PFL’s Dan Hardy hits back at UFC president Dana White’s ‘s****y’ organisation jibe

Seb SternikSeb Sternik7 December 2023
Dana White

Dana White

PFL’s Director of Fighter Operations and former UFC star Dan Hardy has responded to Dana White's recent ‘s****y’ remark.

White, who spoke to the media following the UFC’s recent show in Austin, was asked about the PFL’s acquisition of Bellator.

The UFC president ridiculed the move, saying: “It’s f*****g hilarious, but good for them. I wish them all the luck in the world.”

He added: “One s****y organization that sells no tickets and nobody watches buys another s****y organization that sells no tickets and nobody watches. It sounds like a f*****g winner to me, boy. Right? Woo! Go, guys!”

Hardy, who fought 10 times for the UFC, currently works for rivals PFL who are attempting to position themselves as the co-leader in the sport of MMA.

Speaking to Planet Sport, the 41-year-old hit back at White’s comments saying: “I think Donn Davis summed it up perfectly on Ariel Helwani’s show, Dana doesn’t talk about things unless they’re concerning him.

“Competition is good for the sport, it’s good for the fighters, it’s not good for the people who want to control all the fighters and that’s ultimately why we’re getting those reactions from him.

“This offers a new platform for the fighters, we’ve got good money that we can pay these guys. We’re growing really quickly.

“Next year we’re going to have the PPV series, we’re going to reimagine Bellator, we’ll have the Bellator champions series as well.

“You have to remember there was a time when the UFC were going to go out of business because nobody was watching it. It was the Ultimate Fighter that saved it. So sometimes you have to make one good call or two good calls and it can really change the direction of the promotion.

“I think we’ve made lots of good decisions this year. Cedric Doumbe headlining in Paris was massive. Nate Kelly headlining, he’s going to be massive.

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“Then, of course, the championships as well. Lots of money on the table for fighters. As a fighter I would look at this as an option and know that I’m going to get consistency and I know that I’m going to get paid well.

“That for a lot of fighters is a priority because they want to do this full time.”

PFL are currently preparing to culminate their inaugural European season this Friday night in Dublin, with four $100k championship fights taking place among a host of showcase bouts.

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