White vexed by Johnson's reluctance to fight Dillashaw: 'It's insanity'

Dana White doesn't appreciate Demetrious Johnson's unwillingness to get with the program.

The UFC boss is high on booking the flyweight champ's 11th title defense opposite former bantamweight king TJ Dillashaw for August - potentially in Johnson's home state of Washington - but "Mighty Mouse" doesn't share his enthusiasm for the matchup, as he'd rather give a deserving 125-pound contender his due.

In a Thursday appearance on the "UFC Unfiltered" podcast, White couldn't help but express his frustration with Johnson's desire to break the promotion's record for consecutive title defenses against the streaking Ray Borg over a far more known property in Dillashaw.

"I have a fight with Demetrious Johnson where he's on his way to break the record - Anderson Silva's record for most title defenses," White said, according to MMAjunkie. "And TJ Dillashaw can't fight Cody 'No Love' because Cody screwed up his back, and Cody won't be back for a while. He's like, 'I can make this weight, and I'm going to stop him from breaking that record.'

"... TJ is going to go down to 125 to fight D.J. to stop him from breaking the record, but D.J. doesn’t want to fight him."

Buzz for the matchup arose when bantamweight champ Cody Garbrandt pulled out of his July date with Dillashaw in May due to a lingering back injury, prompting Dillashaw to set his sights on the flyweight king.

While much of Johnson's illustrious reign has been broadcast on free television, White intends to book the fight for pay-per-view, with the champ pocketing a cut of the take for the first time in his career. When asked why "Mighty Mouse" would turn down the potentially lucrative arrangement, White could only respond with befuddlement.

"Tell me - you tell me. It’s insanity."

"This is the first fight ever in D.J.'s history that he actually gets pay-per-view. He gets pay-per-view on this one, and this is the first real fight that people will care about and want to see on pay-per-view, and he is refusing to fight TJ Dillashaw."

Johnson may be set in his ways, but White isn't afraid to break out the boss hat and put the wheels for the fight in motion.

"Unfortunately for D.J., you don't make the fights around here. I do. (Johnson vs. Dillashaw is) the fight we're pushing for."