'Witchcraft and sorcery?' Dana White embraces Jiri Prochazka's claims that Alex Pereira uses spiritual forces to win

UFC President Dana White said that he loved the unique personalities of his fighters leading up to UFC 303. Particularly, fighters Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira, two spiritual light heavyweights who are currently at odds regarding ritualistic forces that Prochazka thinks are at play.

During a series of interviews leading up to his championship fight, Prochazka claimed that Pereira has been "working with some shamans from his hometown and he believes in some spiritual help from them."

"Everyone knows that he's doing these rituals," he stated. "Before the fight, everyone can feel that. What's around him and what's going on. So I think Alex can't fight without that."

Pereira responded by saying, "Everybody has their own spirits; we're not just made of flesh and bone. If he did not find his or he doesn't believe, that's not my fault."

'Witchcraft, black magic, it's just another reason that this fight is so f***ing awesome.'

White was jokingly asked by a reporter backstage after the UFC 303 press conference whether or not he could test for dark forces.

"Do the commission test for witchcraft and sorcery?" reporter Oscar Willis from the Mac Life asked White.

"I love that s*** though. When Jiri found out about the fight, apparently he goes into a shed for three days. No water, no food, no nothing," White answered. "[He] prays, meditates, whatever he does. His coach went and banged on the door, told him this fight was available, and he said something to the effect of 'If this is what the universe wants.' So he's that dude!"

White was referring to Prochazka posting about his own rituals online in late May 2024 when he said he was going to go several days without food or electricity while preparing to train for his next fight.

"3 days
No Light
No food
Pure Focus
Pure Training," Procházka said.

The UFC president is no stranger to gimmick entrances, both in the UFC and now being part of TKO Group Holdings, which also owns the WWE. However, White said these two fighters aren't using gimmicks, this is actually who they really are.

“So [Prochazka] sees him doing the Shaman stuff ... witchcraft, black magic, it's just another reason that this fight is so f***ing awesome. This is real, this isn't fabricated bulls*** when someone wants to come out with a gimmicky wrestling-type thing. This is who these two guys really f***ing are, man, this is what makes people really love [the UFC]. You know when someone is authentic, as opposed to some bulls*** f***ing wrestling s***.”

White showed so much excitement for the event that he accepted another reporter's plea to add a second Fight of the Night bonus for UFC 303, which typically pays combatants between $50,000-$100,000 each.

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