Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White shed light on the reason(s) Ronda Rousey was allowed to avoid media obligations ahead of her highly-anticipated return against Amanda Nunes, which is set to go down at UFC 207 this Friday night (Dec. 30, 2016) inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
According to White, Rousey has done more media than anyone in the history of the sport, which is why she was allowed to negotiate a "blackout" prior to signing a contract to fight "Lioness." That said, White warned all fighters -- including Conor McGregor -- that this isn’t a new rule ... just a well-deserved exception. In addition, he said that if anyone else fails to meet their media obligations, specifically pre-fight press conferences, they will get pulled from the event.
"Ronda Rousey has done a lot," White said during a recent UFC 207 media scrum. "She’s done more media than anyone in the history of the company -- major media, media that no one else could get. She did it all and this is something she asked for. It doesn’t open flood gates and it doesn’t change anything. If someone doesn’t want to show up for a press conference, I will pull them from the card again."
McGregor and Nick Diaz are not impressed. Speaking of McGregor, when asked if "Notorious" has reached out to complain about the "special treatment" afforded to "Rowdy," White kept it short and sweet.
"Wouldn’t that be something, if Conor was complaining about the treatment of another fighter," he quipped.
Indeed, McGregor has been given special treatment throughout his tenure with the promotion thanks in large part because he brings in the cash. But, he was never exempt from media obligations despite his request earlier this year, getting pulled from UFC 200 for refusing to attend a pre-fight presser (full story here).
Nevertheless, fight fans can expect to see Rousey attend the traditional and ceremonial weigh-in events tomorrow (Thurs., Dec, 29, 2016) despite reports that suggested otherwise.
In the end, though, White assured everyone that Rousey’s free pass from the media is only a one-time deal.
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