Ariel Helwani went from being the UFC’s blue-eyed boy to the most hated man for the promotion. Some may find it hard to believe, but Dana White liked Helwani back when the Canadian journo was the Insider for Fox Sports and its ‘UFC Tonight’ weekly show between 2011 and 2016. However, Dana White the UFC brass apparently felt Helwani’s coverage was being ‘too negative’ and got Fox to fire Helwani in March ’16.
Since then, the Canadian has been persona non grata for the promotion. Helwani was briefly banned from UFC events in 2016 for breaking the story that Brock Lesnar was returning at UFC 200 just hours before the promotion was to announce it. Although he doesn’t attend any UFC events anymore, he is still detested by Dana White.
But there is also another important factor that fans and some fighters don’t like about Helwani, which former UFC champ Michael Bisping and former super-middleweight boxing champ Carl Froch discussed in a recent conversation. “There’s a guy called Ariel Helwani, he got under my skin a little bit lately with f—ing Jake Paul. And I given him [Paul] some stick because he needed a bit of stick, to be honest,” Froch complained on his podcast.
Gary Cully vs Jose Felix Jr, 3 Arena, Dublin 20/5/2023 Ariel Helwani Ariel Helwani 20/5/2023 PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxUKxIRLxFRAxNZL Copyright: x INPHO/GaryxCarrx JACK0276
This was like music to Bisping’s ears, who proceeded to condemn the journo, accusing him of harboring an anti-UFC bias and stirring up beef between fighters.
“He’s a total d—head, he’s definitely up there as well… All he does is try and manufacture beef with other fighters, so it makes him look good and it keeps him current. All he does is hate on the UFC that’s like his whole MO, you know… He’s a journalist that covers the sport and he’s just, he’s not even worth my breath,” an infuriated Bisping declared. However, despite all of this, and the UFC’s open hostility to him, Helwani remains a superstar in the MMA world.
Ariel Helwani’s unprecedented position in the MMA world
But Bisping and Dana White aren’t the only high-profile UFC figures who actively dislike Helwani. Belal Muhammad famously detests the journalist and has even called him out on social media. Former light heavyweight champ Jamahal Hill has also publicly blasted the former Fox contributor for allegedly trying to start a beef between him and Jiri Prochazka.
And yet Helwani is the most decorated and influential journalist in the MMA world. Over the past seven days, for instance, Helwani had Alex Pereira, the sport’s biggest active UFC superstar, and Tom Aspinall, who looks like he could be the next face of the UFC, on his show. The Canadian still has the most dense and extensive network of sources of anyone in the business.
He is often the first to break big news because of this extensive network, which makes his show a must-watch for those interested in finding out inside scoops about the latest MMA goings on. Jon Jones wants six months to prepare for Tom Aspinall was broken by Helwani. The aforementioned Lesnar UFC 200 return announcement. Also broken by Helwani! And these are just a few examples related to recent events.
The total list of news broken by him or news which he was the first to report on would be endless, and stretch back more than a decade. In fact, as you can see, Helwani has become an integral part of the tapestry of the MMA world. Whatever his shortcomings, many feel the sport would be poorer and less entertaining without him. But Bisping is not one of those people. What do you think about Michael Bisping’s criticism of Ariel Helwani?
The post “All He Does Is Hate on the UFC” – UFC Legend Michael Bisping Calls Out ‘The Biggest D—khead in MMA’ appeared first on EssentiallySports.
