UFC president Dana White is attempting to build a new sport.
Introducing slap-fighting into the mainstream through Power Slap is White’s objective. On the surface, that seems unrealistic. But White has made a career out of accomplishing the impossible.
Hours before the Power Slap 2 event, White spoke with Sports Illustrated and offered a glimpse into how and why he promotes fights. He also shared his excitement for all things Power Slap, touched on the most pressing UFC issues surrounding Jon Jones and Conor McGregor, and detailed the departure of Francis Ngannou.
Sports Illustrated: You’ve always, always pushed against the grain. Was there a particular moment—or boxing fight when you were a devoted fan—that led to your epiphany about MMA being the future of professional sports?
Dana White: There were a lot of things I loved about the sport of boxing. But one of the things that used to drive me crazy as a fan, and it still happens to this day, is that the fights you want to see don’t happen. These guys are trying to pad and protect their records. It still drives me crazy.
The guy who changed everything for me was Arturo Gatti. He had a deal with HBO. He would lose fights, even in the peak of the everyone-has-to-be-undefeated era, but it didn’t matter. You wanted to see him fight. That guy was a warrior. Win, lose or draw, you wanted to see him fight. He put on great fights against the best fighters in the world. That’s the business model I’ve used. Put on fights people want to see.
SI: At this stage in your career, especially with the success you’ve attained and power you’ve accumulated, what excites you as a promoter?
DW: That card we just had in [North] Carolina on ABC really excited me. We took the up-and-comers we think are going to be special, then watched them go out and look great on ABC. It reminds me of when I was a kid and watched ABC’s Wide World of Sports. Then the [Mackenzie] Dern fight against Angela Hill, which was our main event last weekend, that was an absolute badass war between two absolutely badass women. So that’s what excites me—finding young up-and-coming talent, and seeing if they have what it takes to become world champions. Look at The Contender Series. Jamahal Hill is the first from that show to become champion. [Sean] O’Malley is trying to do that now, too. When you go into our ‘War Room’ and look at our wall, we have red tags and blue tags. Red tags came off The Ultimate Fighter, blue tags came off The Contender Series. The whole wall is covered in blue tags.
This is what I love to do: find talent, see who can become world champion and change people’s lives. That’s why I love Power Slap. Everybody hates it now just like everybody used to hate the UFC, it’s a life-changing opportunity for these kids.
SI: What was the first fight that you were told could never take place? Or even that you were told would never happen?
DW: Think about this: There was a time when UFC wasn’t allowed on pay-per-view. You as a grown adult had the ability to buy porn, but you couldn’t buy UFC. Not only did we get it back on pay-per-view, we got it on free TV. We did the deal with Spike, we bought our way onto Spike. We got on Fox. We got on ESPN. People said we’d never get through COVID. We ran through COVID.
There is a great quote by Michael Bloomberg that I love. It goes, “Being an entrepreneur isn’t really about starting a business. It’s a way of looking at the world: seeing opportunity where others see obstacles, taking risks when others take refuge.” It’s an incredible quote. That’s the way I look at everything. Me and my team, we don’t say no. There is always a way to figure it out.
SI: In some ways, you’ve become the house. You always win. That brings me to the situation with Francis Ngannou. To me, it’s reminiscent of the Russians losing to the Americans in the 1980 Olympics. They were so unaccustomed with defeat that there were a few curious looks on their faces when they watched their American counterparts celebrate beating them. The Russians, it should also be mentioned, went on to win the gold in the next three Olympics games. In the sense that you did not sign him to a new contract, does the departure of Francis Ngannou from the UFC motivate you in other ways? Did his exit surprise you?
DW: Listen, that departure could not have been more mutual. It could not have been more mutual. I don’t want to go out and publicly bad-mouth Francis. The PFL guys have always been professional. I’ve never had any beef with them. They’ve never bad-mouthed us. I wish them all the luck in the world. And his departure couldn’t have been more mutual. I’m happy Francis is with PFL. I would have been happy wherever he went. I wish them all luck.
I didn’t want to be in the Francis business anymore. I wasn’t interested in it. I have a lot of respect for my matchmakers. Two of my guys really wanted to keep Francis. I did not. The whole thing with Francis is mutual. I’m happy for him. And I don’t look at that as an ‘L.’ I look at that as a ‘W.’
SI: Why should people invest their time in Power Slap, despite so many others telling them this project isn’t worth their time?
DW: There are plenty of people who like this show. I can go through the social media numbers, I’ve been screaming them from the rooftops. It’s great for bars. And since the Lakers lost, there is no NBA game tonight. It’s perfect for sports bars. Casinos in Vegas have it.
It’s live and free on Rumble. A lot of people like it, and the live event is incredibly exciting. This time, we’re opening the show with the super heavyweights. One guy is almost 500 pounds, the other guy is 400 pounds. We brought in two world Strongman competitors, too. There will be 1,600 pounds on the stage. Who the f--- doesn’t want to watch that?
SI: You’ve attached your name to this, and you are attempting to build a sport that countless people tell you is destined to fail.
DW: It’s my favorite thing. I haven’t been like this in 15 years. I love every minute of this. You know who else is excited? Lorenzo Fertitta and Craig Piligian, the two guys who invested $10 million into this. All these other combat sport leagues are losing s---loads of money. S---loads of money. Their investors are waiting to get paid. My investors aren’t. Because I f---ing deliver.
SI: How confident are you that we will see Jon Jones and Conor McGregor compete in 2023?
DW: I’m a fight fan, too. I want these fights to happen. If Tyson Fury wants to fight Jon Jones in the UFC, we’ll get a deal done. We can absolutely make that happen. But it ain’t going to be a boxing match, we’ll do it in the UFC. I would do that fight. Whether it’s Stipe [Miocic] or Tyson, getting Jon’s next fight and a date for Conor, I’m on it.
SI: There are so many captivating fights on the horizon. One that stands out is on that loaded Salt Lake City card in July, the BMF bout pitting Dustin Poirier against Justin Gaethje. The last time this ceremonial belt was on the line, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson presented it. Who will do the honors this time? Could it be a fight legend like Randy Couture, or someone like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Mike Tyson?
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
