“We f***ing threw him right out on the street, huh?”
Just before he took to the dais to run through an action-packed UFC 279, Dana White was told of a John Kavanagh tweet claiming to have been kicked out of the T-Mobile Arena, not long into the main event.
Kavanagh, who coaches Conor McGregor and a clutch of other UFC stars, was in the corner for Johnny Walker, in Las Vegas, as the Brazilian comprehensively beat Ion Cutelaba to open up the main card.
The UFC 279 win may be enough to get Walker back into the Top 10 of light heavyweights in the promotion, but there was not much time to bask in the glow of victory. Late of Saturday night, local time, Kavanagh tweeted the following:
‘So, UFC just came and kicked us out. No tickets for us and not allowed stay back stage to watch. Pulled out back door, kicked out, no even shoes on.’
Backing up the initial tweet, Kavanagh shared a video, outside Walker’s hotel, of the fighter still wearing the gear that he had donned during his submission win.
— Coach JK (@John_Kavanagh) September 11, 2022
Dana White on John Kavanagh claim
On a night when Nate Diaz defeated Tony Ferguson in a rejigged UFC 279 main event, and Khamzat Chimaev demolished Kevin Holland in the first round of the co-main, Dana White’s first question to field was about the ejection of John Kavanagh and Johnny Walker.
“I guess, ever since Covid, they’ve started this thing where they get the fighters right out of here,” the UFC president said.
“I don’t know why that happened, or what happened. i mean, we’re not throwing Johnny Walker out on the street, shoeless, I’m sure.”
Informed that Kavanagh had shared a picture of Walker leaving the arena shoeless, and still in his fight gear, White replied, “So we f***ing threw him right out on the street, huh? It’s rough around here. I don’t know.”
As for Walker, the 30-year-old, who trains out of Kavanagh’s Straight Blast Gym, called out White for a $50k bonus as his wedding is coming up in early December. Of his 19 victories in professional MMA, 18 of them have come either by knock-out or submission.
“I’m getting better,” he told Joe Rogan. “I’m working hard, working my ass off!”
Well @JohnnyWalker won the 50Gs baby bonus. All is forgiven @ufc , you can boot us out anytime 😅 pic.twitter.com/tmBi17liFG
— Coach JK (@John_Kavanagh) September 11, 2022
Dana White, in that same press conference, did confirm that Johnny Walker would get a $50k performance bonus, so that should make up for the early ejection, somewhat, and help with the pending nuptials.
