The rivalry between UFC president Dana White and Top Rank CEO Bob Arum has been renewed.
On the latest episode of the “UFC Unfiltered” podcast, White was asked by about recent comments made by the prominent boxing promoter. In response, White did not hold back.
“Listen, I think by now everybody realizes that Bob Arum is a d*ckhead,” White said. “This guy has been talking (expletive) about the UFC and me for 20 years. He’s (expletive) bankrupt this guy. He’s bankrupt. Of course you don’t want to put fights on. You can’t afford to put fights on you (expletive) jackoff. You’ve been in this thing your whole life and have completely destroyed the business and the sport. Congratulations, Bob Arum. You’re brilliant.”
White’s comments stem from a recent interview in which Arum criticized the UFC’s urgency to return to holding events in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Good luck to them,” Arum said. “I just hope that they’re not endangering the safety of anyone. But this kind of cowboy behavior doesn’t do anybody any good.
“We’re looking now with Nevada, which we’ll do in a sensible way, or California. We’re working with (Nevada Athletic Commission executive diretor) Bob Bennett and (California State Athletic Commission executive officer) Andy Foster, and we’re talking to the Texas commission. We’re only gonna do this if it’s safe for the fighters and everyone involved, and if it’s approved by the medical authorities. We’re not gonna be cowboys, like Dana White. I don’t wanna get politics involved, but I have really very little respect for Dana and what he’s doing.”
Arum’s promotion, Top Rank Boxing, does not currently have any upcoming events scheduled. The UFC is set to run events on Saturday with UFC 249, and then two next week on May 13 and 16. Other UFC events are also in the works, but not finalized, for May 23 and June 6.
Dana White fires back at 'jackoff' Bob Arum for criticizing UFC's rush back during pandemic