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Dana White | |
|---|---|
.jpg) White in 2025 | |
| Born | Dana Frederick White Jr. (1969-07-28)July 28, 1969 (age 56) Manchester, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Education | Quincy College (attended) University of Massachusetts, Boston (attended) |
| Known for | President and CEO ofUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC) |
| Spouse | [1] |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | ufc |
Dana Frederick White Jr.[2] (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who is the CEO and president of theUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a globalmixed martial arts organization.[3] In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at$500 million.[4] Outside of the UFC, he is the owner ofPower Slap, aslap fightingpromotion he founded in 2022.Meta Platforms elected White to its board of directors in 2025.
White was born inManchester, Connecticut, to June and Dana White Sr.[5] on July 28, 1969.[6] He is anIrish American.[7] White spent many of his early years residing inWare, Massachusetts.[8]
White and his sister, Kelly, were raised by their mother and her family for the majority of their childhoods.[9] White's mother was a nurse, and the family moved toLas Vegas when White was in third grade, as Vegas offered higher wages for nurses.[10] White attendedBishop Gorman High School, where he first metLorenzo Fertitta, although they did not become close friends until years later. White said he disliked school and "got kicked out of Gorman twice".[11] Despite living in Nevada, the Whites returned to the East Coast in the summers, to spend time with White's grandparents inLevant, Maine, a small town nearBangor. White spent his senior year of high school in Maine.[10]
After graduating fromHermon High School in 1987,[12] White started college twice, once atQuincy College and once atUMass Boston, but dropped out during his first semester each time.[13] During this time, he had various jobs, such as layingasphalt, working as abouncer at an Irish bar, and being abellhop at theBoston Harbor Hotel. White had begunboxing at age 17, and befriended formerGolden Gloves champion Peter Welch. Through this relationship, White decided he wanted to enter the fight business, and he started a boxing gym in Boston with Welch. White initially intended to become a professional boxer himself, but was put off the idea after seeing apunch drunk boxer and worrying that he would suffer the sameneurodegeneration.[14] White then worked as aboxercise coach.[15]
White has stated he left Boston to return to Las Vegas in the early 1990s after being threatened by mobsterWhitey Bulger and his associateKevin Weeks. "He basically said, 'You owe us money.' It was like$2,500, which was like$25,000 to me back then, and I didn't pay him. This went on for a while and one day I was at my place and I got a call and they said, 'You owe us the money tomorrow by 1 o'clock.' I literally hung up the phone, picked up the phone and calledDelta and bought a ticket to Vegas."[16]
In Las Vegas, White continued running boxercise gyms and also began trainingjiu-jitsu under the tutelage of John Lewis (a competitor inUFC 22 andUFC 28), alongside Lorenzo Fertitta and his older brotherFrank Fertitta III.[17][18] White had reconnected with the Fertitta brothers after meeting Lorenzo at a mutual friend's wedding; they had not spoken to each other in 10 years prior to this encounter.[19] It was in Lewis' practices where White metmixed martial artistsTito Ortiz andChuck Liddell and ultimately became their manager.[20][18]
While working as a manager for Ortiz and Liddell, White metBob Meyrowitz, the owner of Semaphore Entertainment Group, the then-parent company of theUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC). When White learned that Meyrowitz was looking to sell the UFC, he contacted his friendLorenzo Fertitta (an executive and co-founder ofStation Casinos, and former commissioner of theNevada Athletic Commission), to ask if he would be interested in acquiring the company. In January 2001, Lorenzo and his older brotherFrank acquired the UFC for$2 million (equivalent to $3.6 million in 2024); it subsequently became a subsidiary ofZuffa. White was installed as the company's president.[21] He was also granted a stake in the company as afinder's fee and assweat equity.[22]
White said that when he and the Fertittas acquired the UFC, all they received was the brand name "UFC" and an oldoctagon. The previous owners hadstripped the company's assets to avoid bankruptcy, so much so that the UFC.com website had been sold to a company named "User Friendly Computers".[23] The first UFC cards under White's leadership,UFC 30 andUFC 31, were held in theTrump Taj Mahal, which led to the development of White's long-term friendship withDonald Trump.[24][25][26] White re-hiredJoe Rogan, who had previously conducted backstage interviews at UFC events;[27] Rogan made his debut as acolor commentator atUFC 37.5 in June 2002.[28]
