Sal Everett says he is not leaving his UFC job after earning a fighter contract on Dana White’s Contender Series.
The 29-year-old told TMZ Sports that he still works as a runner for White and the UFC, a role that includes running personal errands and stocking the boss’s refrigerator. TMZ reports that fans assumed he would give notice after the win. Everett said he has been back at work since the fight and was at work during the interview.
“I’m a working man, I’m not lazy,” Everett said. He added that some days are stressful, but that he loves the job and likes being there.
That contrasts with what White said after the fight. At the post-fight press conference, White said he believed the contract would change Everett’s life enough that he would no longer have to work at the office.
Everett earned the deal by knocking out fellow unbeaten welterweight Ozzy Martin in the first round at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, improving to 5-0, on Contender Series Season 10 Episode 9. In the cage, White told him it was strange to be signing someone who already worked at the UFC, then welcomed him to the roster.
Everett started with the UFC on its security team and later became White’s runner. The UFC’s pre-fight promo package told the story of how his chance arrived: White found him stocking the refrigerator and asked whether Hunter Campbell and Sean Shelby had reached out about the Contender Series.
The UFC has not announced his debut date or opponent. Everett told TMZ Sports in the full video interview that he wants to fight in the first quarter of next year, once the swelling in his hand and face goes down.
