Dana White says UFC wants to come to Hawaii with Max Holloway

UFC president Dana White says he wants to bring a UFC event to Hawaii and if he does so he wants UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway to fight on the card.

White was in Honolulu, Hawaii this weekend for Trinity Sport Combat’s “Trinity Kings 8” event. In the main event of the card, former Contender Series fighter Alex Munoz defeated Troy Lamson. Munoz is a lightweight prospect from Team Alpha Male who most notably defeated Nick Newell on the Contender Series.

White watched the event — which aired live on UFC Fight Pass — cageside with Holloway and Urijah Faber. Afterwards, he spoke to the local Hawaii media about the UFC potentially holding an event in The Aloha State. Here’s what White said to KHON2.

“Max wants it bad,” White said. “Listen, we want to come here. We love this place. We got the get this thing figured out eventually. We’ll see. We’ll see what happens. I want it, does the tourism board want it? Do they or do they not? If they do, we’ll come. If not, we understand.”

The UFC has not yet been able to bring an event to Hawaii, which fans and media have criticized considering Bellator has held several events there over the last few years. However, White says that red tape is the culprit behind the UFC not being able to hold an event there yet.

Still, it’s clear the UFC bossman is interested in holding an event in Hawaii if a deal can be reached. White said he loved being back in Hawaii for this Fight Pass card, and who knows, maybe the Octagon can reach there in 2020.

“This place has been the spot for mixed-martial arts since the late 90s. I haven’t been out here for a fight in awhile so it was good to be back,” he said. “I had Max with me seeing some of the local guys, but the main event was the fight I was really interested in. It was great. I love being out here watching fights.”

Do you think the UFC will bring an event to Hawaii in 2020?