UFC CEO Dana White has found himself in hot water with the fans for his visit to the NBA finals! The MMA-sphere was sent into a frenzy recently with the abrupt postponement of the UFC 303 pre-fight conference on June 3 in Dublin just hours before it was supposed to take place. This led to a wave of concern and speculation amongst the fandom about the possibility of Conor McGregor’s fight against Michael Chandler getting canceled too.
The UFC, in its official statement, had revealed, “Dear UFC Fans, The #UFC303 press conference scheduled for Monday, June 3rd in Dublin, Ireland at 3Arena has been postponed until further notice, we sincerely apologize to all the fans who were planning to attend. When we have further information on a new date and time, we will share it immediately.”
View this post on Instagram
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
As such, prominent figures in the MMA world and fans were left wondering what could be the reason behind such a move by the promotion. Many even speculated that McGregor may have suffered from an undisclosed injury that led to the event being postponed as ‘The Notorious’ took to X to apologize to the fans and reveal, “In consultation with the UFC, today’s press conference was canceled due to a series of obstacles outside of our control.”
Adding to the controversy, The ‘MMA Junkie’ account shared on Instagram that “Dana White was courtside in Boston with Hunter Campbell to see his hometown Celtics go up 1-0 in the NBA Finals.” So, the fans took to the comments to blast the UFC boss and Campbell as they claimed that this visit may have been the reason behind the press conference postponement. Here’s a look at what they had to say!
Dana White’s appearance at Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks NBA finals backfires with the MMA fandom
As mentioned above, a fan joked that Dana White’s appearance at the NBA Finals is the reason why the UFC postponed the Dublin press conference
“That’s why they postponed the McGregor press conference”
Another member of the community referenced the abrupt postponement of the press conference without clarification as they wanted to know why the UFC boss didn’t make the trip to Ireland
“what happen to flying to Ireland”
Others took jabs at White’s physical appearance as they claimed he has been ‘slacking’ on his diet
“Dana stopped that diet I see”
One fan wanted to know the relationship between White and the state of Massachusetts and according to information available online, White was born in Connecticut but spent his early years in Ware, Massachusetts. He also began his combat sports journey as an aspiring amateur boxer in Boston, but due to concerns about head trauma, decided to work as a ‘boxercise’ coach instead.
“Why do people think Dana is from Massachusetts?”
Some in the comments section highlighted Hunter Campbell’s resemblance to ‘The Professor’ character from the hit Spanish heist-crime drama, ‘Money Heist’.
“Hunter Campbell looks like the professor of money heist”
But others were more critical in their responses as they claimed that the lack of quality in the UFC fight cards was due to Campbell’s matchmaking duties
“No wonder fight cards suck now we got this dude Hunter making them with Dana”
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
A fan also noted the mystery surrounding Campbell’s identity despite frequent mentions in fighters’ post-fight interviews.
“We hear about Hunter all the time on fighters post fight interview but never seen him”
Another fan blasted White for his demeanor at courtside as they claimed that the UFC head honcho appears to believe he is Adam Silver, the current commissioner of the NBA.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
“bro thinks he’s adam silver”
In conclusion, the controversy surrounding Dana White’s NBA Finals appearance underscores the intense scrutiny he faces from fans and highlights the passionate engagement of the MMA community. As the situation unfolds, it remains to be seen how the promotion handles the expectations of the fandom with Conor McGregor’s UFC return set to be one of the biggest fights of the year! What are your thoughts on Dana White’s visit to the NBA finals and the fans’ response? Share them with us in the comments below!
