UFC president Dana White spoke to reporters following UFC Fight Night 150 and answered their questions. Here’s what the boss man had to say in response to the MMA media’s questions:
- The bonus for “Fight of the Night” went to Mike Perry vs. Alex Oliveira, while “Performance of the Night” bonuses went to veterans Glover Teixeira and Jim Miller. White admitted giving out FOTN was a tough choice considering how good the main event between Jack Hermansson and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza was, but ultimately said he and the matchmakers reached a unanimous decision to give the bonus to Perry and Oliveira.
- White said the UFC booked Hermansson against Souza because they believe he’s talented, and said he was impressed by the fact “The Joker” was willing to go to the ground with Souza. He said he was also impressed by Souza’s toughness in the matchup, but ultimately he didn’t get the win.
- Hermansson’s win puts him in the title mix at 185lbs, but not before UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and interim UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya attempt to unify the belt later this year. It’s fair to say that Hermansson will need at least one more big-name win before he fights for the middleweight belt.
- White said he wasn’t a fan of the co-main event between Greg Hardy and Dmitry Smoliakov. He said the UFC doesn’t do set-up fights, despite what fans and media were saying online about this fight, but said he was very disappointed in Smoliakov’s performance. He did add that Hardy came in great shape for the fight and did his job by getting the win, but White was very critical of Smoliakov’s padded 9-2 record coming into the fight.
- The timing of the NFL draft didn’t have anything to do with Hardy being on the crowed. It was because it was in Florida and Hardy trains at American Top Team, according to White.
- The UFC was happy with the attendance and gate and plans on coming back to Florida at some point.
- White said the UFC is going to Mexico and Puerto Rico. The company is looking at land and is laying out a business plan for both countries. The UFC is trying to “kickstart the market” by building a performance institute in Puerto Rico, to give jobs to people impacted by the hurricanes.
- White credited American Top Team owner Dan Lambert for spending money to grow the Florida regional MMA scene.
- White said he was impressed with Perry’s performance, and praised how he stayed composed against Oliveira even when he was hurt. The UFC is very high on Perry and this win over Oliveira could push him into the top-15.
- The UFC was supposed to meet with Conor McGregor in Miami, but will instead meet with him in Los Angeles soon.
- Tony Ferguson has no return date set but White said he wants to book him as soon as he’s cleared to fight.
- White said the UFC’s decision to go to either Miami or Ft. Lauderdale the next time they head to Florida will depend on who fights on the card.
