New behind-the-scenes footage has shown that the biggest fight in UFC heavyweight history underwent unusual negotiations before it was officially booked.
This past week, a new documentary called ‘Fight Inc: Inside the UFC’ aired exclusively on Roku and it shows behind-the-scenes footage of CEO, Dana White, and his team going through the highs and lows of running the promotion.
UFC’s Chief Business Officer, Hunter Campbell, is seen a lot during the documentary negotiating fights with fighters and their managers and has been shown as a key figure in making some of the biggest fights in the sport.
Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic was made in parking lot
UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, was scheduled to defend his title against the consensus greatest heavyweight of all time, Stipe Miocic, at UFC 295 this past November, but withdrew because of injury.
Before the fight was made official, though, the UFC ran into difficulties with Jones as they continued to try and negotiate a deal for him to fight Miocic at Madison Square Garden.
“One of the reasons this deal wasn’t getting done was because we wanted Jon Jones to fight at Madison Square Garden, and he has been very resistant to go back to New York and fight for whatever reason,” Hunter Campbell explained on Fight Inc.
“Superstitions, taxes, whatever the reason is at any moment in time, Jon and I had been talking for a while, and he kept saying hey can I just talk, I want to get together and talk through where I’m at,” Campbell continued.
Footage showed a brief exchange between the heavyweight champion and the matchmaker in a busy setting, with Jones asking if they could just go and talk outside, instead of having a ‘formal meeting’ about his fight.
The two then got into Hunter Campbell’s car which was sat on a small parking lot, and discussed the ins and outs of Jones’ fight against Miocic.
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After an extremely successful conversation, Campbell revealed: “The biggest fight in heavyweight history just got made in a car on a parking lot, so go figure that one.”
Later on in the episode, Hunter Campbell tells UFC commentator, Joe Rogan, that they had finally booked Jones vs Stipe, with Rogan asking how they finally got it booked.
“Time, a lot of time with Jon,” Campbell replied.
The UFC is rumored to be looking to re-book Jones vs Miocic for this coming November, with Jones back in full training following his injury.
Sterling vs O’Malley negotiation conversations revealed
Also in the documentary was footage from Hunter Campbell’s negotiation with former UFC bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling, in the lead-up to his title fight against Sean O’Malley at UFC 292.
The promotion booked Sterling vs O’Malley to take place just three months after Sterling’s win over Henry Cejudo. When the fight was announced, ‘Funkmaster’ made it clear that he wasn’t very happy with the timing of the fight.
“I just want you and I to be on the same page, which is, you don’t want to fight Aljo, you don’t have to fight, I’m not f****** forcing you to f****** fight,” Campbell told Sterling in a meeting.
“You’ve got to decide what you want to do, and whatever you decide, I’m cool with,” Campbell continued.
The former champion went on to explain to the matchmaker that his frustrations were with the way Dana White was portraying him in the media.
“It’s just this opportunity for you to take (O’Malley’s) audience that he has built-in and introduce you to them, but instead, of using the platform and the increased media coverage it’s almost like you’re working against us,” Campell told Sterling.
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