Joaquin Buckley Ignored Dana White and UFC Edmonton Is Already Heated

Get ready, fight fans, because UFC Fight Night 291 in Edmonton is already cooking before anyone has even stepped into the Octagon! Things got seriously personal during Friday’s main event faceoff, with Joaquin Buckley straight-up blowing off handshakes from both his opponent, Mike Malott, AND UFC CEO Dana White. Talk about a statement!

You saw it, right? Two extended hands, two hard passes. Buckley, rocking a 21-8 MMA record with 11-6 in the UFC, didn’t just ignore Malott (14-2-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC), he straight-up iced Dana White, too! Instead of the usual pre-fight niceties, Buckley decided to just stare through Malott’s soul. That’s a whole new level of mental warfare right there. The guy is letting everyone know he’s here for business, and absolutely nothing else. You gotta respect that intensity, even if it’s a total snub.

The main event wasn’t the only place the energy was electric. The women’s flyweight co-main event between Erin Blanchfield (14-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) and Jasmine Jasudavicius (15-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) also had some serious snarl. Blanchfield got super close to Jasudavicius during their faceoff, and she definitely wasn’t having it when the Canadian put her arm in Blanchfield’s face as they turned to the crowd. It wasn’t quite the double-snub we saw from Buckley, but there’s no love lost there either. Both of these fights are shaping up to be absolute bangers.

UFC Fight Night 291 is going down tonight, Saturday, October 17, 2026, at Rogers Place, and you can catch all the action streaming on Paramount+. After those faceoffs, you just know these fighters are bringing that same heat into the cage. Get ready!

This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.

From the source Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.