UFC 146: Dana White Says Scheduling Pressure Forced Alistair Overeem off Card

Just days away from former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem's hearing with the Nevada State Athletic Commission, UFC President Dana White decided that he didn't care if "The Demolition Man" got licensed to fight or not. 

Despite initially saying that Frank Mir would remain on the card for UFC 146 against Cain Velasquez and that he would wait for due process to play out for "The Reem," White said scheduling pressure eventually forced his hand into making a decision earlier than he anticipated.

"Anybody who knows anything about the pay-per-view business knows we're way past the deadline," White told mmafighting.com. "We've got to run with it, and I wasn't feeling too optimistic."

Given that Overeem had a testosterone to epitestosterone ratio of 14-to-1 when randomly tested, over double the NSAC's allowed T:E ratio of 6-to-1, it is hard to argue with White's stance. 

White went on to say that the only late replacements he had in mind were either Mir or Fabricio Werdum. 

The fact that Mir was already training for a fight on May 26 made the decision an easy one. Despite a logical solution, White is still disappointed and believes that Overeem lied to his face. 

"I'm still angry," he said. "I'm not angry with the commission. The commission's doing their job. That's what they do. I sat down in a room with Alistair and he said, 'they can test me all they want. I'm the most tested athlete in all of sports.'"

On his way to Atlanta for UFC 145 Friday night, White tweeted:

"

Taking off to Atlanta!!!! May 26 th is now Mir vs JDS for the HW title in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand.

— Dana White (@danawhite) April 21, 2012"

White also noted that he had not heard any information from either Overeem or his camp regarding what his explanation would be for his elevated testosterone levels.

As of now, Overeem will still meet with the NSAC on Tuesday, though it would be a jaw-dropping decision if the hulking heavyweight did actually receive his license to fight.