The UFC did not immediately have success after the Zuffa takeover, and by 2004 the Fertittas had invested over$40 million (equivalent to $67 million in 2024) into the company without attaining significant growth or reaching profitability.[29] White, alongside the Fertittas and television producerCraig Piligian, developed the idea of an MMA-based reality series,The Ultimate Fighter, as an attempt to create interest in the sport. The company self-funded the show as television networks refused to pay for the cost of production.The Ultimate Fighter, particularly thefinale fight betweenStephan Bonnar andForrest Griffin, is credited for having "saved the UFC".[29] Under White's leadership the UFC subsequently developed into a highly successful business; in 2006,UFC 66 headlined byChuck Liddell andTito Ortiz generated over 1,000,000pay-per-view buys, and by 2008 the company was valued byForbes at$1.1 billion.[30]
In 2010, Flash Entertainment, a subsidiary of theAbu Dhabi Government, bought a 10% stake in Zuffa for a reported$150–175 million, leaving White with a 9% stake in the company and the Fertittas with 40.5% each.[31][32] In a 2011 street interview withTMZ Sports, White responded "never ever" to the question: "When will we see women in the UFC?"[33] He later reversed this stance and in February 2013 the UFC held its first women's bout, featuringRonda Rousey andLiz Carmouche.[34] Rousey subsequently became one of the UFC's two main marquee stars in the mid-2010s, alongsideConor McGregor. The pair accounted for 4.6 million pay-per-view buys in 2015, 61% of the company's total buyrate that year,[35] as the UFC's gross revenue reached$600 million in 2015.[36]
In July 2016, Zuffa was sold to a consortium of investors led byWME-IMG for$4.025 billion. White owned 9% of the company at the time of the sale.[37] White continued in his role as president,[38] and was given a stake in the new business.[36] In March 2019, White signed a new, seven-year contract to remain president of the UFC, as the UFC signed a deal withESPN.[39][40] In April 2023, Endeavor (renamed from WME-IMG) announced a deal that would seeprofessional wrestling companyWWEmerge with UFC to form a new public company,TKO Group Holdings.[41] White was subsequently given the title of chief executive officer of the UFC.[42][43]
In August 2025, White stated the UFC had reached a seven-year, $7.7-billion broadcast deal withParamount andCBS. Set to begin in 2026 when the ESPN contract expires, White said the deal would mean "[f]or the first time ever, fans in the US will have access to all UFC content without a Pay-Per-View model."[44][45]
White entered the boxing scene by co-promotingFloyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor due to McGregor being contracted to the UFC. In October 2017, White said atFreddie Roach's Wild Card West boxing club that he was "getting into boxing, 100 percent".[46] In 2019 White said that he wanted to incorporate boxing into the company portfolio of the UFC.[47] He later backpedaled on these plans, stating in 2022 that boxing promotion is "a broken business that is an absolute nightmare to try to fix".[48] In 2024, White promoted a card featuring Irish boxerCallum Walsh which was streamed on UFC Fight Pass. He subsequently re-announced his intention to enter boxing promotion, and said he was "coming in guns blazing" in 2025.[49]
In March 2025, White announced a partnership withTurki Al-Sheikh, head of Saudi Arabia'sGeneral Entertainment Authority, to create a new boxing league namedZuffa Boxing, modeled after the UFC. The UFC's parent companyTKO Group Holdings and the Saudi entertainment conglomerateSela were announced as backers of the venture. White was named as executive leader of the league.[50][51]
In 2017, White began hostingDana White's Contender Series. Available initially throughUFC Fight Pass, the promotion's digital streaming service, and licensed separately from the UFC brand, the show allows burgeoning fighters to compete for a contract in the UFC.[52]
White was an executive producer ofThe Ultimate Surfer, a surfing competition television series styled afterThe Ultimate Fighter. It was created byKelly Slater, a professional surfer and long-time friend of White.[53] The show premiered onABC in August 2021, and was canceled after one season due to low ratings.[54][55]
In 2022, White became a co-owner of Thrill One Sports & Entertainment, which owns the properties ofNitro Circus,Nitrocross, andStreet League Skateboarding.[56]
White alongside the Fertittas co-foundedPower Slap, a slap fighting competition that debuted in January 2023 and was previously televised onTBS.[57] After TBS did not renew its deal with Power Slap, the competition began to be aired on the digital streaming platformRumble.[58]
In January 2025,Meta Platforms announced that White had been elected to its board of directors.[59]
In May 2025, White partnered with 1st Phorm andAnheuser-Busch to found Phorm Energy, a zero-sugar energy drink venture.[60]
White met his wife Anne (née Stella) when they were in the eighth grade, and they married in 1996.[61] They have two sons and one daughter. White bought a mansion in Pine Island Court, Las Vegas, in 2006 fromFrank Fertitta III for$1.95 million. White bought three other mansions in the same area from October 2016 to June 2017 for a combined total of around$6.2 million. Demolition permits were issued for the houses, presumably with the intent of creating a mega-mansion for White and his family.[62]
White was raised as aCatholic and was analtar boy when he was a child, but said in 2008 that he is anatheist.[63][64] White stated in 2023: "I don’t believe in much, but I believe in karma for some reason. I never really was guided by religion in any way shape or form as I got into my 20s."[64]
In 2011, White's mother, June, released the bookDana White, King of MMA: An Unauthorized Biography. June claimed in the book that, since his success with the UFC, Dana had "turned his back on his family and friends who were there for him when he needed help and support".[65]
