Eddie Hearn has reacted strongly to Dana White’s latest digs, and the war of words between both men continues.
Matchroom boss Hearn and UFC CEO White were on good terms before White entered boxing, but the two began talking to each other in recent weeks as Zuffa began organizing its own events.
During Sunday’s press conference after his third fight, White claimed that Matchroom’s chairman had no vision and simply worked for his father, Barry Hearn, who founded the company in 1982.
While talking to The Stomping GroundEddie has now spoken out, first responding to White’s suggestion that he lacks foresight.
“It’s very strange because I have to be truthful with you, I wouldn’t say how much I can do, but Dana has always been very complimentary about us, the company and me as a promoter, but to say that I don’t have any vision is really quite strange.
“Right now, when you’re talking about Zuffa, or whatever it’s called, when you’re talking about their vision, what is their vision? Getting Max Kellerman to tell everyone that Callum Walsh is the next Roy Jones, or putting Charles Martin on the main show on Sunday night in front of 126 people in your garage in a ring that looks like you just pulled it out of a local club show. I mean, what kind of fucking vision is that?”
“Or better yet, here’s the belt and this is Zuffa, look at the vision. It’s not vision, it’s control. The reality is that when he says we can’t compete, they can’t compete in this ruthless world of boxing because it’s a terrible world and they don’t want to compete. They want to create their own world.”
Hearn then compared his own events to those of Zuffa, giving a damning verdict on what White had produced so far.
“Right now, if you compare the Matchroom shows to the Zuffa shows, honestly, the Zuffa shows are absolutely complete dogs**. It’s going to get better, they’re going to sign some huge players, they dare to spend some money and waste some money.
“I’ve said it before, they’re sharp people, but now they’re trying to manipulate fight fans and they don’t understand how sharp fight fans are when it comes to boxing. You can’t make these cards and tell everyone it’s best vs. best, because honestly, it’s not.”
The British promoter, who promoted his first major card in 2011, finally addressed White’s comments earlier this week about Eddie working for his father, Barry.
“The reality is, I work for my dad. But guess what? Dana White has been working for his daddy, the Fertitta brothers, for a long time. That’s who he was working for, and now Dana White has a recent daddy and his name is Turki Alalshikh. He’s Dana White’s dad.
“It took him a nanosecond to get personal and that’s because he’s currently at the bottom of the ladder as a boxing promoter, but as I keep saying, it’s a good operation and it will only get better.”
It certainly appears that any hopes of a reconciliation between the two men are fading brisk and White shouldn’t have to wait long for a response to Hearn’s latest comments.