Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Dana White, Canelo Alvarez, Boxing, UFC
Marcus Banks
An awkward moment between Dana White and Turki Alalshikh went viral during the Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez press conference.
The entire boxing world will be watching on Saturday 13 as Canelo Alvarez defends his undisputed super-middleweight titles against Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford who steps up two weight classes looking to write his name in the history books.
Canelo is undefeated at super middleweight while Crawford puts his undefeated professional record on the line as a four-division world champion. He would become the first male boxer to be undisputed in three weight divisions in the four-belt era if his hand is raised.
The bout also marks the debut of Zuffa Boxing with UFC CEO White promoting the fight under the TKO banner alongside Saudi Arabian sports promoter Turki Alalshikh.
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White and Alalshikh hosted a press conference on Thursday where they fielded questions from fans and reporters ahead of the bout at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
At the end of the press conference, Alalshikh and White were involved in a seriously awkward moment which went viral on social media.
Alalshikh said: “There is a big surprise from Dana White, he will announce it now…”
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To which White immediately responded with a message to the crowd: “Thanks for coming out tonight everybody, we’re going to face these guys off for photo opps, we’ll see you at the weigh-ins,” before engaging in conversation with Alalshikh.
It’s not yet emerged exactly what announcement Alalshikh was alluding to or whether it was related to boxing or UFC which is also owned by TKO Group.
The announcement could have been linked to the UFC’s plans to hold a once-in-a-lifetime event at the White House in Washington D.C.
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US president Donald Trump is a huge fan of the sport and is regularly seen attending pay-per-view cards alongside White.
The UFC CEO confirmed 5,000 people would be in attendance for the event which will see fighters walk out from the oval office into the cage.
He told The Nightcap Show: “Under 5000 people will be on the South Lawn of the White House. Right next to the White House, there's a massive park. We'll have 85,000 people there watching on screens. We're gonna have a stage and do concerts. We're gonna basically take over Washington D.C. for a week.
“You know what's probably the most bad thing? The fighters will actually walk from the Oval Office into the octagon. So badass.”
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Conor McGregor has been heavily linked with having his comeback fight on the card while recently retired Jon Jones has stated he is back in training with a view to also featuring.