Dana White appears to have changed his stance on the Jon Jones vs Francis Ngannou super fight.
The UFC president has previously been against making the bout which would require him to work with rival promotion PFL, to who Ngannou is contracted.
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White’s working relationship with White came to a bitter endCredit: 2022 Chris Unger
However, he seems more open to the idea now that Saudi Arabia and His Excellency Turki Alalshikh have entered the MMA sphere.
During the post-fight press conference for UFC 303 on Saturday night, White was asked whether there was anything the Saudis could do to persuade him to make the cross-promotional clash.
He responded: “Well, I actually respect Sheikh Turki, he’s a nice guy.
“We have actually formed a relationship over the last couple of months.
“I respect what he has done with boxing. This is the only guy that could pull this off and make these big fights.
“And the fights are good, you don’t have guys coming in and avoiding fights so they can get to the next payday.
“What this guy has done in a short amount of time is pretty incredible, so we’re obviously talking about lots of different options with this guy.
“I respect him. I like him, so we will see what the future holds.”
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He’s previously ruled out Ngannou fighting JonesCredit: Getty
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Turki Alalshikh could be the man to make that fight happenCredit: @Turki_alalshikh – x
Alalshikh and Riyadh Season have refreshed boxing by getting promotional rivals to work together to make the biggest fights in the sport.
Now, the hope is that the same will happen in MMA after the UFC announced Riyadh Season as the title partner of its UFC 306 event at the Sphere in Las Vegas on September 14.
Alalshikh has a close working relationship with Ngannou having hosted his professional boxing bouts with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
PFL founder Donn Davis believes the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority is the man to get the fight over the line.
Dana White is asked if there is anything Turki Alalshikh could do to help make a cross promotion fight with Francis Ngannou. pic.twitter.com/vQFwZt5FQq
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) June 30, 2024
He told the Daily Mail: “The fight that I believe could happen is Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou and I think that fight can happen in Saudi Arabia.
“I think that fight can be orchestrated by the brilliant, genius of Turki [Alalshikh] in Saudi Arabia.
“I think it could be the biggest payday in the world of MMA for Jon Jones and Francis Naganou.
“So I think that would be very, very good business for all involved.
“I think that would be the way to give fans the biggest fight of the decade in MMA.”
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