Dana White Unleashes On Bob Arum For His Handling of Terence Crawford
There has been a lot of talk regarding a burgeoning rift between WBO World Welterweight champion Terence Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs) and his promoter, Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank.
In the build-up to Crawford’s November 14 4th round TKO win over former IBF World Welterweight Kell Brook (39-3, 27 KOs), there was as much attention to what the fighter and promoter had to say about each other in interviews leading up to the fight as discussion on the actual fight itself.
The talk has not quieted down since. It has intensified. And it’s not just boxing fans and media that have chimed in. Issues between the world champ and his promoter even garnered the attention of a prominent sports figure outside of boxing.
UFC President Dana White has talked about making a venture into boxing and is a person who rarely bites his tongue. During the post-fight press conference for Dana White’s Contender Series 36, he was asked about the Crawford – Arum situation, including recent comments made by Arum to The Athletic complaining that he is losing money promoting Crawford’s fights.
TELL THEM HOW YOU REALLY FEEL
“Can you imagine if I said that?”
“Are you f*cking kidding me? You guys would murder me if I said that. I’d never hear the end of that. That’s what you do. That’s not Crawford’s f*cking problem, that’s your problem.
His problem isn’t to figure out how you make money. You f*cking signed a deal with this kid, at how many people we have on the roster, our roster is very inflated right now.
We have a very big roster, the biggest roster we’ve ever had in the history of the company. I have to pay all these kids. How I pay them is not their f*cking problem. It’s my f*cking problem.
Imagine me saying ‘oh, I gotta pay Conor McGregor this much money, I could have built a house in Beverly Hills.’ Shut the f*ck up, you f*cking scumbag. Pay your f*cking fighter what you owe him, that’s your job. Bob Arum is a piece of f*cking piece of sh*t.”
It must be noted that White and Arum are not fans of each other and have bashed each other in the media for years. Forget friendly, these two are not even cordial towards each other.
TWO DIFFERENT BUSINESS MODELS
There are two different reactions to what White had to say. This is boxing, a sport that’s largely dependent on a live gate. In 2020, the sport has had to make a major re-adjustment and survive without fans due to COVID-19. There are numerous instances this year where a fighter has had to take a dollar or two short to continue with their careers. And the current pandemic has had its impact on boxing promoters as well from a monetary perspective.
However, White is a man who has his code when it comes to business. If you, as a promoter or president of a company, sign a fighter to a deal that’s worth a certain amount of dollars, it is on you to pay them. It is ultimately about living up to your word, regardless of what happens outside the ring. In short, suck it up and do what you must do.
It is interesting how this will impact the view from fans who have had a lot to say about how both Arum and Crawford are handling their situation in public. This is an explosive story that is boiling and will not be simmering down at any time. And it looks like the mainstream sports world is paying attention in a major way. Stay tuned to 3KingsBoxing for further developments.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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