Dana White says he’s currently in “a good place” with Conor McGregor.
In September, McGregor, who takes on Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 257, released a series of private direct messages he exchanged with his boss.
The message release came in the midst of McGregor’s negotiations with the UFC for his next fight, but what bothered White most was that another fighter, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 middleweight winner Diego Sanchez, was mentioned.
“We were in a really bad place then,” White told UFC broadcast partner ESPN in a recent interview. “I was really upset. It wasn’t because he put out private messages. It was (because) we were talking about another fighter. I like Diego Sanchez a lot and I have a lot of respect for Diego Sanchez. I care about Diego Sanchez. I was very upset about that. I talked to Diego face-to-face about it. Being the great human being that he is, we’re all good. Then I was really, really upset with Conor.”
“Conor and I fixed that and we talked and we got through it,” White said. “We’re in a good place now. … Me and everybody are always in a good place as far as business goes.”
UFC 257 is less than two weeks away and White is excited about what he’s seen and heard from McGregor.
“There’s nothing more exciting or more fun than a motivated Conor McGregor when his head is in the right place,” White said. “You can tell when he is, and you can tell when he isn’t. Right now, you can tell he’s in. … If something happens to Dustin Poirier, he is the Conor McGregor right now that does not give a (expletive) who we put in that fight on that night. He’s that guy right now.”
UFC 257 takes place Jan. 23 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
