‘I Was Gonna Refund Everybody’s Ticket and Go to Abu Dhabi’- Dana White Considered ‘Pulling Out’ of UFC London Amidst Russia-Ukraine Crisis
Sebastian Wright
Published Mar 26, 2026
UFC London was a very successful event for UFC. However, to make it such a big success, there were several hurdles the UFC President Dana White had to overcome. Though before the card, White didn’t share any light on the matter. After the event, he candidly spoke about it.
During the post-fight press conference, White talked about the issues before the event and said, “You know, we had some problems. I was considering pulling out of here two weeks ago. I was gonna refund everybody’s ticket and go to Abu Dhabi.”
When asked whether the roof of the O2 blowing away was the concern, he said that there were certain things going on in the world which is making it tough for him to run his business.
Hence, White decided, “I said, I’m just not gonna play games, man. I’m gonna go to places where I’m able to go and just run my business and do what I wanna do.”
Also, the UFC President claimed, “We will definitely do France this year. Definitely do France.”
White even showed an interest in coming back to the UK after a successful night of fights. However, he concluded by reiterating, “We had a little bit of, a little wobbly a couple of weeks ago, but we got it worked out. We got it fixed and people kept their word, and we were able to come over here and do what we do.”
Earlier, the Russian fighters faced trouble getting visas to the country. Hence, there were speculations around the card as one half of the main event, Alexander Volkov, is from Russia.
Anyhow, everything worked out as the UFC London fight night saw blistering performances throughout the night.
Dana White Gives a Tour of His Ultra Luxurious Home on Fight Island
Dana White gave out performance bonuses
With his show Dana White’s Contender Series, the UFC President has already shown his love for the finishes and killer instinct of an athlete during a contest. Hence, at UFC London, he handed out performance bonuses to each athlete who got a finish on the card.
The whole UFC London card was crazy; From the very first fight to the main event, all the fights were spectacular. Likewise, there were 4 finishes on the undercard and 5 on the main card. The UFC President awarded all of them with a performance of the night bonus.
WATCH THIS STORY – Khabib Nurmagomedov, Petr Yan, and Other Best Russian Fighters To Have Ever Fought Inside The UFC Octagon
What do you make of Dana White’s concerns about the UFC London card? Let us know in the comments.