Dana White On De La Hoya Choosing The UFC Over Canelo – ‘I Respect Canelo’
Dana White appears unenthusiastic about Oscar De La Hoya attending UFC 306.
De La Hoya confirmed he would attend the UFC event from The Sphere instead of Canelo Alvarez’s boxing fight against Edgar Berlanga. Sean O’Malley will defend his UFC Bantamweight Title against Merab Dvalishvili in the main event during Mexican Independence Weekend on September 14. De La Hoya’s comments came after his mass criticism of the Canelo fight. He argued that the $89.99 PPV price was a robbery, and the fight is also not seen as competitive, with Canelo expected to breeze past Berlanga.
However, Oscar’s decision to attend the UFC card instead came under fire. He does not have the best relationship with White. They first fell out after De La Hoya was against making Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor. He felt the fight would not be competitive. And yet, De La Hoya, at the same time, requested that a Canelo-McGregor fight would be better.
De La Hoya On White
White did not take those comments too well. He called out De La Hoya’s past drug usage, while Oscar has since then commented on Dana infamously slapping his wife at a New Year’s Eve party. Since boxing gets a bad name for not putting on the biggest fights, De La Hoya’s lack of support for a boxing event looked out of place. But the Golden Boy promoter was talking up his UFC appearance.
“I’m choosing to attend the UFC and support Dana White tells you everything you need to know. Dana, I can’t wait to see you next Saturday buddy. I see that you got the same ab surgery that I got. I always knew you wanted to be like me bro. It will be great to hang out with you, face to face,” De La Hoya said
Dana White has now responded. White’s comments suggest that he has nothing to do with Oscar’s appearance. The UFC card is being sponsored by Riyadh Season. The Saudis have a close relationship with De La Hoya, as they helped put on a Riyadh Season card on August 10.
White Responds
Vergil Ortiz Jr. headlined against Serhii Bohachuk. It was a thrilling fight as Ortiz Jr. survived two knockdowns to secure a majority decision win. Since Turki Alalshikh and Oscar are on good terms, White suggested De La Hoya’s appearance may be due to that.
“Well, I don’t know where he’s getting his tickets from. He’s not getting them from me, I don’t know if he’s coming with [Turki Alalshikh] or what his deal is. But yeah, I saw [his comments]. It’s him trying to [mock] on Canelo, and I’ve said it a million times, I respect Canelo.
“I like Canelo, I’ve met him, he’s a nice guy. That night we’re talking about, we’re talking about the history of Mexico and the history of their people and their traditions. We talk about the impact they’ve had on combat sports… Canelo is a big part of the night. Julio Cesar Chavez, Salvador Sanchez, all the baddest dudes to come out of Mexico. How do you not talk about Canelo too?,” White stated
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