, 35, is putting his four belts on the line as Crawford, who is jumping up two weight classes, looks to become only the second undisputed super-middleweight king, after Alvarez.
With just days until they take to the ring, White hosted a UFC-style press conference in Vegas – his first since announcing a venture into boxing – and took questions from reporters and audience members.
The 56-year-old promoter, who has partnered with Turki Alalshikh to launch Zuffa Boxing, was questioned by a reporter about the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000 – a law brought into place to protect boxers and prevent ‘potential monopolies’.
‘Well, this is obviously a long discussion,’ White said. ‘If you want to talk to me about that, set up an interview. This isn’t about me and my business. It’s about these two guys on Saturday night.’
Dana White did not take kindly to a question while hosting a pre-fight press conference for Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford
Alvarez (left) and Crawford (right) will fight for the undisputed super-middleweight on Saturday night
25 years on from the Ali Act, a new bill, called the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act, has been proposed in an attempt to reform the sport’s structure.
Journalist Sean Zittel did not back down after White’s rebuttal and continued to question the UFC chief about the original act.
Things then took a turn for the worse, as White did not like the path he was being taken down by the reporter.
‘Listen, if you want to be an a**hole, let’s do it in private and we can do an interview,’ he responded.
‘If you wanna showboat, I get it. If you have questions for these two that are fighting on Saturday, that’s a different story.’
Alvarez, sensing the tension in the arena after boos were directed at White, then decided to get involved.
‘Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight,’ the fighter shouted.
The changes that White seeks to implement with the new act would have significant implications for the boxing world as we know it.
White (middle right) has ventured into boxing promotion for the first time and has partnered with Turki Alalshikh (middle left) to launch Zuffa Boxing
The World Boxing Council (WBC), World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Organisation (WBO), International Boxing Federation (IBF), and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) are the current governing bodies in the sport; however, the new act seeks to create a unified organisation.
This would allow the UFC to create its own world championship belts in boxing, and the unified organisation would likely be ruled by Alalshikh and White.
The mega-fight between Alvarez and Crawford is White’s first true fight as a boxing promoter, outside of Conor McGregor’s crossover bout with Floyd Mayweather in 2017.
The two fighters faced off after White’s fiery exchange with the reporter, and they continued the tense mood of the night by locking into each other’s eyes for several minutes, before breaking off.
