Dana White blasts boxing culture for not finalizing Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk yet
Dana White recently gave his thoughts on the heavyweight boxing clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk not being finalized yet.
During his UFC 286 post-event press conference, White was asked how he felt about talks regarding Fury vs. Usyk being stalled. He mentioned that he isn't shocked that the fight hasn't been finalized:
"Yeah, it's [Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk] scheduled though right? No, never have? Welcome to boxing, boys. I mean, is it shocking? Yes. Is it shocking? No. I mean, it's just, that is boxing."
The UFC president also added that it's unfortunate how the sport operates and that it's a common occurrence with big fights. He mentioned that the boxing business model is why he runs the UFC the way he does, as it ensures the best fights happen when they're meant to happen:
"It's just the way that that sport always seems to play out. The big fights that should happen never happen and when they do, it's always late. Yeah, I mean, yeah...that's the stuff that used to drive me crazy as a fan and it's literally part of how I designed this company to not be."
This isn't the first time Dana White has criticized the sport of boxing for a big fight falling through, as he has been vocal in the past about Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao taking years before it finally materialized.
Dana White confirms Colby Covington will receive the next title shot
There won't be any speculation on who Leon Edwards will be defending his welterweight title against next, as Dana White confirmed his next fight after the event.
During his post-event press conference, the UFC president confirmed that Colby Covington will receive the next title shot. Despite being out of action for over a year, he mentioned that he is deserving of a title shot even if Jorge Masvidal, who has a history with Edwards, were to defeat Gilbert Burns in spectacular fashion next month:
"Yeah, I don't know when we'll do it, but yeah, that's the fight that makes sense. And Colby came here and cut weight, you know, and did everything to be here for this fight, he deserves this fight. Not to mention the fact that he's, you kow, the second or third best guy in the world."
It will be interesting to see when the UFC will schedule Edwards vs. Covington as it appears as though the heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic and the undisputed featherweight championship bout between Alexander Volkanovski and interim champion Yair Rodriguez are being targeted for the International Fight Week event.