Throughout his tenure leading the UFC, Dana White has frequently had to halt questionable proposals.
This Saturday, he steps into the boxing spotlight with his first major event since TKO Boxing was announced, partnering with Turki Alalshikh, who has become a major figure in the sport.
The main event features Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford battling for the undisputed super middleweight title, a matchup that is already being talked about as one of the decade’s biggest fights.
And with so much buzz around the fight, it is not just fans who are excited. Many well-known faces from outside boxing are expected to show up at Allegiant Stadium.
UFC President Dana White dismisses odd UFC request from former NFL star Chad Johnson
Leading up to the event, White has been busy making the rounds in the media to build hype for the fight.
After Thursday’s press conference, he stopped Shannon Sharpe and Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson’s podcast to discuss the event.
With influencer boxing gaining popularity over recent years, athletes from different sports have started giving boxing a go. One of the more famous examples was Jake Paul knocking out former NBA player Nate Robinson early in his career.
But Johnson is not looking at influencer boxing. Instead, the former NFL star wants to step into the UFC Octagon against a current NFL player.
“I have two fights coming up. I would like you to promote my fights, you and Turki. I wanna fight James Harrison in the UFC, you’re gonna promote it, you’re gonna put me on a card and then I’m gonna do a boxing fight when you get into boxing in 2026, I’m gonna beat the s— out of Andre Ward,” Johnson said.
“Why do you wanna do this? You had an amazing career and now you’ve got a successful podcast, how old are you now? You’re 57? You look f—— great. 57 is too old to be fighting. 57 year olds fight to get out of bed and get on a treadmill every day,” White answered as he laughed about the proposal.
“Dana you have to do me this favour, please, I wanna fight James Harrison in the Octagon, five rounds, five minutes,” Johnson continued.
White then asked: “James Harrison, The NFL Player? Bro that dude is a monster.”
“You ever heard of David and Goliath? That’s exactly what it’s going to look like,” Johnson responded.
“Is that a real story or is that a myth? It might be a myth, I think that’s a myth,” White concluded while laughing.
Dana White gets into pre-fight press conference argument
Prior to the fight, White and a boxing reporter engaged in a heated exchange as the reporter sought information about White’s plans for TKO Boxing.
In the middle of the exchange, Canelo started up a ‘Fight, fight, fight’ chant as White made it clear he would not be taking any questions unrelated to the upcoming bout.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
