Dana White Issued Reminder of Netflix’s Mike Tyson Debacle After Canelo vs. Crawford Boxing Deal

Dana White has officially entered the world of the squared circle, and his first fight? The blockbuster clash between Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford. The path till here was surely bumpy. From miscommunication to rumors of the UFC honcho being removed from the fight, but we are finally here. Surely, the ride will be smooth from here, right? After all, White knows just how big the event is going to be.

Well, as it turns out, it might not. On Tuesday, after months of speculation, White finally released the official date and streaming partner of the much-sought-after clash and hyped it up on his Instagram page. He wrote, “Turki Alalshikh wants to make the biggest fights that the fans want to see in boxing, and this is right up my alley,” claiming that he can give fans what they want.

This is the same promise that UFC honcho made alongside His Excellency while launching their own boxing league. He doubled down on the claims, thanking his stars that a fight like Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford fell on his lap. “Are you kidding me that the first boxing fight I am going to get to promote is Canelo vs Crawford? It’s literally once in a lifetime fight,” he added, claiming that this fight needs no promotion.

All was well until the 55-year-old spilled the fight details, and things quickly took a turn for the worse. “Live on Saturday, September 13, streaming globally on Netflix, two of the greatest boxers in the sport will meet in a historic fight from Las Vegas,” he wrote. At first glance, it seems perfect: two boxing superstars duking it out in a legendary city, streamed on a major platform.

Canelo Alvarez could feel the hype. “I’m super happy to be making history again and this time on a Riyadh Season Card that will be broadcast on Netflix. On Sept. 13, I’m ready to show once again that I am the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world,” he said.

On the other hand, his opponent oozed confidence. “My perfect record speaks for itself. I am the best fighter in the world and no matter the opponent or weight class, I have always come out on top. On Sept. 13, my hand will be raised once again as the world watches greatness.” 

However, there’s one problem fans are calling out, and it’s the event being broadcast on Netflix.

Fans spoil Dana White’s entry in boxing

Well, so far, Netflix has streamed only one boxing event. The controversial Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson bout. Despite being one of the biggest boxing events, the streaming service fell short. The live stream lagged, fans got logged out automatically, and the servers could not hold such traffic. So, when The Ring Magazine shared the fight details in a separate post, fans didn’t hold back, slamming the promoters. Despite Dana White’s bold promises, the response from fans was anything but forgiving.

A user commented, “Netflix is gonna crash,” predicting a similar outcome as the Paul vs Tyson bout. Another fan echoed the same and commented, “So Netflix will stream the Canelo vs Crawford fight? Good luck with that.” Well, given that it is one of the biggest fights of modern boxing, fans are going to switch on their television. It is bound to be one of the biggest events of the year, and if Netflix does not sort out its servers, these predictions will come true.

The mocking did not stop there as another fan wrote, “Netflix? Pinky promise it won’t glitch and buffer 🫲🏽,” pleading the streaming giants to fix the past problems. And there is lot to fix as a user reminded them. He wrote, “Oh no, not Netflix – last time we didn’t see as much as 10 seconds, couldn’t open it one single time in Scandinavia.” So, Netflix and Dana White better get to work. Remember the Netflix Slam, the platform broadcast hosted? Could the Alvarez-Crawford fight match that?

Netflix wasn’t alone in facing the fans’ wrath; the marketing team also took a beating from the backlash. A fan wrote, “Using the same marketing as Mayweather v Canelo,” reminding everyone that the Floyd Mayweather vs Canelo Alvarez fight in 2013 was also billed as “The One.” Dana White is now using the same tagline to hype Canelo vs. Crawford. That fight attracted almost 2.2 PPV buys, generating over $150 million in revenue. According to a fan, this fight will attract similar numbers as he commented, “All the casuals coming out for this one 😂😂😂😂.” Though the user framed it with a mocking tone, it’s not such a bad thing. After all, getting more eyes on the sport is the ultimate goal, and this fight will deliver just that.

Well, we hope Netflix fixes all the bugs and gives us a good quality PPV. On the other hand, the marketing decision to label the Canelo Alvarez-Terence Crawford as “The One” seems lazy. After all, these two are modern greats and deserve better. Not a tagline used previously.

What do you think? Let us know your thoughts down below.