Dana White is set to offer an almost unheard of third shot at the Contender Series to two-time winner Torrez Finney after ripping into him earlier this month.
The muscle-bound middleweight, who made waves due to his unorthodox 5’8″ build, has already picked up two victories on the show. But the UFC boss was not impressed by either of his victories, and felt that he hadn’t gained enough experience during the year he spent between appearances.
White even claimed that Finney would be ‘decimated’ in MMA’s biggest promotion in an explosive rant against the undefeated contender. Now, he steps in on short notice to hopefully earn on more chance at a contract.
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Torrez Finney steps in for short-notice Contender Series opportunity
On the August 20 episode of Dana White’s Contender Series, fan-favourite Torrez Finney faced Cam Rowston. The pair’s pre-fight face-off went viral as 5’8″ Finney appeared tiny opposite 6’2″ Rowston at weigh-ins.
But Finney outworked his opponent to earn a decision victory, which proved unpopular with White himself who opted not to offer him a contract. It was his second fight on the show after defeating Yuri Panferov by submission last year.
Now, he has confirmed via social media that he will step in to replace Logan Woods against Abdellah Er-Ramy on Week 8 of the show. The fight will take place on October 1, giving him around six weeks from his last outing.
Dana White ripped Torrez Finney after latest win
Dana White was not a fan of Torrez Finney’s performance, and opted not to award him a contract even after an impassioned promo from the fighter. He tore into his showing, and demanded that he fight more frequently before coming back.
“You know, I’m always brutally honest with this stuff, you’d get absolutely decimated in the UFC with the performance that you put on tonight,” White told Finney in the immediate aftermath of his victory. “Your performance last year was better than this performance.
“You’re 25-years-old, kid, you’re obviously a talented athlete go out and get three or four fights this year, then come back to us and talk about the UFC.”
Torrez Finney hits back at Dana White over ‘decimated’ rant
In the aftermath of White’s onslaught, Finney took to the radio airwaves to tell his side of the story. He noted that he was unable to get extra fights due to being otherwise engaged by UFC matchmakers for another opportunity.
“I didn’t take it personally, but I will say a lot of the things that was said was a little bit flawed,” Finney told Sirius XM’s MMA Today show. “I don’t think a lot of people know this, but I was selected to be on The Ultimate Fighter, this year.
“Whenever you sign the Ultimate Fighter contract, you are negated not to fight during that time span. So during that time span in January, I couldn’t fight for January, February, and March.
“So right when I was selected, or right when they made the selection part, the day before they’re about to take your phones, the head producer comes up to my room and says, ‘Hey we’re going a different route’,”
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