“We were expecting a lawsuit. … We thought it would be sooner.” Those were Dana White‘s words. He made those comments after a lawsuit sought a halt to the UFC White House event in June. Months later, with Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn’s showdown just around the corner, that confidence has barely wavered.

That assuredness was evident when White addressed the media at the DWCS post-fight press conference. When a reporter pointed to Don King’s cease-and-desist move against White’s Zuffa Boxing and parent company TKO, White dug his heels in, refusing to back down a single inch.

“He’s fighting this weekend. He’s fighting this weekend,” White responded. “And here’s the thing. I mean, if you look at us over the last 25 years and now that we’re in boxing and you… this f–king sport is the most unsophisticated f–king sport that I have ever seen.

“It’s f–ked up up for a reason. I’ve said this a million times. All of these guys are, you know, and I’ve always had good dealings with Don. When have we ever, have you ever seen a scenario with us where we go in and try to interfere with somebody’s contract that you know, we just don’t do it? We don’t do it.”

Though he replied with a smile, White’s frustration was apparent. With one of the year’s biggest events lined up, he found himself cornered by a nagging problem. It primarily centers on the legal step King initiated in the wake of the Zuffa card headlined by Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn this weekend in Las Vegas.

Broadcast on Paramount+ and DAZN, the Zuffa event features the promotion’s star attraction, Jai Opetaia, defending his Ring and Zuffa cruiserweight titles from the WBC cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian.

The complication stems from the fact that Mikaelian is promoted by King’s Don King Promotions (DKP).

Unhappy with the way things have unfolded, the veteran boxing promoter and his team don’t seem too pleased with one of their fighters competing in a rival promotion’s event. To prevent the 35-year-old Armenian from fighting Opetaia on the Zuffa card this weekend, they decided to file a cease-and-desist letter.

“TKO/Zuffa’s actions are outrageous and a clear tortious interference with DKP’s agreement. Based on emails between you and DKP’s legal counsel, there is absolutely no doubt that TKO/Zuffa was, and is, aware that DKP is Noel’s promoter,” King’s lawyer Alejuandro Brito wrote. “I understand that you were personally involved in discussions with [King counsel] regarding a potential fight or multi-fight deal for Mikaelian, which would include a fight with Opetaia, and that no agreement was consummated.”

Pointing to the virtual meeting King had with White and Harrison Whitman, Zuffa COO, Brito highlighted that even though no agreement was reached, it remained “disturbing” to see the Zuffa team ignoring the existing relationship between DKP and Mikaelian.

There’s no excuse for them to circumvent that deal to put the Armenian cruiserweight against Opetaia.

Dana White has seen this before

One reason why Dana White sounded so confident at the DWCS presser could be that the fighter himself addressed the issue. Reportedly, Mikaelian highlighted that he and his team can enter fights on their own.

But Don King’s lawyers contested that notion, stating, “The DKP agreement grants Mikaelian the right to ‘discuss and explore’ other fight opportunities, but only in consultation with DKP and under no circumstance can Mikaelian enter into an agreement with another party for his professional services without the expressed consent and permission of DKP.”

In that context, Zuffa and TKO’s move to enlist Mikaelian is nothing short of interfering with that agreement. They have not given Zuffa-TKO any permission to directly engage with their fighter to compete in their event. Don King’s promotions now want Opetaia vs. Mikaelian to be stopped.

DKP’s hesitation to allow their fighter to face the Zuffa cruiserwright could be traced back to the stalled negotiations for the unification fight against star David Benavidez.

Coming off a majority decision loss to Badaou Jack in May last year, Mikaelian defeated the Swedish cruiserweight in a rematch and reclaimed his championship. Entering 2026, talks of a title defense against Lyubomyr Pinchuk in June emerged.

No sooner had those talks fizzled out than reports emerged that the WBC ordered the Armenian to defend his title from Benavidez. With a potential fight set for later this year, discussions heated up. But the two sides eventually reached a standoff, leading to a breakdown.

Reportedly, Mikaelian, who did not have a fight in 2024, was unhappy with King for not getting him a matchup. As a result, his team took the opportunity when the offer to face Opetaia arrived.

Beyond that history, Dana White’s disregard for King’s legal step likely stems from the fact that he faced a similar move after reports indicated that Oscar De La Hoya, who promotes Ryan Garcia and is now the co-promoter of the Saturday event, was preparing a cease-and-desist letter to Zuffa.

Like DKP, the Golden Boy Promotions (GBP) was also frustrated by Zuffa’s alleged move, negotiating for a fight involving Garcia, by circumventing the welterweight champion’s existing contractual obligations with GBP.

The fight, however, is taking place as planned.

An expert who knows about the Mikaelian issue also seems to have expressed the opinion that there is little chance of the bout being stopped at this point.