As previously reported by The Ring - Turki Alalshikh, TKO Group Holdings and Sela on Wednesday announced a multi-year partnership to establish a new boxing promotion.
TKO is the parent company of the WWE and UFC. Alalshikh is the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and the head of Riyadh Season. And Sela is a leading entertainment powerhouse.
Alalshikh, UFC CEO White and WWE president Nick Khan are the key figures in the operation.
TKO will serve as managing partner, providing day-to-day operational expertise, management, and oversight of the promotion.
"[The new company will have] a highly structured system to develop new talent from around the world," a representative stated in the announcement.
White provided some of the details with respect to the new league in an interview with The Ring.
The company model has a very similar feel to White's very successful UFC, which dominates the MMA space.
"Everybody knows the format - the best fight the best. You work your way up the rankings, and once somebody breaks into the top five [and] there is no question [about] who the best five guys are in each weight class, they fight it out. And once somebody holds that belt, you don't need three letters in front of the belt. Whoever has that belt is the best in the world in that weight class. It's a very simple model," White said to The Ring.