Power Slap has faced a lot of criticism since its inception. However, despite those criticisms, the promotion owned by Dana White and a few other partners garnered millions of views in 2023 on one of its videos, overtaking Taylor Swift‘s most-viewed video on Instagram. The UFC CEO sent the pop and country music star a message on social media regarding this feat.
Taylor Swift is undoubtedly one of the biggest celebrities in the world. She has a cult following of her own, and people have seen her videos garner an insane amount of views for her songs on social media. However, this time, it was the Power Slap League that overtook her in that regard. Let’s have a closer look at that.
Dana White sent a message to Taylor Swift
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The UFC CEO recently took to Instagram and shared a report from award-winning journalist Kevin Iole regarding a Power Slap 5 matchup overtaking Taylor Swift’s reels in terms of views. The ‘Blank Space’ singer’s most viewed Instagram reel in 2023 gained 91.1 million views. However, she was outperformed by the October 23, 2023, Power Slap bout between Sheena Bathory and Christine Wolmarans. The clip of Bathory blowing a kiss to her opponent after eating a heavy hit on the face gained over 154 million views on Power Slap’s official Instagram page.
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Furthermore, Power Slap also defeated Taylor Swift on YouTube. Their biggest YouTube short garnered 435 million views compared to the pop singer’s largest video, which garnered 125 million views. These numbers are signs that Dana White is really witnessing his slap-fighting league grow, even after initially facing a lot of backlash. Moreover, a UFC referee recently mentioned that despite people calling Power Slap dangerous, they are developing safety measures to make it safe. Let’s see what the official has to say.
UFC referee claims Power Slap is a safer sport than boxing and MMA
During the 2023 World MMA Awards, UFC referee Mark Smith, who also officiates Power Slap bouts, dismissed statements that claimed that Dana White’s slap-fighting league was unsafe. He claimed that Power Slap was a much safer sport compared to boxing and MMA, where fighters take more hits than they do in Power Slap. Smith said, “It’s safe. So, a three-round fight or maybe a five-round fight versus an MMA fight or boxing match, where they’re taking a lot more potential damage to the head, etc, we’re gonna limit that.”
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The veteran referee also assured the officials in Power Slap work closely with the competitors. This is done in an attempt to note down their level of injuries and also prevent them from getting worse. “We’re also gonna be really close to the fighters to evaluate potential injuries and honestly to stop it before it even gets to that point,” Mark Smith added.
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It seems like Power Slap is gaining traction and an audience in the combat sports scene. Dana White has always maintained his stance that his new promotion is an exciting one, and the numbers, as per the latest reports, have shown that to be true. It remains to be seen how much more impact the slap-fighting league will make in the months and years to come.
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