Tag: Dana White

Javier Mendez explains why Islam Makhachev is No. 1 pound-for-pound best, not Jon Jones

For Javier Mendez, there’s little debate on who’s the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter today.

There were several storylines that remained consistent throughout 2024 with one of the biggest being the debate of who is the No. 1 pound-for-pound best fighter in MMA today.

The biggest instigator of that discussion was none other than UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag], who insisted [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] was the only choice for the debate and didn’t entertain the possibility of other UFC champions, including [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] – who many believe is the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world today.

[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag], Makhachev’s trainer, thinks there shouldn’t be much of a debate, even if in reality it’s a discussion that will carry over for the majority of 2025.

“This is what I always say: How many fights does Jon Jones have in the last four years? Tell me. How many?” Mendez told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “If you said six or seven, OK. But how many does he have? Two in four years.

“No, you need to fight more than that (for pound-for-pound best). If Islam were to do the same, I’d put Jon Jones at No. 1 – but he hasn’t fought (as much). If he had been active, then it’s a different conversation – but he’s barely fought. That why, that reason alone, I put Islam at No. 1.”

For Mendez, it’s also not only the activity level. Yes, Jones has only fought twice since 2021, while Makhachev has fought eight times. It’s also the level of competition.

“Islam’s fights have always been against No. 1,” Mendez said. “Alexander Volkanovski was the best featherweight in the world and pound-for-pound, and he fought him, and everyone he’s fought has been very tough. The styles of all those guys were very good.

“Jon Jones fought Miocic, who was (42), and hadn’t fought in like four years, so he wasn’t the same. Jon Jones is supreme. He’s an excellent talent and has never lost in his whole life. It’s tough to critique him, because he’s fought everyone, but he just hasn’t fought much in the last four years.”

For Mendez, there’s no debate. He thinks that people misunderstand the point of the discussion, which is why there’s a debate triggered. He respects Jones and sees him as the greatest fighter of all time, which is a different label than the pound-for-pound best.

“The pound-for-pound conversation is now,” Mendez said. “I’m not going around saying that Islam is the greatest of all time. I’m just saying he’s the pound-for-pound best right now. That’s all. I’m not saying anything else.”

Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) returns to the octagon on Jan. 18 in the main event of UFC 311, which goes down in Los Angeles, Calif. Makhachev defends his lightweight title in a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC).

The two fought back in April 2019. It was Tsarukyan’s UFC debut, which he took on short notice. The fight ended up going all 15 minutes, with Tsarukyan coming up short in a unanimous decision, but putting on an admirable effort.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 311.

Dana White thinks Colby Covington ‘wasn’t too pissed’ about cut stoppage at UFC Tampa

Dana White didn’t see a fire of outrage from Colby Covington when the doctor waved off the UFC on ESPN 63 main event with Joaquin Buckley.

[autotag]Dana White[/autotag] didn’t see a fire of outrage from [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] when the doctor waved off Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 63 main event with Joaquin Buckley.

Former interim welterweight champion Covington (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) returned from a one-year layoff at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., and was cut open on the right eyelid by Buckley (22-6 MMA, 11-4 UFC) in the opening round. He attempted to battle through it, but the blood and damage only got worse as the fight wore on, and after multiple checks, the cageside physician said no more during the third round.

It’s the first time Covington has lost consecutive fights in his MMA career, and White said he thinks “Chaos” understood the reality of how this one came to an end.

“Listen, Colby’s an older guy that fights every once in a while,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC on ESPN 63. “He’s always durable and he’s always tough. … I also feel like Colby wasn’t too pissed that fight got stopped by the cut. It was definitely bothering him.

“It was definitely bothering him, and as soon as the corner would fix it, he would walk back out and rips it open again and makes it start bleeding again. That alone tells you that the cut was bothering him big time.”

Despite his observation about the lack of protest from Covington, 36, over the stoppage, White said he thought it wouldn’t have gotten that way if the event was held in UFC’s home base of Nevada. Nevertheless, White gave credit to Covington for competing through adversity for as long as he did.

“No doubt that was a bad cut, but that fight doesn’t get stopped in Vegas,” White said. “That fight keeps going in Vegas – 100 percent (it would’ve kept going).

