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Even before Chris Billam-Smith’s brutal battle with Ryan Rosicky and the shock victory in his hometown, Dana White was already ‘pumped’ by the initial success of Zuffa Boxing’s first exhibition on UK soil.
Zuffa Boxing 07 was the first promotion outside the US, watching from a packed-out Bournemouth International Center or live on Sky Sports with explosive knockouts, dramatic finishes and two ‘Fight of the Year’ contenders in the co-main event.
Alex McMillan, Sam Hickey and Leon Hughes improved their credentials as professionals by maintaining a 100 per cent record with knockout wins, before Stephen McKenna returned from a 539-day absence with just 64 seconds to blast his opponent.
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Shev Clark bounced back from being taken down twice in the fourth round to stop Jack Massey in the seventh round of their cruiserweight classic.
Chevon Clarke’s remarkable win over Jack Massey – where he recovered from being knocked down twice in the fourth round to stop his compatriot in the seventh round – looked even better, only for Billum-Smith to beat Rosicky in a fight White compared to a ‘Rocky movie’.
“I’m never out to make a statement, I just want to have a great fight,” White said in his post-show press conference. “When we go to a venue and people buy tickets and come live, and when people watch on TV, I want them to turn off their TVs or come out of the arena so they can come fight.
“I want to instill trust with the fans that when we come into town, or we’re on Saturday night or Sunday TV or whenever we are, we’re going to deliver.
“Tonight was great. The UK runs boxing right now. To come to the UK and do an event like tonight, we’re pretty excited.”
Billam-Smith and Rosicky were both sent to hospital as a precaution after their classic match, in which both traded heavy shots and both sides had momentum, with the injury-riddled contest ending only when the Canadian corner pulled him at the end of the seventh round.
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The Sky Sports Boxing commentary team watch in disbelief as Ryan Rosicky takes some huge shots from opponent Chris Billam-Smith in their Zuffa Boxing 07 main event.
“We know how talented CBS (Billam-Smith) is and we knew how tough and mean Rosicky was, so it all made for a great fight,” White explained.
“Especially in that sixth round, Billum-Smith seemed to land an awful lot of blows on Rosicky. Was I surprised to see him (Rozycki) come back? No, but I was happy to see his corner call.
“What a fight. An incredible fight from top to bottom, but the main event was like a Rocky movie.”
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Chris Billam-Smith’s trainer Shane McGuigan was full of praise for Ryan Rosicky, who was knocked out after the seventh round of his hard-fought contest against Billam-Smith.
‘Lots of big announcements coming’ – what’s next for Zuffa Boxing?
White – a long-time figurehead of the UFC – and WWE president and TKO board member Nick Khan were both ringside for Zuffa Boxing’s UK debut, with new signing Conor Benn and numerous other British boxers also in attendance.
Zuffa Boxing already has three confirmed events in the coming months, with Las Vegas (June 28) followed by promotions in New York (July 26) and Dublin (August 8), with White confirming that further shows and signings are still to be announced.
Dana White celebrates during Zuffa’s historic UK fight night in Bournemouth
“Obviously I’m honored that so many of these people came to see our event,” White said. “My goal is to have everyone in the next few years. Everyone.”
He later added: “I say to everyone, 1st January – judge us on what we’ve done this year. We’ve got a lot of big announcements coming up next month, so you can expect a lot from us.
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Dana White spoke about his ambition to fight the best possible fighters in Zuffa Boxing earlier this year.
“That’s what I want to do with the sport, not just a few shows. Great matchmaking, putting on a fight card like tonight (Bournemouth) – that’s the aim.
“What starts to happen is when we take the game apart and start building it from the ground up with nights like tonight, it starts creating all these different storylines and different fights. The fans and the media start talking about what they want to see next.
“We have a Sky deal, which is a big deal for us, so we’ll be in the UK a lot more. We’re five months into this and we’re already adding more shows to our Paramount deal and I hope the same thing happens with Sky.”
White has accepted any suggestion of future head-to-head shows with rival promoters, such as those created between Queensberry and Matchroom Fighters, although he is open to exploring new ways to continue their growth in boxing and compete with the sport’s biggest leagues.
“Without being too presumptuous, people always ask me about ‘Oh, you’re competing with this guy.’ At the level we’re at, we’re competing with the NFL, we’re competing with the NBA, we’re competing with Major League Baseball and the NHL,” White emphasized.
Dana White followed the action across Bournemouth
“In the United States, the powerhouse there is the NFL. When you go outside the United States, you start competing with football. When I think about my competition, those are the people I see as competition these days.”
Zuffa Boxing delivered a card that offered everything they set out to achieve, with more to come.
Zuffa Boxing shows are scheduled for June 28 in Las Vegas and July 26 in New York before their first Irish show in Dublin on August 8, all three live and exclusive in the UK and Ireland on Sky Sports. Get Sky Sports or Boxing stream with no contract.
