White: NFL couldn’t afford to pay me to run it
Dana White: “They’d have to pay me way too much to take that job. No way in hell … Goodell has to deal with things that I hope I never have to deal with.”
UFC president Dana White spoke recently with Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post about the The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 4 Finale at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood on June 27, headlined by Brazil’s Lyoto Machida vs. Cuba’s Yoel Romero.
Hal Habib: Let’s start with the card at the Hard Rock. What excites you about it?
Dana White: Excited to be back down there. I actually like that arena. The main event you have Romero against Machida, a great fight. Machida is a legend. He’s been around for a long time. Yoel Romero, it’s his first time on the scene, he’s 9-1, from Cuba, got heavy hands. Plus it’s been a long time since we’ve been down there. It’s always fun to watch the UFC on TV, but there’s nothing like watching it live.
HH: What does Jones have to do to get back in the good graces of UFC?
DFW: Obviously he’s got to get through his legal situation and then we’ll go from there.
HH: When problems like that come up, are you glad you don’t have to deal with unions and situations like what the NFL has?
DFW: Not even the unions. I’m just glad I don’t have to deal with all of the stuff the NFL has to deal with. The NFL has to deal with a lot of stuff. They always give that commissioner a hard time, man, but let me tell you, every morning when I wake up, I thank God I’m not him.
HH: How much would they have to pay you to take Goodell’s job?
DFW: They’d have to pay me way too much to take that job. No way in hell.
HH: So you’re glad there are no deflated footballs in your sport?
DFW: I’m a Patriots fan.
There’s no doubt — Goodell has to deal with things that I hope I never have to deal with.
HH: At the (Blackzilians’) gym, there was a lot of talk about the Mayweather fight. One fighter said he hopes MMA can reach that level someday. Mayweather-Pacquiao was a special event, but on an average day, do you not think MMA has passed boxing?
DFW: No doubt about it, on an average night. What Mayweather-Pacquiao did was unbelievable. I never thought that you could sell that many pay-per-views. I love seeing the feeling when you have the right fight at the right place at the right time. It’s pretty amazing. But yeah, this sport’s come a long way. Really, when you think about it, the sport is 15 years old — that’s how long we’ve been on this — and boxing is over 100 years old. They had such a huge head start. We’ve come so far so fast, it’s amazing. We will have our day.