White blames matchmaker for Stephens-Klose incident
UFC president Dana White is blaming matchmaker Sean Shelby for not preventing the recent weigh-in incident between lightweights Jeremy Stephens and Drakkar Klose.
Stephens shoved Klose during a faceoff last Friday, one day before they were scheduled to meet in the UFC Fight Night co-main event in Las Vegas. Klose suffered a cervical sprain of the neck and a concussion as a result of the incident, and the fight was called off.
White believes Shelby, who was handling the staredowns that day, should have separated Stephens and Klose before the push occurred.
"Sean Shelby missed that one," White told TSN's Aaron Bronsteter on Monday. "Sean and I see the thing differently. I saw it on social media and called him immediately. ... I was like, 'Dude, where was your head on that one?' He was coming in hot, and it's Jeremy Stephens, he's a savage. ...
"We're not standing there to look good and take pictures. We're there to make sure that doesn't happen."
White did not mention whether or not Stephens will be punished for the incident, nor did he confirm whether Klose will receive his show money after making weight. The UFC plans to rebook the matchup for a later date.
"He's a young, healthy guy. He'll get better," White said of Klose. "But it's just unfortunate, and it should've never happened."