Self-styled millionaire Donald Trump refused to throw any verbal jabs at the UFC during a 15-minute conference call to hype the upcoming Affliction "Banned" event.
"Dana's been very respectful of me and I of him," Trump said on the day White called Affliction promoter Tony Atencio a "T-shirt guy."
We're 10 days away from the kind of MMA war that hasn't been seen in years ... if ever.
On July 19 the Trump-backed Affliction Banned card will attempt to take a step toward dethroning the UFC as the biggest organization in the world. It has built a card of top-notch heavyweights -- arguably the UFC's weakest division -- headlined with Fedor Emelianenko against Tim Sylvia. It also added some other big names: Josh Barnett, Pedro Rizzo, Ben Rothwell, Andrei Arlovski and Matt Lindland.
But in a slick counter the UFC has thrown together a free Ultimate Fight Night on Spike featuring Anderson Silva.
The Affliction card will cost $39.99 on pay-per-view. However, two fights, including Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Aleksander Emelianenko, will air for free on Fox Sports Net.
The fight, to be held in Anaheim, Calif., is sold out. The UFC card will be in the Palms in Las Vegas.
"I think we may top them because we have the better fighters," Trump said, although he wouldn't comment on the UFC's business decision to directly oppose Affliction until after the events.
It will first time in recent memory two big MMA cards will square off head-to-head.
Affliction has placed a billboard in New York's Times Square to go along with a flashy Web site and advertising on a few fan Web sites.
It's unclear if that will be enough for the start-up company to make big money, especially when it's being opposed by the UFC.
This isn't the first time the UFC has thrown a wrench into a rival's plans. The UFC previously aired a Chuck Liddell special during last month's inaugural EliteXC event on CBS. It also plans to re-air UFC 84 during the next CBS EliteXC telecast on July 26.
Quick notes: Trump said he believes Tito Ortiz would like to fight for Affliction, although there hasn¹t been any official discussions ... The business man said he expects New York to sanction MMA in the near future ... Trump swore he's a long-time MMA fan. "I enjoy it," he said. "I watch it. I like the MMA stuff. It's the new wave. I don¹t know if it¹s taking over from boxing. But I think it might be."
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