UFC 334 title fight changed Dana Whites entire view of Josh Hokit
Josh
Hokit suffered his first professional loss at UFC
334, but the pace he kept against heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane
changed
Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White’s opinion of
him.
Gane won a unanimous decision in the five-round main event at Madison Square Garden in New York. Both fighters earned Fight of the Night honors and $100,000 bonuses.
“The pace he set was insane,” White said at the UFC 334 postfight press conference.
White said pressing Gane was the right approach because the champion moves unusually well for a heavyweight. He praised Hokit for keeping up the pressure even as Gane gained the upper hand in the final two rounds.
White had previously criticized Hokit’s outspoken persona, but he said the challenger’s performance earned his respect.
“There’s no doubt that Hokit’s stock goes up. Even with me,” White said. “I thought this guy was a big-mouth goofball and I hated his schtick and the whole thing. I respect the s**t out of that guy [now]. He is the real deal. Stock went up with me.”
Gane won a unanimous decision in the five-round main event at Madison Square Garden in New York. Both fighters earned Fight of the Night honors and $100,000 bonuses.
Dana White praises Josh Hokit's relentless pace against Ciryl Gane at UFC 334
“The pace he set was insane,” White said at the UFC 334 postfight press conference.
White said pressing Gane was the right approach because the champion moves unusually well for a heavyweight. He praised Hokit for keeping up the pressure even as Gane gained the upper hand in the final two rounds.
White had previously criticized Hokit’s outspoken persona, but he said the challenger’s performance earned his respect.
“There’s no doubt that Hokit’s stock goes up. Even with me,” White said. “I thought this guy was a big-mouth goofball and I hated his schtick and the whole thing. I respect the s**t out of that guy [now]. He is the real deal. Stock went up with me.”