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By: Sean Crose
A long time ago, in what may as well have been a galaxy far, far away, I shared a few brief words with UFC honcho Dana White on social media. It was during the leadup to the Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao superfight. Perhaps stung by the fact boxing, rather than MMA, was currently the center of the combat sport world, White made it clear that UFC fighters could essentially mow down both Mayweather and Pacquiao. I responded by stating George Foreman would have crumpled Muhammad Ali in a parking lot, but since their fight was held in a boxing ring, Ali put Foreman on the mat. The point? That boxing abides by its own weird set of rules and pretty much has since around the early 1890s…and that in the boxing ring even the toughest of tough guys can be turned into a punching bag.
White essentially responded by stating he was simply making a point, and that was that. As far as I can recall I haven’t shared another word with the man – though my slight experience with the UFC has been positive and impressive. The truth, as those who have followed White’s exceptional career know, is that White has long coveted the idea of getting into the boxing business as a serious player. Sure enough, White even ran a boxing club in Boston in his younger days before gangster Whitey Bulger ran him out of the business. The frightening experience sent White fleeing to to Vegas – and the rest is history. The man became part of the world of mixed martial arts, then became not only the UFC’s head honcho, but the very face of the organization.
Today, of course, White has moved on to being one of the most well known figures in the sporting world and beyond. Not only does the UFC sell out arenas – it also regularly hosts President Donald Trump at its events. Still, White has also remained focused on boxing the entire time. Perhaps his current level of massive success isn’t enough. Perhaps he still wants to prove he can make it in boxing without having to buckle to the Whitey Bulgers of the world in order to do so. Or perhaps he just loves boxing. Despite the fact that boxing and the UFC have been in direct competition for a while now, White has long made his love of the sweet science known. For whatever reason, the face of the UFC has long dreamed of making it in the boxing game.
And now that dream has come true. With the announcement Tuesday of this September’s Canelo Alvarez-Terence Crawford superfight, the world has learned that White will be a promoter for the Netflix broadcast extravaganza. Canelo-Crawford isn’t Floyd Mayweather’s much hyped novelty throwdown with Conor McGregor. This is a legitimate contest between two of the top fighters in the current boxing game. What kind of impact White will have on the boxing industry remains to be seen. Those who view the current state of things objectively, however, will have to admit the man is off to a strong start.
