5 UFC main events that Dana White absolutely hated

#4 Quinton Jackson vs. Rashad Evans (UFC 114)

Quinton Jackson's fight with Rashad Evans failed to live up to the hype

The fight between Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Rashad Evans at UFC 114 was undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated UFC fights of all time. The feud between the two light heavyweights was filled with bad blood, and it seemed like the clash was guaranteed to produce some fireworks.

However, while it didn’t turn out to be the worst UFC main event of all time, the fight – which was won by Evans via unanimous decision – wasn’t anywhere near as explosive as fans might’ve hoped.

Essentially, Evans recognised he had a big advantage over Jackson in the grappling department, and used it to win – largely avoiding the slugfest that people expected.

Rampage Jackson vs. Rashad Evans took place 9 years ago today. It was a heated rivalry, where they got in each other’s face every chance they could. The two have since put their differences aside and are friendly with each other. pic.twitter.com/oz6pq3ZMlN

— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) May 29, 2019

At the time – probably due to the star power of both men – Dana White was largely quiet on the events of the fight.

That changed around a year later, when the possibility of a Rashad vs. Rampage rematch began to circulate around the internet. Surprisingly enough, UFC fans seemed excited by the idea, clearly forgetting how dull the first meeting had been.

Dana White, however, had other ideas entirely. When asked by USA Today about the possibility of a rematch, the UFC president was quick to shut the idea down.

White stated that “talking is fun before the fight, but if you do all this talking and then go in there and don’t fight, who wants to see that cr*p again?” He went onto label the fight a “f*cking snoozefest” that nobody would want to see for a second time.

UFC 114 did over a million buys on pay-per-view – perhaps explaining why White stayed quiet at the time – but it was clear by this reaction that this was one UFC main event he hated.

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#3 Gray Maynard vs. Clay Guida (UFC on FX 4)

Clay Guida's strange showing against Gray Maynard made Dana White an angry man

Widely recognised as one of the worst UFC main events in the history of the promotion, the 2012 clash between Gray Maynard and Clay Guida – which headlined the UFC’s fourth show on FX – was a genuinely atrocious fight.

Essentially, despite Maynard’s best attempts to turn the fight into something watchable, Guida seemed content to simply circle around the octagon, almost avoiding any kind of contact with his opponent.

Clay Guida v Gray Maynard like watching two bald men fighting over a comb. Worst fan fight in MMA history @UFC @UFC_UK http://t.co/cgBfGxUi

— Gareth A Davies (@GarethADaviesDT) June 24, 2012

It was a performance that was totally out of character for ‘The Carpenter’, and unsurprisingly, Dana White had plenty to say about the fight in the aftermath.

After stating that he’d have bet anything that the fight would’ve been exciting, White then seemed to let Maynard off the hook entirely. He stated that ‘The Bully’ tried to force Guida into the kind of fight the fans wanted, only for ‘The Carpenter’ to simply refuse to engage. But interestingly, White’s scorn wasn’t fully reserved for Guida.

In a jab seemingly aimed at coach Greg Jackson – who had cornered Guida for the fight after a lengthy training camp – White stated that “some goof put it in his head that running around in circles might win him the fight, and they were dead wrong”.

It wouldn’t be the first time in 2012 that Jackson would find himself on White’s bad side. In the end, though, this was a fight that everybody, not just Dana White, hated. It was hardly a surprise that he stated that it wasn’t the way he wanted to return to Atlantic City.