Teddy Atlas on Dana White’s dedication to boxing: ‘Come on in, we want you’

Teddy Atlas welcomes Dana White to boxing.

The UFC CEO has by no means minced his phrases in the case of his emotions about how corrupt he thinks the boxing mannequin is. After dancing across the thought of “Zuffa Boxing” for years, White finally decided to commit to his involvement in the sport.

Atlas thinks White’s presence would solely add worth to what Turki Alalshikh has already constructed.

“I say come on in – come on in, we want you,” Atlas informed Submission Radio. “Turki Alalshikh has helped boxing tremendously by making fights the promoters couldn’t make. They didn’t wish to make (them) as a result of they didn’t personal either side. They didn’t management either side, so the followers suffered, didn’t get the fights they wished. The game suffered. This sport was getting much less and fewer related. This sport is the longest sport within the historical past of sports activities. They discover drawings of fellows throwing punches on caves two thousand years in the past. This sport shouldn’t be irrelevant, however it was turning into that due to the promoters with the networks, with their sugar daddies.

“They had been simply making the fights to maintain their guys undefeated, to get to the subsequent huge struggle – non-competitive fights, and each every now and then they threw you a bone. It wasn’t sufficient. The followers had been ravenous. Then Turki Alalshikh got here alongside from Saudi (Arabia) with the cash, and within the final 12 months he made fights that the game wants. Dana White does that. He’s been doing that perpetually over on the UFC. Yeah, I do know it’s one man in cost and folks name him a dictator. Pay attention, if a dictator ain’t chopping heads off and he’s getting issues performed, typically perhaps we may be taught slightly one thing. We may use guidelines on this (boxing) world proper now. We may use a route on this world proper now. He’d make the fights that you just’d have to make.”

Atlas additionally defended fighter pay within the UFC, and the fixed critique White has gotten from the likes of Jake Paul.

“Yeah folks will say, ‘What are folks going to receives a commission?’ UFC, he created a hell of a model, and it wasn’t an advanced components: Make the fights that individuals wish to see, and the model will develop as a result of the followers will develop it,” Atlas stated. “Individuals say they don’t receives a commission. It’s trickling down. The celebs are being born, They’re making the larger cash. Similar factor in boxing, however then it begins to trickle down. Sure, I need everybody paid, however whenever you construct one thing, there’s extra to provide then. Then it is going to trickle down, then it is going to go to all the opposite fighters on the totem pole.

“The underside line is, the model can be stronger. The model of boxing has change into stronger due to Turki Alalshikh making these fights. It is going to change into stronger in a extra unfold out manner if perhaps the 2 of them be part of collectively. If Dana White brings his mannequin into boxing, to have the infrastructure, to have enforcement of guidelines, to have the form of fights that individuals need, that individuals have solely been getting within the final 12 months. If he brings that, and he would deliver that, Teddy would say, ‘Hey Dana, come on on this manner. Welcome. Welcome.’”