With more than 500 fighters on the UFC roster, Dana White rarely enjoys a day off.
White only has time to be hands-on with a few of the higher profile fighters and few are closer to the UFC president than Conor McGregor.
McGregor has developed into the biggest superstar in mixed martial arts history and as a result, he receives more leeway than most other fighters.
White and ‘The Notorious’ have butted heads in the past but White insists that McGregor is almost the perfect business partner, apart from one downfall.
“Is Conor hard to deal with here and there? Yeah but he’s worth it,” White said when speaking to the Barstool Sports podcast.
“If people ask me what’s the biggest problem you have with Conor? It’s not showing up on time.
“Other than that, Conor’s incredible. Conor’s a fun guy to be around, he’s hilarious, he’s a great fighter, he’s fun to watch. If the guy showed up on time, he’d literally be perfect. He’d be perfect.”
Fashionably Late, thy name is Conor McGregor. pic.twitter.com/xsTvmdurrB
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) August 24, 2017
McGregor has a reputation for tardiness and at this stage, he is almost expected to arrive at least 20 minutes late to press conferences.
His punctuality problems have caused issues in the past as Nate Diaz stormed out of a press conference when the Irishman showed up late, causing the now-infamous exchange of energy drinks in the build-up to UFC 202, and Khabib Nurmagomedov also refused to hang around when met with an empty chair on the other side of the podium ahead of UFC 229 in October.
White continued: “We’re a global sport so when we do these press conferences, we’re on television networks all over the world that are taking this press conference. So they’re live and they’re ready to go and if Conor doesn’t show up for another 30 minutes, it’s a problem.
“We’ve got to fill the time and not only fill the time but keep people interested and get them willing to stick around which is tough to do these days.”
