Dana White wanted to enter the boxing world as a promoter, guns blazing. And he is already taking significant steps towards it after signing rising stars Jai Opetaia and Conor Benn. But to level up, has White strategically aligned Zuffa Boxing with a high-profile matchup?

Opetaia has joined Zuffa on a multi-year deal. But Benn has signed a $15 million deal for just one fight under the banner. And one might assume that bout would surely be a massive matchup. Following Ryan Garcia’s victory over Mario Barrios on Saturday, a high-profile fight for Benn could be on the horizon. And interestingly, through that, White could also disrupt the boxing world in a very short time.

Conor Benn eyes Ryan Garcia fight

“Congratulations champ – See you later this year. Make sure you keep my belt warm @RyanGarcia,” wrote Conor Benn on X.

Now, Benn calling out Ryan Garcia after the WBC welterweight title win is not something that came out of the blue. After victory over Chris Eubank Jr. in his last fight, ‘The Destroyer’ has become the mandatory challenger for the WBC welterweight belt.

For that, Benn wants to face Garcia soon. And surely, that bout has the possibility to draw significant pay-per-view buys, with Zuffa Boxing also getting a significant popularity boost. But then again, there is still an uncertainty whether Benn’s fight against Garcia would be under the Zuffa banner or not.

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One of the reasons for that is White’s stance on the boxing sanctioning bodies. The Zuffa Boxing co-founder stated that his promotion will operate with its own proprietary belts and only recognize the Ring Magazine belt. And citing that, there’s also a chance that Benn’s potential fight against Garcia could be after his sole fight under Zuffa.

However, this also highlights the complication surrounding a newly founded promotion like Zuffa Boxing, which does not recognize traditional sanctioning bodies. And that is something that even one of their fighters resonates with.

Jai Opetaia on complications surrounding Dana White-led boxing promotion

Jai Opetaia is the reigning IBF and The Ring cruiserweight champion. But considering the uncertainty surrounding the title fights under Zuffa Boxing, he is not sure how his IBF title defenses will go.

“I’m proud to hold that belt, and I’m willing to fight for it,” said Opetaia during an interview. “You, what? I mean, I don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes. I don’t understand, you know, the ins and outs that much, you know, there’s a bit of becomes a bit of a sticky situation. But man, I’m focused. I’ve got a job to do.”

In addition to not recognizing the sanctioning bodies, White also noted that they are still working on how everything regarding the other sanctioning bodies’ title fights for their signed boxers will work.

Till then, all the boxers like Conor Benn and Opetaia can do is just wait. That said, do you think Benn will fight Ryan Garcia under the Zuffa banner? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!