White, Velasquez Talk to Fans at UFC 106 Q&A

UFC president Dana White filled in for an ailing Mike Goldberg at today’s UFC Fight Club Q&A session. Goldberg went to the hospital this morning with a cold, but the UFC expects him to be fine for tomorrow night’s UFC 106 broadcast.

The Q&A session featured heavyweight contender Cain Velasquez, but a large majority of the questions asked were directed at White.

An early question centered around Karo Parisyan, who pulled out of his scheduled fight yesterday. “Karo has a lot of problems. A lot of problems. He has physical problems, mental problems, everything. He needs to get his personal life in order before he thinks about fighting again,” said White. “This is three fights in a row where he’s been highly unprofessional, and it’s unforgivable.”

White was asked if he had any plans to fold the lighter weight classes of the WEC into the UFC. “We actually just signed a new deal with Versus. I signed that deal today,” said White. “So we have a contract with Versus, and it will be a long time before we bring lighter weight classes into the UFC.”

White confirmed recent reports that he met with Shane McMahon, the son of WWE owner Vince McMahon. The younger McMahon, a long-time MMA fan, recently left his job with the WWE and has been linked with a move to the MMA world. “Shane is a friend of mine. He’s a big UFC fan. You never know what’s going to happen,” said White with a grin.

White also confirmed the rumored bout between Randy Couture and Mark Coleman. When asked about the prospect of signing Fedor Emelianenko, White said “I’ve been trying to sign that bald little fat guy for a long time.”

Read More
, ,