What racial prejudice? Dana White suggests Tyron Woodley be more like Conor McGregor

UFC President Dana White doesn’t believe UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley has been held back from certain career opportunities because of racial prejudices.

Woodley (17-3-1 MMA, 6-2-1 UFC), who puts his title on the line in a rematch against Stephen Thompson (13-1-1 MMA, 8-1-1 UFC) on March 4 at UFC 209 in Las Vegas, stirred up a controversial and sensitive discussion in January when he said racial bias – intentional or not – has held certain fighters from maximizing their star power and position in the sport, including himself.

White was asked directly about Woodley’s comments during an interview today on ESPN Radio explicitly stated that Woodley’s lack of star power is a product of his own doing.

“The thing is with Tyron: First of all, he’s a smart guy, he’s a good looking kid, he’s explosive, he’s got knockout power, but he’s a bit of a drama queen,” White said. “I think he means the fans are a big part of it too. When a fight is made – and Conor McGregor is a perfect example – Conor McGregor has that ‘fight anybody, anywhere’ attitude. But (he) doesn’t just have the attitude, he lives it.

“I’ve stood in front of (McGregor on) 10 days’ notice, and his opponent falls out and he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care. ‘Bring them all, I’m better than everybody. I’m the man. I’m the guy.’ If Tyron Woodley had that attitude, Tyron Woodley would be a massive star – massive star.”

White can’t put himself in Woodley’s shoes, but he apparently is happy to express an opinion on his conduct. White said Woodley’s approach to social media could be the root of many of his problems, and if he did things differently he would gain a greater support from fans.

“He does these things where he literally – he’ll say on Instagram when they know who he’s supposed to fight next, he’ll go out on social media and say, ‘I’m not fighting him. I think I want to fight him or this guy or this guy,'” White said. “That’s not what people want to hear. People don’t want to hear that. Then what he does, then, is he’ll start fighting and arguing with people on social media.

“He wonders why he shows up at a press conference, (and) the whole crowd is booing him. They’re not booing him because he’s black. There’s tons of black guys fighting in the UFC. It’s Tyron. If you look at the guy, he’s the perfect specimen, he’s the perfect athlete that you can get behind and promote until he shoots himself in the foot by doing that type of stuff.”

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