“Judge us on our body of work,” Dana White said, responding to criticism of Zuffa Boxing‘s stuttering entry into the boxing world this yr. At the time of writing, that physique seems to be a little pale, a little malnourished.
Signings are one factor, see, and the acquisitions of Shakur Stevenson, Jai Opetaia and Conor Benn were actually statements – firming the physique of that aforementioned physique of work.
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But fights are another factor, and after 11 Zuffa occasions in 2026, there have been no marquee match-ups to converse of.
Zuffa Boxing co-founder and UFC chief Dana White (Getty)
Yes, Zuffa had a hand in Benn’s high-profile title shot against Ryan Garcia, but that was a co-promotion, and this is where you could say that outcomes are yet another factor: Benn, whose signature reportedly value Zuffa $15m, was eviscerated inside two rounds.
Another downside for Zuffa is that signings can be “one thing”, as this author wrote 104 phrases in the past, but it seems they can also be nothing.
That is because Stevenson was just granted his release from the company, three months after becoming a member of, having fought zero occasions under the Zuffa banner.
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“I’ve been in camp for, like, eight weeks preparing for fights that I was told were going to happen, and it has not happened,” the unbeaten four-weight champion said on YouTube, seemingly referencing a collapsed dream battle with compatriot Devin Haney.
“But look, it is what it is: this is the business of boxing,” the American continued. “I’m not mad at anyone, I’m not pointing no fingers, but upon all of these issues and things that’s been going on, I requested to be released from Zuffa Boxing. Now, over the weekend, my request has been granted and I am officially a free agent.”
Stevenson, 29, said he wasn’t pointing any fingers, but there’s an argument that he was Nelson-Muntz-pointing-and-laughing when he reposted a video of Eddie Hearn showing to mock White.
Hearn, who beforehand promoted Stevenson and who has engaged in a bitter feud with White this yr, was filmed dancing as his Matchroom colleague Frank Smith captioned the clip: “Mood right now [laughing emoji] how’s your #bodyofwork.”
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Stevenson continued in his own video: “I want to tell the fans and tell everybody that’s in the public that I am now taking my career in my own hands and I’m starting my own promotional company. And I’m willing to work with other promoters and anybody else that’s out there that’s willing to be as serious about my career as I am about my career. I’m just excited, I’m excited to be in this position.”
Shakur Stevenson schooled Teofimo Lopez in January to become a four-weight world champion (Getty)
Alongside claiming that Zuffa should be judged on its physique of work, White also advised that the finish of 2026 would be a cheap level to make such judgements.
In this method, Zuffa may be working out of time.
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Not only has Opetaia been stripped of his IBF cruiserweight title (which led him to launch legal motion against the organisation); his Zuffa stint has only featured fights with Noel Mikaelian and Brandon Glanton – not his desired showdown with David Benavidez. Benn did get the conflict he craved against Garcia, but it ended disastrously, damaging Benn’s promoting potential. And Stevenson swiftly left of his own volition, having been signed off of a masterclass against Teofimo Lopez.
Zuffa Boxing 12 is scheduled for 7 November in London, where the Copper Box Arena will host Chris Billam-Smith’s second headline battle with Zuffa. Billam-Smith is a pretty man, an thrilling fighter, and his bout with Cheavon Clarke should be entertaining, but not much more can be said there. Zuffa Boxing 13 is due to convey Carlos Adames’s Zuffa debut, against Welsh fighter Gerome Warburton, which will not set the world alight; that’s not so much a prediction as a spoiler.
Beyond that, there are no further occasions at the moment scheduled, with much of White’s focus devoted to acquiring some promotional duties for Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua, which Hearn has said can not occur – per contracts – and which would make no sense anyway, given the American’s lack of involvement with either boxer’s profession.
Eddie Hearn has been adamant that White can’t be concerned in Fury vs Joshua (PA)
All of this has performed out against the backdrop of Zuffa’s father or mother company, TKO, pushing for a controversial invoice to be handed: the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act, which detractors claim would enable Zuffa the same monopoly over boxing that the UFC arguably holds in combined martial arts (MMA). At the time of writing, the invoice seems to be possible to be totally handed.
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Furthermore, White’s emotional investment in Zuffa and his feud with Hearn seems to have come at the expense of his enthusiasm for the UFC – and his data of his own product, perhaps, as evidenced by him itemizing the fallacious fighter’s accolades when making an attempt to hype up a latest title bout. Add to that Sean Strickland’s public admission that he feels performed with the UFC, and that he’d like to battle out his contract and box as soon as doable, and the disparity between UFC and Zuffa pay has only intensified as a matter. Strickland even advised that he would be effective giving up his middleweight title in the course of of leaving.
With time working out, how can Zuffa save itself before the finish of 2026? Well, for what it’s value, it might not truly need saving.
For a fledgling promotion, Zuffa has performed just effective. The larger subject has been White’s bluster, and how that has arguably made it unimaginable to ship on his guarantees.
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