Why White doesn’t do media scrums any more
Dana White: “You’d get these websites who would go in and just take bits and pieces and take a lot of it out of context, So, I just stopped doing it.
UFC president Dana White recently appeared on TSN’s ‘OTR’ and said he was discontinuing pre- and post-fight media scrums, because websites were taking his words out of context and sensationalizing them.
It got to the point where I would do these scrums with these media guys for an hour sometimes, sometimes more, and you’d get these websites who would go in and just take bits and pieces and take a lot of it out of context, said White. So, I just stopped doing it. What I’d rather do is I’d rather talk to credible media sources, do an interview and have the right story go out.
The UG Blog is guilty of doing what White describes above.
This August at UFC 177 during Renan Barao’s weight cut, the fighter passed out. Medical personnel were called by his camp, and an IV to replace electrolytes was administered, making the cut impossible. Barao was replaced by Joe Soto against champion T.J. Dillashaw on the eve of the fight. As Barao failed to make his contracted weight, and neither showed nor won, he was paid neither show money nor win money.
White was asked after the event why there was no accountability for fighters missing weight.
“So basically given all the time and effort and money that you put into promoting the headliners, and the fact that they receive – potentially – pay per view points, would you ever consider some sort of scenario where barring an act of God or injury there is some sort of accountability for these guys?” asked the reporter.
White disagreed with the question’s premise, and said Barao would not be penalized further, noting with some sympathy that the fighter was already out his show money and his win money.
“There’s serious accountability right now for Barao,” said White. “There’s no excuse for what he did. You don’t come here and not make weight. But he pays all the penalty. Yah, it hurt us, you know, it hurts the show and everything else, but, that kid didn’t make a paycheck. He’s going home with no money. He’s going home without a dime. He hasn’t fought, he just paid for a camp, and who knows when he’s going to fight again.
“So believe me, the penalties in this sport are worse than any other sport, you know what I mean? And Barao’s a guy who just got the point he’s making big money now. You know, the kid’s finally in a position where he’s making great money, and he just missed an entire payday after going through a full camp.
“It’s pretty tough to penalize him any more than that. And who knows when he’s going to fight again. So…”
The UG Blog title was White: Barao ‘going home without a dime’
The UG Blog title implies that White’s reply was harsh and even vindictive, perhaps intended to send a warning to other fighters about the severe consequences of failing to make weight. However, White was actually responding to a question that implied there was no accountability in the UFC for fighters who miss weight. Further, White’s facial expression and words on the video indicated a degree of sympathy in a situation that was trying for everyone. White said clearly that not fighting and not getting paid was punishment enough, and the UG Blog title communicated none of that.
White’s media scrums generated a truly great deal of compelling content. I have done a few things I regret in this sport. I could have had MMA.com for 200 bucks (I passed as all the cool kids called it NHB, and Disney beat me to NHB.com by three weeks). But there is nothing I regret now as much as UG Blog mischaracterizing White’s words, and thus contributing to the demise of an awesome practice.
So apologies to all.