Dana White Says Jake Shields, Not Jon Fitch, Will Earn Title Shot With Win at UFC 121

The UFC held a press conference in Montreal for the upcoming UFC 124 card in December. Dana White is known to drop some good quotes at this conferences and he dropped a piece of information that should really upset a few people. When asked who is going to be first in line for a title shot after the GSP-Koscheck fight he said this:

If Jake Shields wins against Martin Kampmann, it will probably be him next.

So what's the problem here? Most fans would agree that this is the correct decision. Shields is on a tear and he's a fresh face in the UFC welterweight scene. Most are expecting Georges St. Pierre to retain his title and Shields represents one of few that GSP hasn't beaten at 170 pounds. He's also an interesting matchup. In fact, I love the idea behind the fight. I'm just not a fan of the way White has gone about it.

Before UFC 117, Dana told everyone at the pre-fight press conference that if Jon Fitch were to defeat Thiago Alves, he would finally earn another crack at the belt. It felt like a cheap way to entice a few more buys from fans in the days before the show and he's confirming that by all but forgetting about having said that and changing his tune now that we're coming up on UFC 121. What this does is two things. One, it means we can't ever believe anything White says regarding title shots. I know he's a promoter and by extension a liar, but when it comes to something like this he needs to be telling the truth. Two, what effect does this have on the fighters? If they think they are fighting for a title shot and then they win but that shot gets taken away from them, wouldn't that cause issues with morality? Does Dana White want to completely alienate his entire roster?

Jon Fitch knew White was jerking his chain regarding the title shot so he's already started angling for a crack at the winner of the Shields-Kampmann fight and said that should be the true number one contenders bout. It makes the most sense because A) it would truly solidify Fitch or Shields as the number 2 welterweight in the world and B) the calendars line up perfectly. Why White doesn't just come out and say that's the plan, when it's highly likely that's exactly what's going to happen, is beyond me. I don't think the buyrate will jump just because he says the words, "winner gets a title shot". All it does is jerk around his employees and make fans just not want to listen to him.

I know it will never happen but wouldn't it be nice if White was honest with us for a change?