Dana White Gives Honest Assessment Of First Zuffa Boxing Event

Dana White's boxing venture began on Friday night in Las Vegas, Nevada, as Callum Walsh defeated Carlos Ocampo via unanimous decision in the main event.

The event labelled Zuffa Boxing 1 was the first of three announced events. The promotion will have its next show on Sunday, February 1, and its third on February 13.

Zuffa Boxing 2 is set to be headlined by Jose Valenzuela and Diego Torres, while the third show will feature heavyweight contender Efe Ajagba against Charles Martin.

Although the UFC president's boxing adventure is officially up and running, White was not entirely pleased with the first event of the new promotion.

Dana White aiming for Zuffa Boxing improvements after first event

UFC CEO Dana White — IMAGO / Inpho Photography

In the immediate aftermath of Zuffa Boxing 1, White held a post-fight press conference where he reflected on the event that had just concluded.

"The fights were great," said White. He then added, "But, we've got a lot of work to do." Looking to the future, the UFC president said, "We will catch our stride in the next three, four, or five [events]. By the end of the year, we'll be where I want to be."

When asked for more details on why he wasn't entirely content with the first Zuffa Boxing show, White remained ambiguous.

"I have a whole list of stuff that we'll go through on Monday, me and the team. But it took 25 years to get the UFC to where it is today. It's a very well-oiled machine, and we'll do it in much less time on the boxing side."
Dana White

White elaborated by adding, "I know where I want this to be, and I'm impatient. We're building a whole new team, and a lot of people have never done this before. So, it's going to take some time.

"But one of the things that we wanted to do, and we did a great job of, was if you watched this at home on TV, you don't feel like you're in the Apex. You don't see any UFC stuff; it was all Zuffa Boxing, Paramount."

Although there are currently only three shows scheduled under the Zuffa Boxing umbrella, it is understood that roughly 12 events will take place in 2026.

Before the launch of Zuffa Boxing, the recently named Meta Apex was primarily used for UFC events such as Fight Nights and Dana White's Contender Series. However, the venue is set to host the next two events of the promotion.

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