Dana White's mixed messages about Fedor

Will Fedor ever enter the UFC?

The speculation surrounding the answer to this question depends upon what time of the month you ask it. At one moment Dana White will claim to be prepared to throw every resource at his disposal to get the former Pride champion and the next moment Fedor is nothing more than a Russian hack. 

The constant oscillation of narratives and positions is vexing for an observer to say the least. Perhaps this will forever be the UFC's "white whale" and fans and observers will drive themselves mad in the quest for the unattainable.

Dana White's comments in the aftermath of UFC 100 lead many to believe that the UFC was seriously considering to sign Fedor. 

"This Fedor thing has gone on and on and on," White said in the post-UFC 100 press conference. "Eventually, Fedor's going to be here. I want Fedor. I want him to come to the UFC and everything else.    

When White uses words like "imminent" to describe a signing, everyone takes a moment to reflect upon the situation. WKR even tried to envision what a compromise could look like. 

Then a week goes by and it is discovered that White has never personally met Fedor and that the Russian feels disrespected by the UFC's initial offer.

What happens next? Why, a Dana White verbal lashing of course,

"How can you call Fedor the best in the world? He's a heavyweight and look at the guys he's fought." "When you say Fedor beat all the big names, that was back in PRIDE. You're talking what four years ago? So wait a minute, maybe Muhammed Ali is the best pound for pound best fighter in the world. By calling him best pound-for-pound in the world, that is insane."

Amazing how quickly White dismisses the accomplishments of his former fighters.

The constant self-contradiction, or at least perceived contradictions, doesn't stop with Fedor. Dana White is constantly bellowing some insult or institution at some fighter only to back track later. 

Take Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic. White called the Croatian kick-boxer a "back-stabber" and a "coward" many thought that Filipovic would never be in the UFC again. Several weeks later White explained away the whole situation saying, "I didn't call you [Mirko] anything. I said that if you did sign then that's what I would have called you."

What a refreshing distinction. 

The same is true of former IFL heavyweight champion Roy Nelson. 

After the IFL folded there was speculation that Nelson may join the UFC. However Neslon commented to TAGG radio that, "Joe Silva was telling me to lose some weight and gain some muscle. He said I need the UFC look."

Now that Nelson will be a contestant on the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter Dana White is once again walking back,

"That's not true," White said. "That was never a thing - ‘Roy, you're too fat. You can't fight in the UFC.' That's not true."   

The list goes on and on. Even the most die hard fans must admit that the constant back-and-forth between White and UFC outsiders is tiring and feels operatic (dare I say professional wrestling?) at times. While it certainly serves the role of building attention is this really the attention you want your promotion to be constantly embroiled in? Doesn't it wear away the credibility of White if he is constantly walking back from statement or contradicting himself?