Dana White on retiring from UFC: UFC will be very different when I’m gone

One of the key people credited for UFC’s success is longtime president Dana White. UFC president has no immediate plans to leave the sport, but he knows it will usher in a new era, when he leaves.

While many argue that Daniel Cormier would be a good replacement for White, UFC CFO Hunter Campbell has been running the show ever since Endeavor took over and is deserving of many feats including salvaging UFC 279 in a one of a kind reshuffle.

UFC was founded in 1993 but could not get accepted or recognized. MMA as a sport was frowned upon for a number of years.

Dana White took on the role of the president in 2001. White took the company to newer heights daily and made it a billion-dollar company. For more than two decades in the same company, working at a higher post was not an easy task for White. People wonder how long he would take this responsibility and what the company’s future will be once Dana White retired. White explained his thoughts on this week’s post-DWCS press conference.

He said,

“If and when I ever leave, I mean, the UFC like I said last night to Tucker, got a great team in place, Obviously, hopefully, I’ve built a business that will last many, many years after I’m dead. The UFC will be very different when I’m gone, it’ll be different. It won’t go away.”

Dana White has no plan to leave UFC in the near future. When asked about his future with the company, White replied,

“No. Nope, I’m here, unfortunately for you guys, I’m here to stay.”

In May, White was invited to The Pivot Podcast where he was asked about his inner feelings when Fertittas decided to sell the company in 2016. White said,

“It was actually a really bad time for me, I didn’t want to do it.”

Dana White further explained his reaction to Fertittas when they told him they were selling the company. He stated,

“The Fertittas were ready to get out and they had a sit down with me. They were basically like, ‘We have everybody in here going through with the deal.’ Everybody was in here kicking the tires looking to buy it. From ESPN to Turner to all these different funds and groups from all over the world. They sat me down and said, ‘We’re gonna sell this thing, and we’re ready to go, but nobody will take it unless you stay, so you have to do this.’

“I was kind of in a weird place because I had done this thing with them, these are my best friends, we’d done it together and I got a little f****d up,” White continued.

“I took off for a while, went up into a hotel room, and didn’t come out for a few days. I was a little f****d up over the whole thing. Then I snapped out of it and got my s**t together.”

In an interview with Asman in 2021, White expressed his desire to stay within the company forever. He said,

“I love what I do. This is what I love to do. So, I couldn’t imagine not doing it.”

Joe Rogan also recently revealed that he’s likely done with the company when they part ways with White – and he even has it as a clause of his contract.