UFC CEO Dana White did not hold back his disappointment regarding Showtime’s recent boxing event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The event featured Canelo Alvarez’s dominant victory over Jermell Charlo.
While White acknowledged Alvarez’s exceptional skills, he spared no words in criticizing Showtime’s handling of the bout, going so far as to call it “embarrassing.” During a press conference for Dana White’s Contender Series 65, he openly voiced his disdain.
White stated, “Again, I could go on for days about their production on Saturday…Showtime, I noticed you tried to do it better, but you guys suck.”
White then praised the outstanding performance of his UFC team, particularly during their recent event at the UFC Apex. He highlighted the notable disparity in production quality, emphasizing how swiftly the UFC’s production team incorporated replays.
He revealed that in the final moments of a DWCS bout, the team promptly displayed replays under his direct instructions. White said, “There’s nobody that can disagree with me that Showtime is a horrible, horrible f**king production team.”
White’s candid comparison laid bare the glaring difference in production quality. He noted that their replays were so subpar that the commentators struggled to provide meaningful commentary.
Dana White’s straightforward evaluation of Showtime’s production quality underscored his profound disappointment in the network’s performance.
Dana White addressed Stephen Espinoza’s live gate comparisons during the press conference before the match for the Canelo Alvarez vs. Jermell Charlo bout. Espinoza had confidently predicted that the upcoming event would generate over $20 million in gate revenue.
This would mark the third time in six months that Showtime Boxing had achieved this milestone. He also emphasized that the UFC had never achieved a $20 million gate in its history.
In response, Dana White not only criticized Showtime’s production quality but also downplayed Espinoza’s role in boxing’s success. He pointed out that Espinoza played no part in the success of competitors like Canelo Alvarez, Ryan Garcia, and Terrence Crawford. He mentioned that they were the true driving force behind the substantial gate revenue.
White referred to Espinoza as a “weasel” and said that Espinoza’s attempt to claim credit reeked of arrogance and delusion.
