Eddie Hearn held back no punches in his response to Dana White’s latest slight.
Hearn, chairman of Matchroom Sport, has been going back and forth publicly with the UFC CEO, who recently entered the world of boxing promotion with Zuffa Boxing. In his latest comments, Hearn took quite the shot at White. This past Sunday, following the completion of Zuffa Boxing 3, White responded to Hearn’s criticism of Zuffa Boxing’s matchmaking, taking a personal shot at the Englishman by saying he ‘works for his dad.’
Advertisement
Hearn heard those comments and matched White’s energy in his response.
“It normally takes someone a while to get personal enough to say I work for my dad,” Hearn told Talk Sport Boxing. “I mean, you could say, the Ferttita Brothers are also his father because he works for them. But let’s be honest, right now, Dana White has a new father. He has a new papi, and papi is Turki Alalshikh. Dana White works for Turki Alalshikh. So good luck, get on with your job, and be a good boy.”
On top of matching White in taking a personal shot, Hearn doubled down on his criticism of Zuffa Boxing. Unlike other promoters, Zuffa Boxing will have its own titles, and they don’t work with sanctioning organizations like the WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO.
Hearn sees those belts as illegitimate and thinks Zuffa Boxing’s product is overall low-level.
Advertisement
“I know they’re only like four or five shows in, their vision is Callum Walsh fighting main event with Max Kellerman telling you that he’s the next Roy Jones (Jr.), and Charles Martin headlining on a Sunday night in front of 150 people in a garage, in a ring that looks like it was pulled out of a club show,” Hearn said. “So what vision is that? What they’re trying to do actually is, I feel like, manipulate fight fans and tell you that this is the best, the Zuffa belt is what matters. But fight fans are much smarter than that; they’re not idiots. Trust me, I know them inside out. You might get the casuals, ‘Oh yeah, wow. Zuffa belt. Yeah, that’s amazing.’ But the reality is that fighters know that’s not a real belt. That’s not the best.
“What you’re watching in the Apex is not the best vs. the best. Are there some good matchups? Yeah, mainly between guys I’ve actually never really heard of before – and that doesn’t matter, but don’t tell us it’s the best vs. the best. Because if I put Charles Martin on a headline fight, I would get f*cking ripped to shreds, so let’s see the same energy for Mr. White. I wish him all the best.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Eddie Hearn blasts Dana White: His ‘new papi’ is Turki Alalshikh
