Dana White denies recent pre-event outbreak, slams UFC 304 fighters

It was cool.

Since UFC 300, fighters and MMA media have started to set a trend during pre-event press conferences where some will be bold enough to suggest to UFC CEO Dana White that the bonuses should be higher than the standard $50,000 to fit the numbers theme or to coincide with strong box office numbers.

According to White, he and the promotion will never give in to these proposals again. During the post-event press conference at the Co-op Arena in Manchester, England, for UFC 304, White was asked about fighters’ push to permanently increase their bonuses.

“I think tonight showed that it shouldn’t be done,” White responded. “Increasing the bonuses doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t make anybody fight harder, it doesn’t change anything. I’m never doing this again. Today is the last day I’m doing it. I’m not saying there won’t be bonuses in the future. I’m not going to say, ‘$200 or $300,’ at a press conference. I’m never doing that again. I want everyone on this card to thank me.”

The segments are as follows:

You can watch the full press conference below, with the portion above starting at 3:04.

White accused the fighters on the card of taking too many decisions over finishes — “Seven fucking decisions in a row” were the exact words he said during this epic rant — making it clear that White and UFC heavily prioritize fighters who score finishes over fighters who consistently fight to win on points.

Paddy Pimblett, Mick Parkin and Tom Aspinall all received large bonuses for their performances, which are in line with what White said before and after the tournament.

Here we take a look at all the results from the UFC 304 card, as well as a section on the events White mentioned in his post-event comments.

UFC 304 Main Card

• Belal Muhammad defeats Leon Edwards by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)
• Tom Aspinall defeats Curtis Blaydes by KO at 1:00 in the first round
• Paddy Pimblett defeated Bobby Green by submission (triangle choke from lower guard) at 3:22 of the first round
• Gregory Rodriguez defeats Christian Leroy Duncan by unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
• Arnold Allen defeats Giga Chikadze by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)

UFC 304 Prelims

• Nathaniel Wood defeats Daniel Pineda by unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-28)
• Bruna Brasil defeats Molly McCann by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Jake Hadley defeats Caolan Loughran by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Muhammad Mokaev def. Manel Kape via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

UFC 304 Early Preliminaries

• Auburn Elliott defeats Preston Parsons by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
• Modestas Bukauskas defeated Marcin Prachnio by submission (arm triangle) at 3:12 of the third round
• Sam Patterson defeats Kieffer Crosby by submission at 2:50 of the first round (arm triangle)
• Mick Parkin def. Lukasz Brzeski Round 1 3:23 KO
• Shauna Bannon defeats Alice Ardelian by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)

All of the mid-level preliminary cards ended in decisions, but only one of the bouts was boring: a bloody feud between Mohamed Mokaev and Manel Kape that didn’t play out in the Octagon as many expected.

After all, if there was an award for the most boring match of the night, this guy would have won for sure, and it was especially tough to accept the award considering the heat the two had on the match leading up to it.

Most of the other decisions we’ve seen have been the result of tough, evenly matched fighters who fought to the end, or fighters who followed a strict game plan to win important bouts, like new UFC champion Belal Muhammad.

White’s rant was entertaining and while many fans would have liked to see more action, as a pure MMA fan for over 30 years I can appreciate an event like UFC 304.

Aside from the farce of Mokaev vs. Kape, the fights were lively and mostly high-caliber. I know they call them fights, but the thing I always like to keep in mind about MMA and boxing is that they are sports competitions.

It’s about winning and not losing. It’s about hitting and not getting hit. I hate to see great athletes and fighters not live up to their potential because they’re not smart about winning and losing because they have the responsibility of putting on thrilling fights for the fans.

If White and the UFC continue to pressure athletes to prioritize winning with style over simply winning, they may be treading in delicate territory.