Dana White says Zuffa Boxing has grown quicker than expected, with more events, more signings and wider international plans already being discussed before the end of 2026.
White said the promotion has made a strong early impact since launch, pointing to its schedule, matchmaking and broadcast reach. “We’ve already done seven fights since we launched,” White told iFL TV. “We’ve been signing lots of great talent, putting on great fights with great matchmaking, fights that matter with young, talented people, and we’re already in over 90 countries worldwide on television.”
The UFC president believes the project is ahead of schedule. “This thing’s growing much faster than I had anticipated,” White said, adding that he is already trying to secure more Paramount dates for this year. He also expects more roster movement soon: “From now until January 1st, yeah, you’re going to see a lot of signing.”
White said fans should judge Zuffa Boxing after its first full year, once the promotion has a bigger body of work behind it. “I said a hundred times, at the end of this year, judge us on the body of work that we have done in one year,” he said.
His long-term ambition is to reshape boxing into something closer to the UFC model, where events are not dependent only on casinos, hometown draws or single-star attractions. “Now we’ve gotten to a point with the UFC where I can put on a fight in Arizona with a Brazilian versus an Australian, and we’ll sell out,” White said. “So my long-term goal for boxing is to make that happen.”
The ambition is clear: Zuffa Boxing wants to build a global boxing brand rather than just stage isolated fights. Whether boxing’s fragmented structure allows that kind of transformation is still the big question.
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