The art of kissing up to the boss is lost on Roy Nelson.
The UFC heavyweight has never gotten along with company president Dana White and he sent some barbs his way in an interview with MMAJunkie.com, saying White “wants to be a fighter and he’s not.”
Nelson is coaching one team on this fall’s “The Ultimate Fighter 16” reality series on FX and his first choice of assistant coaches were bizarre, including BALCO founder and convicted performance-enhancing drug peddler Victor Conte and pro wrestler Kurt Angle. Nelson wrote on his website earlier this month that the UFC has prohibited having those two and Bellator fighter Muhammed Lawal on camera.
Obviously, White has been none too pleased.
“The first day, as soon as we start filming, [Nelson] starts shooting his mouth off and saying dumb [expletive],” he told MMAFighting.com last week.
Nelson says the boss just doesn’t get it.
“I think we were talking about coaching or something like that, and he’s not a coach,” Nelson said of White. “There’s an understanding of being a fighter, and I don’t think he understands.”
Nelson, known for his big gut and iron chin, went to Twitter on Wednesday to poke fun at White’s views on testosterone replacement therapy, a hot topic in MMA right now. He also ripped White for being a flip-flopper.
“You never know with Dana,” Nelson said. “Dana will tell you guys one thing, and then five minutes later tell you another. Last week, ‘Shogun’ (Rua) and Brandon Vera were fighting for the title [at UFC on FOX 4], and now all of the sudden, (Lyoto) Machida and Ryan Bader are, too. Next thing you know, he’s going to say Randy Couture gets the next title shot when he comes back.”
Nelson will be coaching a team against Shane Carwin’s team on “The Ultimate Fighter.” The fighters on both teams will compete in a 16-man tournament with the winner earning a UFC contract in December. Nelson and Carwin will also fight on that card.
We wonder who White will be rooting for.