“Love him or hate him, the guy’s a dog – tough as nails. (He) took big shots to the body, took big shots to the head that would’ve knocked a lot of people out. Colby’s durable and tough, but when you get cut, anything can happen.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 63.

Dana White guarantees Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall happens in 2025: ‘I’ll say 100 percent’

Dana White is not one to make guarantees when it comes to matchmaking, but he has made an exception for Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall.

TAMPA, Fla. – UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] is not one to make guarantees when it comes to unconfirmed matchmaking, but [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] is an exception.

The much-desired heavyweight title unification bout between champ Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) and interim titleholder Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) has been in limbo as “Bones” teases retirement and dismissed a matchup with the Brit.

White expressed confidence that the fight would happen following Jones’ title defense against Stipe Miocic in November, and when asked at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 63 post-fight news conference if he can be certain it would happen, White gave a definitive answer.

“I’ll say 100 percent (the fight happens),” White told MMA Junkie. “I think it’s probably the biggest fight in heavyweight history, and it’s a massive fight in the history of the company, too. It’s a big fight.”

Although Jones appears to be putting on a front that he has no interest in Aspinall, White said his experience talking to the man he regards as the greatest of all time is different in private.

“It’s weird,” White said. “What’s weird about that, let me tell you what’s weird about that: So usually guys say that sh*t behind the scenes and not publicly. Jon says that sh*t publicly but not behind the scenes. Jon is a very unique individual to deal with. From Day 1, I’ve been confident that Jon Jones would do that fight. Even before the fight (with Miocic), I said Jon will do this fight. Jon Jones isn’t afraid to fight anybody, and that’s a fact.

“The only time that anything remotely weird has happened with Jon Jones is the time that his f*cking camp did the weird Chael Sonnen thing, ‘We can’t fight Chael Sonnen on short notice.’ and that wasn’t him. It was his team, and he listened to his team for whatever reason. But that’s like the goofiest f*cking move in the history of the UFC. But other than that, Jon Jones is not a guy that, behind the scenes, turns down fights.”

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Dana White sidesteps Conor McGregor sexual assault question, indicates business as usual

Dana White appears to be unbothered by the UFC’s biggest star being found liable for sexually assaulting a woman.

LAS VEGAS – More than two weeks after [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] lost a high-profile sexual assault civil trial, [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] finally broke his silence – sort of.

On Nov. 22, a 12-day civil trial concluded with a jury finding McGregor liable for assault stemming from a 2018 claim by a woman, Nikita Hand, that she was raped by the UFC star in a Dublin hotel room during a night of partying. As a result, the jury ordered McGregor to pay Hand approximately $260,000 in damages. A judge also ruled that McGregor must pay Hand’s legal costs associated with the case.

Prior to the court’s ruling, there was plenty of uncertainty about McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) returning to the UFC. He was scheduled to make his highly anticipated comeback against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 in June, but the bout was scrapped after McGregor withdrew due to a broken pinky toe.

When asked during the UFC 310 post-fight news conference for a reaction to McGregor losing his sexual assault case, White offered nothing.

“What do you mean what’s my reaction?” White responded. “If I had a comment I would’ve put it out already.”

White previously said he doesn’t see McGregor returning until 2025. Now with McGregor’s reputation taking a hit and multiple business partners dropping him, White’s opinion on McGregor’s timeline to fight for the UFC hasn’t changed.

“He hasn’t been fighting here in I don’t know how long,” White said. “If he does fight, it’ll be sometime next year.”

McGregor hasn’t competed since breaking his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021. He has since filmed Season 31 of “The Ultimate Fighter” opposite Chandler but wound up withdrawing from their scheduled bout this past June.

Chandler moved on from the fight when he was booked in a rematch against Charles Oliveira at UFC 309. He lost the bout by unanimous decision but still expressed interest in rescheduling his fight with McGregor.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Dana White unsure how to handle Merab Dvalishvili’s temperament, altercations with fans: ‘What do you do?’

Dana White reacts to bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili’s temperament and multiple altercations during UFC 310 fight week.

UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] faced multiple incidents involving [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag] during UFC 310 fight week and is unsure how to handle his temperament going forward.

