Matchroom Sport chairman Eddie Hearn said Turki Alalshikh, the Saudi General Entertainment Authority chief and boxing’s most powerful financial backer, would be “completely unimpressed” by what Zuffa Boxing has produced so far, escalating his war of words with Dana White over the direction of the sport’s newest money era.
Hearn’s comments, said during The Ariel Helwani Show, came after Zuffa Boxing staged four consecutive cards at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, the compact studio venue formerly used for behind-closed-doors UFC events. By contrast, Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season brand has bankrolled undisputed heavyweight title fights, stadium sellouts and deep undercards featuring multiple world championship bouts over the past two years.
“He will be sitting there watching the Zuffa shows completely unimpressed,” Hearn said. “He loves big shows. He loves great fights. He loves deep cards, big names, sold-out stadiums, and the buzz of boxing.”
Hearn went further, directly questioning the scale of White’s operation relative to the UFC boss’s public claims of transforming the sport.
“He’s spinning a narrative like he’s created these unbelievable blockbuster shows in stadiums. He ain’t out the garage yet.”
“Literally, four shows in, and it’s absolutely bang-average content,” Hearn said. “Boxing’s not for him. It’s the worst business in the world… he cannot lace my boots.”
Zuffa Boxing launched on January 23 with Callum Walsh headlining against Carlos Ocampo at the Meta APEX, part of a reported $7.7 billion broadcast deal between TKO Group Holdings and Paramount/CBS. The promotion has since staged cards featuring Jose Valenzuela, Efe Ajagba and, most recently, former cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia (25-0, 19 KOs), who defeated Brandon Glanton by unanimous decision in March. All four events were held at the same Las Vegas studio venue.
White has acknowledged the early-stage nature of the rollout. Speaking after the inaugural card, he said the fights “were great” but that the promotion has “a lot of work to do.” He has consistently framed the project as a long-term build, telling reporters that while it “took 25 years to get the UFC to where it is today… we’ll do it in much less time on the boxing side.”
White has also fired back at Hearn directly, calling established promoters “f***ing terrible” and describing the boxing industry as “rinky dink.”
The personal animosity between the two has been fuelled by a series of talent moves. Conor Benn, previously one of Matchroom’s headline fighters, defected to Zuffa Boxing in early 2026 in what Hearn described as a “stunning” break-up. Opetaia, who had been associated with Matchroom, also signed a deal to headline under White’s banner. In the other direction, UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall signed with Hearn’s talent agency for representation inside and outside the Octagon.
All this plays out under the influence of Alalshikh, whose financial backing has reshaped elite matchmaking. The Saudi official has positioned himself as willing to work with any promoter who delivers premium content, telling reporters that “the market is huge, and no one can delete anyone from this market.”
All the same, Alalshikh has used social media to needle Hearn. After Hearn publicly called Alalshikh White’s “new daddy,” the GEA chairman responded on social media: “Eddie, come and put your head on the chest of your father, I will give you a warm hug. The world is filled with evil people.”
Hearn, speaking separately about the dynamic with Alalshikh, offered a blunt assessment of how the Saudi power broker operates: “Turki is the king of f***ery, he loves it… He just says, ‘Whatever suits me, I will do. So when you’ve got something that suits me, we’ll do business. And if you haven’t, I’ll most likely f you’.”
TKO Group Holdings signed a multi-year partnership with Sela, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, in March 2025 to establish a boxing league. Alalshikh has said the relationship between Riyadh Season and existing promoters will continue “at least for the next one or two years,” leaving all parties competing for Saudi-funded slots on the global calendar.
Zuffa Boxing’s next card has not yet been formally announced. White’s promotion remains in its building phase at the Meta APEX while Hearn and Matchroom continue to collaborate with Alalshikh on upcoming Riyadh Season events.
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