Dana White confirms UFC will produce Fury vs. Joshua as Hearn's 'PR disaster' jab backfires

Dana White confirmed on Thursday that the UFC is not only co-promoting the Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua heavyweight fight but will also produce the entire show, directly contradicting Eddie Hearn’s assertion that White had been embarrassed out of any meaningful role in the December 11 Cardiff event.

White’s absence from the first press conference in London had given Hearn ammunition to declare a “PR disaster” for White and his Zuffa Boxing partners. But White, who cited scheduling commitments including the UFC Contender Series in Utah, was unambiguous about the scope of his involvement.

“Not only am I promoting the fight, we’re producing the fight,” White said. “UFC is going to produce the show. I don’t know how that’s a PR disaster. I’m right.”

While White stayed stateside, Zuffa Boxing executive and UFC president Nick Khan attended the London press conference alongside Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Alalshikh. The actual fight promoters — Hearn representing Joshua and Frank Warren representing Fury — shared the stage, but White insists the UFC’s fingerprints are all over the event.

Hearn had been pointed in his criticism on Wednesday, suggesting White and his associates had mishandled the build-up. “These guys, Dana, etc just played it all wrong,” Hearn said. “What’s happened to them over the last seven days has been one of the greatest PR disasters in boxing.”

White was equally blunt in response. “Was I lying? Was I wrong? Am I not the promoter? Am I not producing the entire fcking event?” he said. “I think that’s the difference between me and Eddie — Eddie’s trying to win some PR battle. Eddie likes to see himself in interviews. He likes to talk a lot and talking will get you in fcking trouble.”

The fight was originally announced with White’s name on the Netflix press release, and it now appears the streaming platform is relying on the UFC’s production infrastructure to deliver the broadcast. The bout is scheduled for December 11 in Cardiff, Wales.