Dana White reacts after Stephen Thompson suggests he will receive backpay for UFC 296 fight with Shavkat Rakhmonov

UFC president Dana White has reacted to Stephen Thompson’s claim that he will receive some backpay for his upcoming fight at UFC 296.

In the last few days, it’s been confirmed that Stephen Thompson will return to take on Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 296. It comes after Thompson’s scheduled bout with Michel Pereira was cancelled, with ‘Wonderboy’ refusing to accept the bout after Pereira missed weight. This led to a dispute between the veteran and the promotion, with Thompson noting that he wasn’t paid for making weight and doing his job.

Since then, Thompson has noted the following during an interview with Chris Weidman regarding the Rakhmonov fight.

RELATED: STEPHEN THOMPSON EXPECTS TO RECEIVE “SOME BACKPAY” WHEN HE SQUARES OFF WITH SHAVKAT RAKHMONOV AT UFC 296

“I do believe that they’re going to – I think the deal is, when I fight Shavkat, they’re going to add on what they owed me for the last fight.”

Weidman jokingly responded:

“So they’re bribing you.”

To which Stephen Thompson replied:

“I don’t think they’re bribing me. But it was the fact that I wanted somebody – OK, so there was the thing about Usman after that fight. Usman called me out, and I wanted that fight, but the UFC kept coming back and saying, ‘No, Usman’s not gonna fight you. He’s gonna fight somebody else.’ So there’s a lot going on.”

After being asked about this during a media scrum, White said the following – with a confused smile on his face.

Dana White: If that's what he said it must be true. pic.twitter.com/Db9eOD756o

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) September 27, 2023

White’s Thompson confusion

“Okay. Okay. If that’s what he said, it must be true”.

This whole situation feels a bit off, especially when you consider the overwhelming popularity of Stephen Thompson. Either way, we just hope the Shavkat fight stays together.

Who do you side with on this issue – Dana White or Stephen Thompson? Will ‘Wonderboy’ be able to turn back the clock at UFC 296? Let us know your thoughts on this, BJPENN Nation!