Dana White Dismisses Common Opinion About Conor McGregor & UFC Stars

UFC CEO Dana White is tired of the narrative that UFC fans have come to believe: favorable matchups. During a recent slew of interviews, White addressed several topics regarding the current state of the UFC, including what transpires regarding matchmaking.

In an interview released from Spinnin' Backfist, White responded to criticism about UFC lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett's rise to stardom and fans' belief that he was given an easy road to an eventual interim title fight with current champion Justin Gaethje in January.

❌🤩 Dana White says the UFC are never making favorable matches for their stars:

"Let me tell you what we don't do. Favorable matches. Everybody had to fight through their way to the top in the UFC, including Paddy Pimblett, Conor, Jon Jones, Anderson Silva and the list goes… pic.twitter.com/HZfLq97jQR
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) July 18, 2026

"Let me tell you what we don't do: favorable matches," White said. "Everybody had to fight through their way to the top in the UFC, including Paddy Pimblett, Conor [McGregor], Jon Jones, Anderson Silva and the list goes on."

To an extent, White is correct, but also not.

Dana White's Own UFC Examples Debunked

Silva was given a title shot against Rich Franklin after a TKO win over Chris Leben in under a minute, which led to Silva eventually holding the title from Oct. 2006 to July 2013. Silva's title win was only his second UFC fight.

McGregor earned a title shot off a win over Dennis Siver, who was 1-1 with one No Contest in his three outings prior to then. Siver would go on to fight twice after the McGregor loss, ending his UFC career with a win in June 2017 in what would be his final UFC fight; Siver defeated former two-division champion B.J. Penn, ending his MMA career with 23 wins.

How Jon Jones Earned UFC Title Shot

Jones had a meteoric rise to a world title fight, defeating eventual Bellator legend Ryan Bader at UFC 126 before becoming the youngest UFC champion ever with a win over then-champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 128 in March 2011.

There may have been other instances where the UFC decided to make the path to a championship more difficult, but to say that it doesn't make it easy is untrue given the context of some of the UFC's biggest names over the years.

Will UFC Change Its Contenders Protocol?

Whether the UFC is changing its approach to make it more difficult is too early to tell, given recent instances. But what does seem apparent is that the UFC prides itself on making sure that its most marketable names are given the spotlight as quickly as they can, to ensure that they have a chance at being the most successful champion possible.

Amongst other topics, White weighed in on UFC 330 taking place next month in Philadelphia, alongside what's next for McGregor, Pimblett and much more.

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