Dana White Unleashes Epic Rant After Production Team Botches Boxing Champion’s Introduction

Clear Facts

• UFC President Dana White publicly berated his production staff after they misidentified boxing champion Shakur Stevenson as NBA player Jalen Williams during UFC 329
• White had just paid Stevenson a significant sum to join Zuffa Boxing, making the error particularly embarrassing for the UFC president
• This marks the second major celebrity identification error by UFC production, following a previous incident where boxer Terence Crawford was labeled as rapper Kendrick Lamar

UFC President Dana White delivered one of his most memorable post-fight tirades after his production team committed an egregious error during UFC 329. The mishap occurred when undefeated four-division boxing champion Shakur Stevenson was incorrectly identified on-screen as Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The blunder was especially painful for White, who had just invested heavily to bring Stevenson to Zuffa Boxing. UFC 329 was meant to showcase the new signing, but instead turned into an embarrassing production failure.

“So, I tell you all the time, my production team is amazing. We just did the White House … and it was the greatest f—ing thing in the world to be there live and to watch it on TV,” White told reporters.

“I just paid Shakur Stevenson a s— load of money, and for some reason, we can’t figure this celebrity thing out.”

“They put him up as a f—ing OKC NBA player. Are you f—ing kidding me? It’s absolutely crazy,” White continued.

“We are the absolute worst to ever do the celebrity thing. When we put celebrities up, we are the worst.”

The incident occurred during Conor McGregor’s highly anticipated return to the Octagon. The Las Vegas crowd was packed with A-list celebrities, and during a routine broadcast sweep of cageside VIPs, cameras landed on Stevenson only to display completely incorrect information.

White later revealed he confronted his production crew backstage in a heated exchange. The team attempted to defend themselves by arguing that soccer broadcasts don’t use graphics at all, making them worse.

“Oh no,” White fired back.

“We put up f—ing graphics and put the wrong guy’s name on them. We win. We’re the worst ever to do it.”

Despite White’s fury, both athletes involved handled the situation with good humor. Stevenson took to social media, jokingly tweeting, “Yea Dana #FireTheyA–.” The real Jalen Williams posted a screenshot of the broadcast to his Instagram Stories with the caption, “Ehhh close enough.”

This wasn’t the first time UFC production has fumbled celebrity identification. At UFC 306, the crew infamously labeled world champion boxer Terence Crawford as rapper Kendrick Lamar, proving this is a recurring problem rather than an isolated incident.

White’s public dressing-down of his production team demonstrates the UFC president’s commitment to excellence and his refusal to accept sloppiness, even from departments that typically excel. The UFC may deliver world-class combat sports entertainment, but these repeated celebrity identification failures suggest the organization needs better quality control in its broadcast operations.

The incident highlights a broader issue about attention to detail in live sports production. When you’re investing significant money in talent and promoting major events, basic accuracy matters. For White, who built the UFC into a billion-dollar enterprise through relentless attention to every detail, such errors are simply unacceptable.

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