During Thursday’s pre-fight press conference prior to Zuffa Boxing’s inaugural event headlined by the super fight between Canelo Álvarez and Terence Crawford, Max Kellerman attempted to highlight the impact Dana White will have on the sport of boxing. But it was exactly interpreted correctly by Álvarez, leading to a rather awkward interaction between the two.
Kellerman, who is set to return to broadcasting for the first time since being laid off by ESPN in June of 2023, will be on the call of the Álvarez-Crawford fight alongside UFC play-by-play voice Jon Anik.
Speaking to Dana White’s ability to promote combat sports through his work with the UFC during Thursday’s presser, Kellerman attempted to share how he believes White will make the sport of boxing an “institution” through Zuffa Boxing. But in doing so, Kellerman partially put down the current state of boxing, saying that boxing is “not as popular as it used to be.”
“Dana White is the greatest combat sports promoter in my lifetime,” said Kellerman. “He built an institution. You know why boxing is not as popular as it used to be, right? The UFC is really popular. That is because of Dana White. He built something like the NBA.”
Right away, it was clear that the pro-boxing crowd was not pleased to hear Kellerman insinuate that boxing is less popular than the UFC. But Kellerman quickly corrected the groans in the audience by declaring that White will build up the sport of boxing just like he did in MMA with the UFC.
“Stop now,” Kellerman told the fans as they voiced their disapproval. “Because he is about to do it for boxing again. For boxing now. You want an NBA or an NFL in boxing? Here it comes, because he knows how to build an institution.”
Before Kellerman could finish his point, Canelo Álvarez interjected, disagreeing with Kellerman’s assessment of the state of boxing.
“Hey Max, hey Max,” said Álvarez. “Boxing has always been bigger. Bigger than big. Don’t say boxing is not big enough. Boxing is big. You know how big boxing is.”
“Should it get bigger?” replied Kellerman. “Or no?”
“Maybe it will get bigger,” said Álvarez. “But boxing is always big, and bigger, and bigger. We need to talk about that, too. My respect for a lot of that sport. Great job, everything. But boxing is boxing.”
Canelo Alvarez interrupts Max Kellerman to make it clear — “UFC is not bigger than boxing.” 🥊🔥 #CaneloCrawford
via: @ufc pic.twitter.com/IhG41feW5g
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) September 12, 2025
Kellerman certainly could have done a better job of bringing up boxing while also speaking about White’s potential impact on the sport. Nevertheless, Álvarez clearly feels that boxing as a sport is in a good place.
Whether you agree with Álvarez or not, Saturday’s event could certainly go a long way in helping boost popularity around the sport, especially considering how successful a platform like Netflix has proven to be for combat sports events in the past.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.