UFC CEO Dana White recently found himself in the middle of an awkward revelation that has left veteran journalist Ariel Helwani asking questions. The 56-year-old is involved for the first time in a big-time boxing matchup without the involvement of any UFC fighters. White was challenged for his statements regarding fighter pay, especially when it comes to the base purse of a UFC fighter. Vegas PBS reporter Amber Dixon wondered if Canelo Alvarez is making a base purse of $100 million for his fight against Terence Crawford, to which the UFC CEO responded with a chuckle: “Probably.”

However, the Vegas PBS reporter decided to press Dana White a bit further, highlighting the fact that a $100 million guaranteed purse is something that’s unheard of in the UFC. She said, “But no one in the UFC’s ever made that as a base purse.” That’s when the CEO replied, “Conor McGregor,” claiming that he made a guaranteed $100 million, which was again challenged by Amber Dixon. She responded after hearing Conor McGregor‘s name by saying, “$100 million? But that was against Floyd in a boxing match.”

Dana White appeared to have been taken by surprise by the question. This was soon picked up by Ariel Helwani who added a bit more context on his self-titled YouTube show and confirmed what most people in the fight community may have already been aware of. “That [$100 million purse] wasn’t in the UFC,” he said. He added that the fight purse that ‘The Notorious’ earned wasn’t necessarily given to him by the UFC, but rather through Floyd Mayweather’s promotion in 2017.

“No one in the UFC has made anywhere near $100 million. Conor McGregor made $100 million for a boxing match, which was not under the UFC umbrella,” Ariel Helwani explained. “All they really did was loan him out to Mayweather Promotions, Showtime, and all that stuff.”

This misstep from Dana White could leave him open to criticism from not only the fans but the UFC fighters as well of him being misleading. However, his sights are set on penetrating the boxing market. And guess what? White even revealed his plans for his proper boxing endeavor, which is set to begin in 2026.

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Dana White reveals his boxing plans

A lot of revelations came to the fore in the last 24 hours. Dana White finally spilled all the plans he has with boxing, claiming that the method of signing boxers will be similar to what the UFC does through the Contender Series. It is essentially going to be like a job interview, and if the boxers can impress the 56-year-old and HE Turki Alalshikh, they will find themselves working under the TKO Boxing banner.

“Basically, in 2026, I’m gonna start my show, and what I’m gonna do is basically like the Contender Series, the best will fight the best, undefeated guys will fight undefeated guys, and what you will do is, you will care about the first fight of the night and not just the main event,” Dana White told Vegas PBS. “So I will build stars, put on great fights, and then these guys will graduate, you know, and fight with (Turki Alalshikh), and they will determine how much they get paid.”

Well, 2026 is still a few months away, but what has caught people’s attention is Dana White’s comments which highlight the disparity between Boxing and UFC and the prevailing issue with fight pay. Moments like this serve as a means for critics to press this issue and question the transparency of how fighters actually earn their payouts. What do you think? Let us know in the comments down below.