Hearn was asked what viewers should take away from the night beyond the results. In his opinion, the card feels closer to a regular fight night than the start of a league with promotional or promotional information.
“When I promote, it’s about history,” Hearn said. “If you just say, ‘It’s a fight night,’ the next question is the same.
Hearn argued that without a clear answer, it would be more difficult to support the proposal. Fighters win, interviews follow, and information fills the time, but there is no clear indication of where those victories will lead. He pointed out that even post-fight discussions depend on having another level of visibility, something he hasn’t seen built into the Zuffa Boxing promotion.
He compared this approach to how Matchroom Boxing usually presents its shows. Hearn pointed to fighters like Andy Cruz, whose first professional bouts are scheduled as part of a fast climb rather than stand-alone features. The emphasis, he said, is on sequence and action rather than action alone.
The sharpest part of Hearn’s criticism focused on Zuffa’s use of the word “leak.” Dana White has publicly stated that Zuffa Fight will ignore traditional championship belts and intends to operate outside of the sanctioning body. Hearn asked how this would fit with some of the fighters who are currently associated with the project.
“What’s the leak?” Hearn asked. He pointed to Jai Opetaia, who has signed with Zuffa as he heads into a world unification fight elsewhere. To Hearn, it creates uncertainty. A rise away from the bands is consistent with a fighter who is on his way to the merger.
According to Hearn, the contradictions make it difficult to understand whether Zuffa Boxing is building a closed system or just setting things up while still working on a bigger plan. He asked if the league has officially started, or if the release shows that it is the person who gives it while making decisions behind the scenes.
He also suggested that the speed of the car could explain the lack of information. Zuffa Boxing announced the January opening, established a promotional campaign, and put together a card in a short window.
“I think it’s coming too soon,” Hearn said. “‘We start in January, let’s just make it a fight night and go.'”
Hearn didn’t outright dismiss the project. He characterized his comments as ambivalent rather than counterintuitive, noting that new releases often seem vague at first.
For Hearn, the test may be less about the results than the show suggests. If media language relies on league identity or a specific Zuffa decision, the concept may begin to diverge from a typical fight night. If the coverage and discussion after the fight represented the typical fight coverage, his concern about the event being represented would be more difficult to avoid.
The fights are legal and the fights are competitive. What remains unclear is whether this opening night refers to something specific, or just a representation of the fights as they are under a different banner.