The bantamweight champion kept security on their toes on more than one occasion in Las Vegas. Friday, prior to the UFC 311 on-sale press conference, Dvalishvili was separated from his upcoming title challenger, Umar Nurmagomedov, during a heated argument backstage at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

As a preventative measure, Dvalishvili was seated further away than usual on stage for the news conference, which also featured UFC 311 headliners Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan. During the event, Dvalishvili engaged in shouting matches with Nurmagomedov, which could simply be chalked up to fight promotion.

However, after his teammate Aljamain Sterling lost to Movsar Evloev on the UFC 310 prelims, Dvalishvili, who was an official cornerman for Sterling, was restrained by security again, this time due to an altercation with a fan. Another teammate, cornerman, and fellow UFC fighter, Dennis Buzukja, was also involved and captured on video punching the fan during the ugly incident before he was pulled away.

White was not asked about Buzukja’s involvement, but responded to a question about Dvalishvili’s general temperament as of late. The UFC boss said he’s unsure how to address it, while offering a vauge hint at accountability.

“He’s my mini (Sean) Strickland without the mouth,” White told reporters during a UFC 310 post-event news conference. “What do you do? Let him buy the pay-per-view, I guess. I don’t know. You can’t keep fighting with f*cking fans. It’s going to cost you a lot, you can do it. It’s going to cost you a lot of money, right? I don’t know.

“Listen, man. I say it all the time: We’re in the f*cking fight business. This happens. We’ve got to deal with it.”

It’s unclear what White meant by saying the incident will cost Dvalishvili monetarily. The promotion has not announced a fine, nor is there an indication the fan has pressed charges. MMA Junkie reached out to UFC officials for further clarity, but has not received a response at the time of writing.

“We do our best,” White said about addressing unexpected incidents involving fighters. “I didn’t even know Nate Diaz was coming yesterday, threw a water bottle at Islam (Makhachev), I don’t know why. But listen, if you guys knew this much of what goes on behind the scenes, you would wonder why we do this for a living.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Overreaction Time: UFC 309 and Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson deliver the not-so-goods

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” covering Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic, Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson, and more.

The time for overreacting is here!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” at noon ET/9 a.m. PT as host Simon Samano and MMA Junkie reporter Farah Hannoun debate these “overreactions” on the following topics in mixed martial arts:

  • [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] was a meaningless UFC heavyweight title fight.
  • UFC 309 proved Jon Jones would lose to [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag].
  • Things are about to get ugly between Jon Jones and [autotag]Dana White[/autotag].
  • [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] should stop acting so desperate to fight [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag].
  • [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]’s UFC 309 performance was a huge disappointment.
  • [autotag]Jake Paul [/autotag]vs. [autotag]Mike Tyson[/autotag]: What the hell was that?
  • The UFC totally redeemed itself with the UFC 310/UFC Tampa shakeup.

Watch the full episode in the video above.

Jon Jones still isn’t No. 1 P4P after UFC 309, and Dana White (again) is mad

The official UFC rankings panelists continue to do themselves no favors whatsoever with Dana White.

The official UFC rankings panelists continue to do themselves no favors whatsoever with [autotag]Dana White[/autotag].

UFC 309 saw the return of heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag], who successfully returned from a 20-month layoff to defend his title with a third-round TKO of Stipe Miocic, who was coming off an even longer layoff of more than three-and-a-half years. The fight headlined the pay-per-view event at Madison Square Garden in New York.

For months, White has repeatedly fussed about Jones not being No. 1 in the official UFC pound-for-pound rankings, where he sat at No. 3 behind light heavyweight champ Alex Pereira and lightweight champ Islam Makhachev prior to UFC 309. Coming out of the event, Jones has jumped up one spot to leapfrog Pereira for the second spot, but he remains behind top-ranked Makhachev.

Unsurprisingly, White is perturbed by Jones still not claiming the top spot and made that clear Monday night on his Instagram Stories.

“I have to get rid of these CLOWNS!!” White wrote. “(Mark Zuckerberg), let’s get this AI deal done ASAP!!!!!”

White must’ve believed Jones’ easy win over Miocic would convince the UFC rankings panel to place him No. 1, but that’s not the case.

Last month, White said he was open to the UFC rankings being compiled, in part, by AI and consulted Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who’s a big UFC fan.