In May 2012, White revealed that he had been diagnosed withMénière's disease, an inner ear disorder.[66] He said, "It's likevertigo but on steroids."[67] White said that the disease was brought on because of a large fight he was involved in during his youth.[68] TheUFC on Fuel TV 3: Korean Zombie vs. Poirier event in May 2012 was the first UFC card he had missed in 11 years with White staying home, adhering to medical advice.[69]
White underwentOrthokine treatment for Ménière's disease in 2013, which he says has greatly reduced his symptoms.[69]
In 2022, White stated he had undergone medical testing and was diagnosed with extremely hightriglyceride levels and other irregularities. He was given 10.4 years left to live if he did not rectify the problems. White said that since then he has adhered to aketo diet, which he says has remedied hissleep apnea and alleviated his leg pain.[70][71] The regimen was prescribed by biologist Gary Brecka, whom White credited for the improvement in his health.[72][73]
White spoke at the2016 Republican National Convention, where he endorsedRepublican nomineeDonald Trump.[74] White said that Trump helped the UFC at its beginnings, allowing the UFC to host its first event under Zuffa ownership (UFC 30) at theTrump Taj Mahal when other venues refused to host the UFC.[75] White said, "No arenas wanted us. This guy reached out, and he's always been a friend to me."[76]
White reiterated his support for Trump for the 2020 election and spoke at the podium at a Trump reelection rally in Colorado.[77] In February 2020, White donated$1 million toAmerica First Action, a superpolitical action committee that supportedTrump's re-election bid.[78] In April 2020, White joined a group of industry leaders to help the United States rebuild its economy hit by the coronavirus pandemic.[79] White again endorsed Trump in the 2024 election and introduced him at the2024 Republican National Convention.[80]
White is a fan of theBeastie Boys,Red Hot Chili Peppers andRage Against the Machine.[81][82] Speaking on the passing ofAdam Yauch, White said: "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys."[83] White also has a guitar hand-signed by all three members of the Beastie Boys in his office.[84][85]
White has been a fan of theNew England Patriots since childhood, and has stated that he is an admirer of the former Patriots quarterbackTom Brady.[86] White said in a 2022 interview alongsideRob Gronkowski that he had worked to negotiate a deal which would have brought Brady and Gronkowski to theLas Vegas Raiders in 2020, butJon Gruden nixed the deal and the duo instead signed with theTampa Bay Buccaneers.[87]
White began trainingBrazilian jiu-jitsu in 1998, and stated it had a positive impact on him and made him realize the importance of having ground skills in fighting situations.[88]
In a season 15 episode ofHistory Channel'sPawn Stars (originally airing on February 5, 2018), White purchased around$60,000 worth ofkatana swords, including one ofRick Harrison's 17th-century Japanese katanas.[89]
White is a recreational gambler.[90] He plays high-stakesblackjack, and has been limited from playing at multiple casinos in Las Vegas. He states he plays$75,000 a hand, and if he wins the first couple of hands, he takes the$150,000 profit and leaves.[91] White also gambles on sports. He stated in 2021 that the biggest sports bet he had placed was in 2007, when he wagered$1 million onJermain Taylor to beatKelly Pavlik. Taylor lost the bout by technical knockout, and White said about the experience, "I was in Cabo, relaxing having fun. That ruined my fun. Ruined my whole trip."[92] White stated in 2024 that he plays high-stakesbaccarat, and wagers up to$350,000 per hand atCaesars Palace. He claims to have lost$8 million in one night, and from January to March 2024 to have won$26 million at Caesars Palace. White stated a "goal in life before I die" is for a casino to allow him to play$1 million per hand.[93]
During a 2022 New Year's Eve party at a nightclub inCabo San Lucas, Mexico, White and his wife Anne were filmed arguing and then getting into a physical altercation with each other. Anne slapped White and White responded by slapping her in return. They both apologized for their actions, and said they had consumed too much alcohol that night.[94][95] The UFC did not respond or address White's actions after the incident. The California Legislative Women's Caucus sent a letter toAri Emanuel, CEO ofEndeavor, the company that owns the UFC, requesting White be removed from his role in the UFC.[96][97][98]
In 2010, White donated$50,000 for a liver transplant to Tuptim Jadnooleum, the daughter of "Kru Nai" Rattanachai, one of the instructors for Tiger Muay Thai and MMA in Phuket, Thailand.[99] In 2011, White donated$100,000 to his former high school to fund renovations to their athletic facilities.[5] In 2017, White donated$1 million to the victims of theLas Vegas shooting.[100] In 2019, afterUFC 242,Khabib Nurmagomedov raised$100,000 forDustin Poirier's charity, The Good Fight Foundation, White followed and also donated$100,000 to Poirier's charity foundation.[101][102] In 2024, White donated$50,000 towards the support of victims affected by theattempted assassination of former president Donald J. Trump during a rally held on July 13 inButler, Pennsylvania.[103]
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