UFC Lawsuit Reveals Dana White's Savage Reaction to Jon Jones' Money Demands
New unsealed documents in the UFC antitrust lawsuit have revealed 2014 text conversations between then-UFC President Dana White and then-Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta.
The conversations (courtesy of MMA Fighting) pertain to contract negotiations with Jon Jones. "Bones" wanted to fight Daniel Cormier instead of Alexander Gustafsson, and this rubbed UFC higher-ups the wrong way:
"What's up with Jones? Did he straighten up or is he still being a scumbag?" White texted Fertitta.
"Still a douche, but we're inching closer," Fertitta replied. "Haven't moved on money, but sent the letter with an ultimatum."
"Awesome," White replied. "F*** that punk, Lorenzo. He needs to know we don't need him, or he will f*** us over more than he already does."
White is possibly referring to Jones' decision to turn down a short-notice fight with Chael Sonnen at UFC 151, which forced the event to be canceled as a whole.
"I think he takes this thing, or is acting like he's taking it, lightly, which he shouldn't be." White reacted to Jones canceling UFC 151. "The fact that the fight was canceled isn't a joke. It's not funny. A lot of people were affected by it. There was a lot of collateral damage that happened with the canceling of the show. We'll see how this goes. I think he needs to take this a little more serious than he is. I don't know if he's embarrassed or whatever his deal is..." (h/t MMA Mania)
Jones was also charged with a DUI in 2012, which created negative press for the UFC and its champions.
In another unsealed conversation (courtesy of MMA Fighting), White tried to defend his comments to the plaintiff's lawyer Michael Dell'Angelo:
"So you wanted Mr. Fertitta to let Mr. Jones know that the UFC didn't need him?" Dell'Angelo asked White.
"Yeah," White agreed.
"And be a scumbag in negotiations?" Dell'Angelo asked.
"No," White rebutted. "Do you know Jon Jones' history? Just to be a scumbag in life. .... You could get pretty much every guy who works for me to testify that, yes, I was not happy with Jon Jones' life choices."
The UFC antitrust lawsuit continues, bringing more unsealed documents into the light of day. If successful, the plaintiffs could get a share of the money that's being argued to be between $800 million and $1.6 billion.
Learn more about the UFC antitrust lawsuit here.
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