“I could go on and on and on, but I won’t,” White said. “We literally had meetings this week to work on it. I actually talked to Mark Zuckerberg, too, about AI, so yeah, I’m totally going to fix the rankings. We’re going to make a lot of strong moves here coming into 2025.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Dana White had a critical key takeaway from Bo Nickal’s UFC 309 win over Paul Craig

Dana White thinks Bo Nickal needs to slow his roll after UFC 309.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] needs to slow his role after UFC 309.

Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) remained unbeaten when he outstruck Paul Craig (17-9-1 MMA, 9-9-1 UFC) on Saturday’s main card at Madison Square Garden – the first time he goes to the judges’ scorecards.

It was a lackluster fight for the most part, where Nickal landed the better shots than Craig, but didn’t attempt a single takedown.

“Well, you know, we’ve had these discussions with Bo, Bo needs work,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC 309. “Bo is an up-and-coming guy. I know he has big aspirations and wants to move faster than he should, but tonight showed that – I mean, he still dominated, he won the whole fight, but he’s got work to do. It’s alright, we’ll move him. When you’re in a position like Bo is, there’s a lot of expectations.”

Prior to UFC 309, Nickal mapped out a plan where he saw himself five fights away from a title shot. Nickal received “overrated” chants from the crowd, but the standout wrestler was unbothered with the reaction. He called his performance “picture-perfect,” and was happy to log in experience of fighting three rounds after finishing his first six professional fights.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Dana White: ‘Mike Tyson was right and I was wrong’

Dana White says Mike Tyson proved him wrong against Jake Paul.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] says [autotag]Mike Tyson[/autotag] proved him wrong against [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag].

Although 58-year-old Tyson lost a unanimous decision to Paul in their boxing match Friday at AT&T Stadium, he looked competitive for the first couple of rounds before slowing down.

“Mike Tyson was right and I was wrong,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC 309.

White was concerned about Tyson’s health going up against 27-year-old Paul, but after a lackluster affair, he changed his tune.

“I told him, ‘Mike, you’re basically 60 years old.’ He’s like, ‘You honestly think this f*cking kid is going to do anything to me? He’s not good, he’s not going to f*cking knock me out, he’s not going to do this.’ You saw him. He tripped when he was walking down the thing, he had a hard time walking up the stairs. He had a knee brace on, and Jake Paul couldn’t do anything to him.

“He made a ton of money, and I know people are mad if you stayed home on a Saturday night, but you didn’t pay for it. You know what I mean? When Mike Tyson shows up, everybody makes money. Jake Paul is f*cking – I don’t have to tell you guys. You guys know. Mike Tyson is the A+++ side of that thing, and he was right. Jake Paul couldn’t do sh*t to him.”

After the fight, Paul said he cruised past Tyson because he didn’t want to hurt the boxing legend.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Dana White: Michael Chandler has home in UFC ‘until he decides to retire’

UFC CEO Dana White had only positive comments about Michael Chandler after his loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 309.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] doesn’t care about [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag]’s record inside the octagon, because the entertainment factor is always there.

Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) returned from a two-year layoff on Saturday and suffered a unanimous decision loss in his rematch with Charles Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) at UFC 309, which took place at Madison Square Garden. The lightweight contest was awarded Fight of the Night honors, but as a result the former Bellator champ saw his promotional record drop further below .500.

For Chandler, 38, the result hurts his push to challenge for the 155-pound title. But for White, the performance only further solidified what he already knew – that Chandler is a UFC lifer.

“He’s like an Arturo Gatti,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC 309. “He’s one of those – win, lose or draw, you’re never bummed out at the end of a Michael Chandler fight. … He’s always exciting, he’s always fun. The last round of that fight, he kept getting taken down. He got on his back. So when he got on his back at the end, he just stood up and started slamming him.

“The kid always tries to win. He always comes to fight and Michael Chandler’s always going to have a home here. Until he decides to retire, Michael Chandler isn’t going anywhere.”

Chandler’s layoff from competition was the product of waiting for a fight against Conor McGregor that never materialized. White said McGregor is expected to make his own return to the cage in 2025, but it’s too soon to consider putting that fight back together.

“Will he fight Conor? I don’t know,” White said.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.