Dana White names his UFC heavyweight GOAT
Dana White may have been on the wrong side of Stipe Miocic in the past, but it appears the UFC boss reveres the Croatian-origin fighter as the best heavyweight of all time.
In a recent interview with ESPN's Brett Okamoto, Dana White talked about Stipe Miocic's possible return to the UFC octagon. White also reacted to the former heavyweight champion's recent claims of bulking up for a major comeback fight. The UFC president said:
"Well, a lot of people did not think he was the heavyweight GOAT [Greatest of all time]; he is the heavyweight GOAT. I mean, he is. The guy has put in the work and done all the things you need to do to be a heavyweight GOAT. He is, that's a fact."
Dana White is appreciative of Stipe Miocic's mental grit. Despite losing his title to Francis Ngnannou at UFC 260, Miocic seems to have not lost his championship mentality. White believes the UFC brass could put together a mega-fight between Miocic and former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
"And I don't know, but we will see what is next. I like that he is fired up and wants to fight again. But yeah, listen, we could do Jon [Jones] vs Stipe [Miocic] too," said Dana White.
Was there ever a feud between Dana White and Stipe Miocic?
Although the fighter-promoter duo seems to be on good terms now, things did not look so pretty back in 2018. Dana White may have oftentimes clarified that he does not have a preference during promotion, but it was apparent that the UFC supremo was all praise for Francis Ngannou during the build-up to UFC 220 (Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou 1).
"I believe that this guy (Ngannou) has the potential to become the heavyweight champion of the world," said Dana White in an interview with ESPN. "I also believe he has the potential to hold that title for a very long time."
The obvious partiality on Dana White's part had clearly miffed Stipe Miocic. After churning out a unanimous decision victory over 'The Predator', the Cleveland native snatched the belt from White and handed it to his head coach, Marcus Marinelli.
"He's my dude," said Miocic in the post-fight press conference,m referring to his coach. "He respects me and I respect him. End of story"