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“Dana Said No” – Dana White, Who Wanted to Be a Boxer, Refused to Star With ‘Rocky’ Sylvester Stallone in Aging Boxing Rivals-Themed Film

Published 09/27/2022, 8:15 AM EDT

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Many consider former UFC fighter Chael Sonnen as the greatest name who never won a championship. The multi-time title challenger is also reputed as one of the best trash-talkers apart from his amazing in-octagon capabilities. After calling it a day, he transitioned into the broadcasting sphere courtesy of his own YouTube channel. In one of his videos, Sonnen spoke about his short cameo in the movie ‘Grudge Match’.

As most of you may know, ‘Grudge Match’ features Hollywood icon, Sylvester Stallone. Sonnen revealed that the film’s production team had chosen ‘Dana White’ for the cast, but the UFC President wasn’t ready to star against ‘Rocky’ famed Stallone.

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Dana White’s denial got Chael Sonnen into Grudge Match

In the video, Sonnen further talked about how Dana White recommended him for this cameo. He said, all that happened is they called Dana. They said, Dana, we want you.”

It’s also a well-known fact that the UFC President aspired to be a boxer someday. He might have managed to become one of the most successful fight promoters, but White’s dream of becoming a boxer never came to light.

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‘Grudge Match’ was released in 2013. With his age in the early fifties now, Dana White would’ve been in his early forties while ‘Grudge Match’ was being filmed. Hence, he definitely would have been a good fit for the ‘aged boxer’ required to star opposite Stallone. Sonnen also described how Dana White denied this proposal, saying, No, you don’t. You want Chael.”

via Getty

Sonnen didn’t document White’s words. He mentioned, I don’t know that Dana said any of those words.” However, he did reveal that White called him and informed him of the same.

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Talking about his cameo in the movie, Sonnen iterated that in one scene, Stallone would visit an MMA promotion and rant, “You know we use to call guys that kicked in fights. Girls.” Sonnen, being a fighter in the promotion, would take offense to that and come out to teach Stallone a lesson. He said, “I gotta dress these two knuckleheads down. This is the scene.”

Why did Dana White deny fighting Sylvester Stallone on-screen?

The exact answer to this question can only be given by a single person, Dana White himself. But, we haven’t heard him talking about this denial on any platform to date, which keeps us speculating.

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White might have denied it just because he’s enjoying his ventures and doesn’t want to be associated with other ones. It also might have been due to him trying to avoid any experiences related to his failed dream of becoming a boxer. What do you think? Why did Dana White deny the opportunity to box Sylvester Stallone on the celluloid?

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Written by:

Souvik Roy

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Souvik Roy is currently a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. An avid UFC follower, Souvik combined his love for the sport and his passion for words to turn his interest into his Livelihood. A Diploma holder in Electrical Engineering, Souvik has worked as a Freelance Link Builder and Content Writer previously and wrote for various clients and businesses.
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Edited by:

Reubyn Coutinho