If there’s one thing that could be said for certain about the UFC head honcho, Dana White, he is an ambitious and ruthless businessman. When White and the Fertittas took over the UFC in 2001, it was little more than a small promotion in a niche sport banned in many major jurisdictions such as New York. However, owing to his and his team’s business and marketing genius, MMA is a respectable, mainstream sport today.

His drive, single-minded focus, and motivation are the major reasons that the sport of MMA in general, and the UFC in particular has gone from being considered a brutal blood-sport, to one of the top four sports in America. And even though there is the perception that there is almost nothing Dana White likes more than money, a recent revelation from him indicates that the values and principles a brand stands for are paramount in deciding to partner with them.

On being asked by social media star Jesse James West on the latter’s show “What’s the most amount of money you’ve turned down from an advertiser because you didn’t align with them?” Dana White had a surprising answer. The Las Vegas resident claimed that he had turned down a “$125 million” deal with an undisclosed brand, which wanted to associate itself with the world’s largest, most popular MMA promotion in the world.

And while this may be surprising to many, given that one of the most important factors behind the UFC’s rise as one of the most popular global sports are the various partnerships with mainstream brands that the promotion secured over the years. The apparel deal with Reebok in 2014, for instance, while controversial, and financially disadvantageous for fighters, was trotted out by the UFC CEO as a major milestone in the sport’s history as one of the biggest sports brands, had associated with, and thus lent their credibility to the Las Vegas-based promotion.

And it makes sense that the UFC boss is very cognizant of the values and principles of a brand before deciding to partner with them. Any brand that appears at any of the UFC events is presumed to have the inferential endorsement from the promotion, and the wrong partnership could prove detrimental to its reputation.

While many were impressed with White’s conviction and integrity, most fans had a field day with the UFC CEO’s claim.

Fans react to Dana White claiming he turned down $125 million

Fans took to the comments section of the clip to take some hilarious shots at the Power Slap founder. One fan joked that it was he who had made the $125 million offer to the UFC boss: “Yeah unfortunately dana and I couldn’t agree on a deal so he refused my offer.” Another quipped it was probably the alleged secretive, global group that was part of many conspiracy theories as the ones who offered the nine-figure payday to the UFC boss: “Illuminati wanted to oil him up”

One fan found it strange that while he turned down the above-mentioned deal, he had no qualms about partnering with  ‘Prime,’ owned by the controversial social media stars Logan Paul and KSI, which has been criticized for its high sugar content by many: “he alligned with prime though”

Another fan jokingly claimed that White, who is a fervent Donald Trump supporter as well as the latter’s friend turned down the multi-million dollar deal from the Biden campaign: “Joe Biden Campaign Ad？😂😂”

Another took a shot at the UFC CEO’s scuffle with his wife a few years ago: “It was probably a couples therapy clinic.” One user referenced the viral meme about the UFC CEO and jested that: “It was me, i offered him 125 mill to oil him up on ig live 😔🛢”

Another fan asked the question on everyone’s mind, then proceeded to point out that while $125 million may be a huge amount for most people, White was in a different financial bracket, and thus in a position to turn down the check: “Who offered him that? And even tho this is life changing money for all of us, Dana is already a billionaire, he literally can afford to deny it”

All in all, the fan reactions are hilarious and surely the UFC CEO can take a joke, or even two! At least that’s what his recent Netflix appearance proved. What are your thoughts on Dana White’s revelation about refusing the $125 million deal? And any guesses which brand could it be? Share your thoughts in the comments below!