Dana White is all set to put the fighting world on notice as he’s about to step into boxing. His recent announcement made waves in the media, and with the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, Turki Alalshikh—often referred to as His Excellency—the UFC CEO is aiming to revolutionize boxing. But why did the GEA chief decide to team with a seasoned MMA promoter? After all, White has derided boxing more times in the past than people can remember. Well, a seasoned boxing coach, and Mike Tyson‘s former trainer, Teddy Atlas, seems to have an explanation behind this big-time partnership.

HE Turki Alalshikh, over the last two years, has been the main force behind some of the biggest boxing matches in recent memory. However, he did not want to leave the other big combat sports extravaganza, the UFC, at bay and even brought the biggest MMA promotion to Saudi Arabia, establishing a cordial relationship with Dana White. According to Teddy Atlas, Alalshikh wasn’t just making friends, but was also witnessing the phenomenon that the UFC has become. So maybe he makes his other dream come true—change the face of boxing with a person with capable hands.

“Turki Alalshikh is teaming up with TKO, with Dana White… Why is he teaming up with Dana White? Because he saw what Dana White built with the UFC,” Teddy Atlas stated on his YouTube podcast. “He saw the results of what that brand became and he saw how he did it, and he figured, ‘Why not team up with a guy who’s done it already?'”

Mike Tyson’s former trainer also insinuated the fact that Turki Alalshikh’s love for combat sports must have made him fall in love with the UFC. And Teddy Atlas is fully convinced that the GEA Chairman wants to build something similar with Dana White’s expertise at his disposal. “If you’re gonna go out there and shop for a certain kind of house and you wanna build a certain kind of building, what do you look for? You look for the contractor, the builder, the architect that built something that you already know you like to have.”

Well, Dana White might be happy with his new endeavor, but Matchroom boxing’s Eddie Hearn has come out to take some shots at the UFC CEO’s claims about the current state of boxing. Here’s what he had to say.

Eddie Hearn claps back at Dana White for claiming ‘boxing is broken’

Dana White’s primary aim for getting into boxing, according to him, is to bring order, just like he did in MMA by making the UFC the global brand it is today. He wants to build this sport “from the ground up again.” However, Eddie Hearn has taken issue with the 55-year-old’s claims, and issued a response by claiming that everything is just fine.

Eddie Hearn seems to have no issues with Dana White’s entry into his world because it’s only going to help boxing in the long run. But there are certain disagreements between the two promoters, and the long-time boxing promoter made it evident during a recent video. “One thing I disagree with, is boxing’s not broken. Boxing is in a great place, it always has been,” Hearn told Steve Bunce on the latter’s podcast.

There are still a lot more details to come regarding Dana White’s new boxing league. He has urged fans to be patient as we wait to see how his entry into boxing affects the sport. Meanwhile, let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.