Dillon Danis, a multi-time grappling champion who loves being the center of attention, faces challenges in competing in the UFC due to his constant battles outside the cage and online trolling, which UFC CEO Dana White says goes against the promotion’s values.
Dillon Danis has a knack for being in the limelight. Yet, his continuous off-ring battles might be his biggest hurdle to finally stepping into the UFC.
Danis is a multi-time grappling champ. He recently entered the boxing ring with Logan Paul and was let go from Bellator, where he had two MMA fights. He’s hinted at a return to MMA, but only if it’s in the UFC.
He’s been making a very public plea for the UFC’s attention. However, UFC CEO Dana White isn’t a fan of his antics and online trolling. These often escalate into physical fights and near-brawls in public, which is the opposite of what White wants for his promotion.
“I have no beef with the kid at all, I’ve probably said two words to him in my life — but every time he’s around, s*** going down,” White said about Danis on The Full Send podcast. “We can’t have that stuff going on here.”
Danis hasn’t competed in the UFC, but he was part of one of the ugliest MMA incidents in recent history. Former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov brawled with him after defeating Conor McGregor at UFC 229.
Before his recent boxing match in England, Danis threw a microphone at opponent Logan Paul during a heated faceoff. This opened a cut on Paul’s face that almost cancelled the fight.
Danis has also been involved in several physical altercations outside various events, including an incident outside UFC 295 in New York City. “I didn’t know that [Dillon Danis at UFC 295] until after when he was out front fighting with everybody,” White said. “I saw it on Instagram.”
While Danis’ behavior gets attention, White said the constant threat of violence and chaos any time he’s around doesn’t belong in the UFC. White even rejected the idea that the UFC encourages such altercations to stir up interest in a fight.
“A lot of people will see when guys get into it on stage or something starts to happen they’re like, ‘Oh they must love this!’ No, we don’t love it,” White said. “We don’t need that s*** to sell fights. The athletic commission goes crazy, and people start getting fined and they come after us.
“It’s our job to keep that s*** under control. That’s why where you see these other events with guys and everything breaks out like that, it’s a f****** total unprofessional clown show.”