The combat sports community has often argued that Dana White is the sole reason for the kind of success UFC witnesses today. White strived to build the promotion from scratch and ensured to convert it into a household name when he first took the role of President in 2001. Now in 2024, he has achieved that goal as evidenced by the merger of the Ultimate Fighting Championship with World Wrestling Entertainment under the banner of TKO Holdings. This led to an even higher boost in the UFC’s popularity.

However, there was a time in 2016 when White was a bit hesitant to sell the MMA promotion to the WME-IMG group. But did you know that White’s long-time friend and ex-POTUS Donald Trump previously believed that it was a fool’s errand? During his long-awaited appearance in episode #2219 of the Joe Rogan Experience, Trump pointed out that the UFC CEO was a man in a class all by himself. And the JRE host had no choice but to agree. But then came one of the biggest revelations from the former American President. 

Trump said, “He is the greatest guy. You know, I always say, everybody, nobody is indispensable, you know. Everybody can be replaced. Maybe you can’t be. You might not be. But Dana White truly, I don’t think, you know, the things he sold for $4 billion. I said, ‘What the hell! Who the hell is gonna pay $4 billion?’ And they made like a great deal! I mean, because of him. Take him out, I think it’s a whole different world…”

Joe Rogan also stood in support of Dana White. While he admired the UFC head honcho’s decisions, he made a quick remark about the MMA promotion’s current value. He said, “It’s been a lot more than that now!” After all, the UFC is now worth more than $12 billion.

But Trump wasn’t done. He went on to praise the UFC CEO for the kind of friend that he was to the ex-POTUS. He claimed that White was one of the few men who simply couldn’t be replaced. But when it came to the UFC’s sale for $4 billion, White wasn’t quite happy.

Dana White regretted making the $4 billion sale

Selling the promotion for $4 billion was nothing short of an achievement. Reflecting on the 8-year-old sale, the UFC head honcho expressed his regret during a conversation on TNT Sports. White said, “It was horrible; I hated the sale. I didn’t want to sell, but the Fertittas were ready to go. I think because I didn’t want it, I just didn’t think it was going to happen. So, I sort of dismissed it.” 

But then it came in like a wrecking ball! The UFC CEO went on, “It hit me like a ton of bricks when it actually went down. I was driving to the arena for the weigh-ins.” That was the time when he got a call from Lorenzo Fertitta. He continued, “And he said, ‘The deal is on. We sold.’ I just remember I was like I didn’t think it was real. He said, ‘When you get to the arena, you need to sign the papers.’ I was like, ‘Oh f**k!’” 

Nevertheless, Fertitta was pretty content with the sale. He claimed that it was an achievement that nobody thought would be possible. He then asked White to focus on making even better deals at Endeavour. And that’s what White did. Even today, he strives to take the UFC to the greatest heights ever.

What are your thoughts on the ex-POTUS’s verdict about the UFC head honcho? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.