Eddie Hearn and Dana White aren’t enemies. They’re friends. But now, they’re also competitors.
Thursday, Matchroom Boxing head Hearn told “The Stomping Ground” refused to say anything bad about White or his entry into the sport with TKO Boxing. However, that didn’t stop him from being fired up.
“They’re trying to get the Muhammad Ali Act changed,” Hearn said. “We’ve seen that. You’re not going to see me slagging off Dana White, not because I don’t want to upset him, but because I respect him and have a good relationship with him. The one thing that I would really like at this point in my career is to go head-to-head with him and take him on. I want to compete against Dana White. I want to prove I’m much better than him as a boxing promoter. So I’m excited for him to come into the space.
“That doesn’t mean we’re going to fall out, by the way. Competition is fantastic. But you’re not going to come into boxing and steamroll the game. It’s just not going to happen. But we can get on and work together. But ultimately, it depends how they’re going to maneuver. Everybody is a competitor to us in the sport. But a lot of those competitors are friends. A lot of those competitors we work with for the benefit of the business, our fighters, and the sport. That hopefully will be the same with Dana, but let’s see how that plays out.”
White responded hours later on “The Jim Rome Show” with a similar smile and attitude. He embraced the comments with open arms, flipped them around, and tossed them back in Hearn’s direction.
“I’m not arrogant or cocky when I say this,” White said. “My guy Eddie Hearn, whom I love and respect him, I saw him today. He’s out there talking smack saying, ‘I look forward to (it). Dana’s wrong. He can’t do this. What’s he doing that’s different? Everybody is doing the same thing and I look forward to competing against him to show I’m the best boxing promoter in the world.’ You know I love this stuff. I look forward to it, too, Eddie. I can’t wait.”
TKO Boxing has yet to promote an event. Saturday’s Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford-headlined card marks their debut. White has vowed TKO Boxing will shake up the boxing landscape, in coalition with Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Season. TKO has lobbied for an amendment to the Muhammad Ali Reform Act. Changes have yet to be made, but a bill has been introduced by U.S. representatives Brian Jack and Sharice Davids.
