White: Trump will be watching fight
Post press conference, White says unlikely President Trump will attend the fight, but he will be watching:
They called me yesterday and I don’t think they’re gonna come, but they’ll be watching… [President Trump] feels he’ll ruin the event if he shows up. The Secret Service is going to have to have to go through the place. They have to shut down streets and create crazy traffic.
White: McGregor ‘will hit’ Mayweather
Appearing with Snoop Dogg, White says McGregor can beat Mayweather.
At the end of the day it’s a fight. Floyd Mayweather is 40 years old; Conor McGregor is 27. Conor’s a big dude. Floyd has trouble with southpaws; Conor McGregor is a southpaw. And Conor McGregor hits like a truck. When he hits you, you know it. So, in no way, shape or form am I saying Conor McGregor wins this fight. I don’t know. But it’s more interesting than people think it is. … I promise you Conor McGregor will hit him. When they fight (Mayweather) will get hit, and it will be interesting to see what happens.
White: Rousey built the UFC
White talks about Rousey’s loss to Nunes.
I went backstage after and hung out with her for probably 45 minutes. I’ll tell you this: She’s in better spirits this time than after the Holly fight. She’s very competitive. She does not like to lose. She loves to win. She loves to do what she sets out to do. Tonight wasn’t her night. None of this would be here without Ronda Rousey. Ronda Rousey built this. She talked me into letting women come into the UFC, and it was the smartest thing that I’ve ever done. Regardless of whether she comes back, or she doesn’t come back, she’s a wnnier. She built this whole thing…[She] needs to take some time. Maybe she’ll [come back], we’ll see what happens.
White: An ‘epic fight’
White appears on ESPN to talk about McGregor-Diaz UFC 2o2.
It lived up to all my expectations, and exceeded it. I didn’t see that fight going five rounds, but it did. One minute it looked like Conor was gassed, and he got a second wind. Diaz got dropped a couple of times, looked like he was done, and he came back. It’s an absolute epic fight. [Conor] did what I thought he might do. He was chopping that leg. I thought he would go to the body a lot more.
On a third fight:
Well Connor has to defend his title or give it up…If I was Conor I would defend my title.
White looking at other fights for McGregor
In an interview on FOX Sports 1’s The Herd, White says the UFC has begun looking at alternative opponents for McGregor’s next fight after unsuccessfully trying to reach a deal with Diaz.
It’s just madness. It’s just been tough. It’s been a tough go-through, so we’re looking at another fight for Conor right now and we’ll see how this thing comes together. But Conor is just so obsessed with Diaz at 170, it’s been crazy. The reality is that since that Conor McGregor fight — obviously when you win a fight of that magnitude, it has definitely rubbed off on Nate. People do want to see Nate fight. People do want to see this fight again, and I’m one of those guys who, I want to make the fight that people want to see, and I believe people do want to see this fight. But, people do want to see Conor McGregor vs. Frankie Edgar or Jose Aldo again too. I’m sure they would want to see him fight Rafael dos Anjos at 155 for that title, so there’s a lot of fights out there for Conor, if we can’t get this Nate fight done.
White: McGregor ‘obsessed’ with fighting Diaz
In an interview with ESPN’s Sportscenter, White says that he is working on McGregor-Diaz matchup.
We’re working on what’s next for him. We’re trying to set up a fight right now. It’s been a little challenging. Obviously the fight he would love to do is the rematch with Nate Diaz. I’m trying to get the deal done…Conor is obsessed with this rematch. I don’t know why, but he is. It’s just his type of personality. He’s obsessed with it. He’s obsessed with fighting Diaz again – at 170 pounds. I don’t know if [the fight] will ever happen, but I’m trying.
White: McGregor-Mayweather ‘impossible’
In an interview on on the Russillo and Kannell show, White says that a McGregor-Mayweather matchup is ‘impossible’.
Let me put it to you this way. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather are in the same sport. It took how long for those two to fight? Now imagine how hard it would be to get [Mayweather and McGregor] to fight. They’re not in the same sport. Is this thing going to be MMA or boxing rules? Who’s getting the lion’s share of the money? This and that. It’s impossible. But like I’ve said, ‘Floyd, you want to fight Conor, call me.’
White: McGregor will fight again
In an interview on The Jim Rome Show, White talks about McGregor’s retirement announcement.
We’d been going back and forth over this whole press conference and commercial thing. He’s young, he’s emotional, and I believe that’s what that was. Do I believe he’s retiring? I don’t. But if he is, I wish him well. Conor McGregor will fight again I believe. He’s a young guy, he’s a proud guy, he’s very opinionated. I think yesterday his tweet was out of frustration and not the true desire to retire…You can’t not show up to promote your fight. Especially it’s UFC 200. We’re spending like 10 million dollars in commercials and advertising and everything else, and he’s the main event, and he’s not going to be a part of it? It doesn’t work that way.
White also says reports of McGregor wanting $10 million to fight at UFC 200 are false:
That is a flat out disgusting lie. It’s a lie. Conor McGregor has never agreed to fight then come back and ask for more money. He’s never done that. He’s not like that…I’m not mad at Conor McGregor at all. I have no ill-will towards him whatsoever. Listen, he’s a big boy he made a decision not to fight at two hundred he knows what that means to him. Listen, I got three months to go and a lot of people who want to fight on it.
Dana White interview
White is interviewed by The Arsenio Hall Show. They talk about UFE and it’s rivalry WWE, combat sports and how about a wrestling challenge with Vince McMahon.
I think that if your a fan of WWE, your into soap operas and scripted…you know, everybody knows it’s fake. It’s like a male soap opera.
