UFC CEO Dana White insists that the media will no longer control fighter rankings following his disagreement with Khalil Rountree Jr’s #8 ranking after falling to Alex Pereira at UFC 307.
Dana White goes in on media coming up with UFC rankings, says the media will no longer control the rankings, and he’ll find another solution. #UFC #DWCS #DanaWhite
🎥: UFC pic.twitter.com/YANFaHfdjm
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) October 16, 2024
“If you look at who Pereira has beat, and how he’s beat them leading up to this fight,” White told reporters on Tuesday.
“He (Rountree Jr) was winning on the scorecards when he got stopped. He was ahead on the scorecards, stayed in the pocket, put on one of the greatest fights anybody’s ever seen, and he stays at #8.”
Rountree Jr (13-6) put on a very gutsy performance against Pereira in the main event one which White feels should have rewarded the title challenging middleweight. It was the last straw, when it comes to media voting on rankings, that has pushed White to take action.
“I can’t handle the incompetence. I can’t take it anymore it’s driving me crazy. I can’t let people that I don’t believe know what the f*ck they’re talking about deal with the rankings anymore. I have to figure out a solution,” he said.
“Tomorrow I have a meeting with a group of people that are coming to me saying that they have the solution to this problem, and god I hope they’re right. The media will no longer control the rankings in the UFC.”
Dana White did not give details as to what changes he’s hoping to make, but he did reiterate that the UFC rankings are important when it comes to matchmaking.
“The rankings are very important. The rankings, judging, reffing. There are a lot of things that we can’t control. There should never be a scenario where we are personally controlling the rankings. Can’t happen,” said White.
“You have to have another system. At the end of the day I make fights that people want to see anyway, but I believe that I should not be the one controlling the rankings.”
