Recently, there have been reports of recession in mixed martial arts, as seasoned MMA journalist Ariel Helwani claimed that there are certain “factors at play here.” One of those factors includes the lack of or the inability of Dana White and Co. to create legitimate superstars like they did back in 2016 in the form of Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey. There have been a few of them, like Sean O’Malley and Alex Pereira, but it isn’t enough for a promotion that is at the forefront of mixed martial arts. However, seasoned boxing promoter Eddie Hearn claims the real fault in the UFC’s failure to create superstars lies in the way they operate.
During a recent conversation with Ariel Helwani, Eddie Hearn shared his unfiltered thoughts about the UFC, which might sting Dana White a little bit. He claimed that none of the fighters in MMA, apart from a handful of them, have the kind of recognition that fighters in the boxing world have. And because of this, the fanfare in mixed martial arts, or the UFC, is often “cyclical.” Hearn would go on to mention how boxing brands, or promotions, would focus more on the fighter, building their brand, and then connecting with the fan base through them because people would want to see him fight.
“If you said to me, ‘Name me six UFC superstars’, I couldn’t do it. I could give you the ones that seem to keep losing quite a bit, and then just come back. But again, was that just a period with Khabib and Conor and a lot of those guys? So [it’s cyclical],” Eddie Hearn stated on the ‘Ariel Helwani Show’. “For me, in boxing, yes, Matchroom Boxing is a brand. Top Rank is a brand. But the brand is the fighters, and they have their own individual brands, and you want that to resonate with your fanbase.”
But what does a fighter need to do to make himself marketable? Well, the Matchroom Boxing boss claimed he needed to be who he is, and it’s up to the promoters to take him to the next level when it comes to marketability. “I always say to a fighter… ‘I don’t want you to be fake. Be yourself, and it’s up to us as the promoter to build you as a brand,’ because that’s how the fan base tunes in… They [the boxers] are characters… It’s like WWE without a script, boxing sometimes,” the Englishman further stated.
So why hasn’t the UFC been able to do that? Well, Eddie Hearn, without mincing any words, revealed that Dana White and the UFC brass mostly believe in putting their own brand, the promotion, on the map. He claimed to believe that they always seek to operate that way, but when a fighter grows in star power as undeniable as McGregor, the UFC CEO and other execs may not like it, but they do bend the knee sometimes.
“The problem is, with UFC, I always feel like they always want the brand, their brand to be bigger than that of the fighter.’ And when a star like Conor McGregor comes around, everything changes, and I don’t think they like that,” Eddie Hearn added.
“If you said to me, name me 6 UFC superstars… I couldn’t do it. The problem is with UFC, I feel like they always want the brand to be bigger than that of the fighter.”
Eddie Hearn on the current state of UFC. pic.twitter.com/WroMBstm5w
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 29, 2025
Well, the boxing promoter may not be wrong because there’s a notion that Dana White doesn’t like to lose the upper hand when it comes to dealing with fighters. Meanwhile, Eddie Hearn claimed that boxing is on the rise more than the UFC at the moment. Let’s take a look at that front.
Eddie Hearn claims boxing is doing better than Dana White’s UFC
Maybe Jake Paul‘s entry into boxing has brought some new eyes, but Eddie Hearn believes that the real boxers with a proper background are also bringing eyes back into the sport. Why? Well, he claimed that the way fights and rivalries have been presented and the level of stardom boxers like Tyson Fury, the arguable face of boxing, Gervonta Davis, and most recently, Chris Eubank Jr., have achieved has made boxing much more watchable, while the UFC are depending mostly on big fights like the potential Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall title unification fight.
“How’s the UFC these days, and MMA? There’s nothing facetious in it, it’s a genuine question. I feel like boxing at the moment is just skyrocketing in terms of eyeballs, attention, narrative conversation, digital narrative,” Eddie Hearn told Ariel Helwani in an appearance on his show nearly a week ago. “And look, the UFC is a massive business, but do they need to make a Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall style fight to really, not get back on track because the business is incredible, but I don’t know.”
Well, there have been some big fights announced recently, with Dustin Poirier taking on BMF champion Max Holloway in his retirement fight at UFC 318, which might bring some eyeballs back into the UFC. But then, other people believe that the UFC’s real issue is the lack of competition since other promoters can’t even touch the promotion, and even Dana White has admitted that it is concerning.
Well, you’ve heard what Eddie Hearn had to say. So, do you think you agree with what he had to say about the way the UFC goes about their business? Drop your comments below.
The post “It’s Like WWE Without a Script” – Eddie Hearn Calls Out Serious ‘Problem’ in Dana White’s Treatment of UFC Fighters appeared first on EssentiallySports.