COVID-19 was a difficult time for not only the UFC but for the whole world. CEO Dana White had been ostracized by the media for continuing operations at a critical time for the whole population, which didn’t faze him. The 55-year-old recently opened up on what went on during the pandemic era, while also sharing his experience of being part of the “sports task force” set up by then-president, Donald Trump.

Donald Trump wasn’t having it when there were suggestions about stopping all kinds of sporting events due to the pandemic. Dana White revealed that the president-elect was hellbent on keeping things moving, which prompted him to set up a 200-person advisory group. The group comprised chief sporting executives, along with executives from all the other sectors.

“Well, he was very bullish on getting sports going again. He made me part of the sports task force,” White told Noah Kara. “We used to have these calls and all the leaders from all sports were on these calls and we’re trying to figure out to get back.” So, did these calls help in making new strategies to keep sports going? Well, by what the UFC CEO had to say, nobody really wanted to take any risks, but that wasn’t how Dana White operated.

“When I would be on these calls, there was a lot of bulls*t from the other organizations on the calls, and I just sat back and listened, and I was like, ‘Yeah, none of these people want to get going,'” Dana White added. “It’s like the Sphere. When I went to watch U2 at the Sphere, I started looking around. I’m like, ‘No, I’m gonna f***ing do it.'”

Unlike the rest of the sporting executives, Dana White didn’t want to put a halt to all his UFC operations. So what did he do differently from other sports entities? He did what nobody thought he could, and made UFC the first organization to resume operation during the pandemic.

UFC CEO led the charge by being the first to resume sporting operations

UFC 249 gave us a banger main event, where Justin Gaethje defeated Tony Ferguson to win the interim light title and become the first two athletes during the pandemic era to engage in professional competition. Of course, it was due to Dana White, who, despite receiving heavy criticism, set up the PPV in the United States. One of the biggest critics of the 55-year-old was top boxing promoter Bob Arum, who deemed White’s decision to get the UFC going as “cowboy behavior.”

“I just hope that they’re not endangering the safety of anyone. But this kind of cowboy behavior doesn’t do anybody any good.”, Bob Arum told ‘BoxingScene’ a few days before UFC 249. “We’re only gonna do this if it’s safe for the fighters and everyone involved, and if it’s approved by the medical authorities. We’re not gonna be cowboys, like Dana White. I don’t wanna get politics involved, but I have really very little respect for Dana and what he’s doing”. But we all know, ‘Uncle Dana’ isn’t one to back down from issuing a response to such remarks.

The UFC head honcho would go on a profanity-laced rant on Bob Arum while making some bold claims about the veteran boxing promoter. “Listen, I think by now everybody realizes that Bob Arum is a d—head. This guy has been talking sh-t about the UFC and me for 20 years. He’s f—king bankrupt, this guy. He’s bankrupt. Of course, you don’t want to put fights on. You can’t afford to put fights on, you f—king j–koff,” Dana White stated on the UFC Unfiltered podcast.

After holding one more PPV, UFC 250, in the United States, Dana White decided to shift the UFC to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi inside a controlled bubble named ‘Fight Island’, which earned him boatloads of praise. That was only possible due to Donald Trump’s drive to keep things going and that support for Dana White translated into the UFC CEO endorsing Trump during the recent elections. However, that seems to be a done deal for the 55-year-old.

Dana White wants nothing to do with politics anymore

Dana White stepped up for Donald Trump twice in two election campaigns, in 2020 and 2024. However, he doesn’t want people to get any wrong idea about his relationship with the president-elect, prompting him to announce that he’s going to enter the political space ever again after the recent UFC 309 pay-per-view. “I’m never f—ing doing this again,” White told ‘The New Yorker’. “I want nothing to do with this sh-t. It’s gross. It’s disgusting. I want nothing to do with politics.”

It seems like the right idea for Dana White, who never really had any intent on making a jump to politics. The UFC is bigger than ever, becoming a multi-billion-dollar organization, and is one of the fastest-rising combat sports avenues in the whole world. So it could be beneficial for the 55-year-old to keep doing what he’s good at – being the biggest promoter in mixed martial arts.

What do you have to say about Dana White’s revelations regarding the “task force” experience under President-elect, Donald Trump? Drop your comments below.