“Dana White really is a cancer for boxing because you come in and you want to get rid of all the sanctioning bodies, and we know where that’s going to lead,” Arum said to Fight Hub TV.
The Hall of Fame promoter pointed to the UFC’s fighter-pay lawsuits as evidence that boxing should be wary of White’s vision.
“We know what happened with Dana White and the UFC and how they made a lot of money by underpaying the fighters. They’ve just lost a lawsuit for $350 million. They’re about to lose another lawsuit for $400 million,” said Arum.
Arum believes boxing’s current promotional system pays elite fighters considerably better than a centralized model similar to the UFC.
“If they got a foothold in boxing, in my opinion, it would be the same thing as far as the boxers were concerned. Initially, they’d make money, but ultimately they’d be like paupers,” said Arum.
Arum doubled down later in the interview when asked if he would consider working with White.
“I just think that Dana White would end up to be a cancer for the sport of boxing. I don’t like how he operated in the UFC. They were underpaying all these fighters,” said Arum.
Despite his criticism of White, Arum spoke positively about DAZN, saying the streaming service has the resources to help boxing regain mainstream popularity by working with multiple promoters rather than controlling the sport under a single banner.
He also dismissed suggestions that Turki Alalshikh’s proposed “peace talks” between leading promoters and White should be viewed as a major development, saying he would not “take it very seriously.”
