Being the CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Dana White has seen the journeys of the greatest fighters from start to finish in his league. So, who better to ask about which athlete from a different sport could crossover, and be great in the UFC? During his time on the Club Shay Shay podcast, he was asked just this question. And among the chosen ones, was 7ft 1 Lakers legend, Shaquille O’Neal.
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During his conversation with former NFL star Shannon Sharpe, White threw the names of Michael Jordan and Tom Brady in the ring first, citing their “killer mentality” as the reason. He then picked physical attributes as his next criterion. And as one might expect, it didn’t take long for O’Neal’s name to pop up.
However, Sharpe was initially against this suggestion, saying that Shaq was just too big. In response, White delivered his simple, yet downright hilarious justification.
Sharpe: “Man, Shaq too big! Shaq 7ft1”, probably 350lbs now!
White: “Imagine Shaq on top of you!”
White then clarified that he meant O’Neal from his prime in the NBA when he had all the muscle with the limberness to go along with it. However, despite relenting in agreement at first, Sharpe then brought up the weight cap of the UFC, posing that the Lakers legend couldn’t qualify.
White: Shaq in his heyday! We’re not talking about Shaq today, are we?
Sharpe: He’s what, 325lbs? I mean you gotta limit…
White: Shaq in his heyday, did you see Shaq back in the day with [flexing]? The speed, the agility, the power?!
Sharpe: Oh yeah, Shaq used to bench 400lbs. But you got a limit. You can only be 265lbs! Shaq was 265lbs in high school!
The CEO of the UFC eventually agreed with the host, before admitting he was only thinking about people that could kick some butt when given the chance.
To be fair to White, while he wasn’t thinking about weight classes, his logic is infallible. After all, who would want to go up against a prime O’Neal in the ring? Even the greatest fighters would likely hang up their gloves before even thinking about giving that challenge a shot.
Things only get more interesting from here when it is noted that Shaq once actually admitted that he would be willing to give the UFC a try. Unfortunately, however, there was just one thing that was in the way of this decision.
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Shaquille O’Neal in the UFC would have undoubtedly been must-see TV. Interestingly enough, during a 2022 interview with MMA Underground, the former NBA man even admitted that he had once considered it. However, it was his advanced age that convinced him otherwise.
“I’m 50… I wish I was 38, 39. I would fight!”
And so, despite O’Neal being a massive fan of the UFC, this golden opportunity went begging before anyone ever realized it. Still, perhaps this will inspire other basketball athletes to try their hand at MMA.
Who knows? The world could even get quite a tantalizing match-up out of it in the near future.
