UFC president, Dana White has hit out at a large influx of critics of his newly-backed television programe, Power Slap League, urging those who have a problem with the incoming competition should refrain from watching.
White, the long-time president of the UFC, hit the headlines earlier this month after he was involved in a physical altercation with his wife, Anne White at a nightclub on New Year’s Eve during a vacation in Mexico – slapping his partner in the face following a verbal argument.
Following the emergence of footage regarding the incident involving his wife, Power Slap League, which was scheduled to air on TBS, was pushed back on schedule by another week as White addressed his actions.
Managing to escape official punishment by the UFC, nor their parent owners, Endeavor, White claimed that the punishment of being labelled and criticized following his altercation with his wife would follow him for the rest of his career and his life.
“What should the repercussions be? You tell me,” Dana White said. “I take 30 days off? How does that hurt me? I told you guys when we were going through COVID, COVID could last 10 years. I could sit it out and – you know what I mean? What would be the problem? It’s much like COVID, actually. Me leaving hurts the company, hurts my employees, hurts the fighters.”
“It doesn’t hurt me,” Dana White explained. “I could have left in 2016. I don’t know. Do I need to reflect? No, I don’t need to reflect. The next morning when I woke up – you know what I mean? I’ve been against this. I’ve owned this. I’m telling you that I’m wrong.”
“But listen, we’ve had plenty of discussions internally, with Ari (Emanuel), ESPN,” Dana White continued. “Nobody’s happy. Nobody’s happy about this. Neither am I. But it happened, and I have to deal with it. And what is my punishment? Here’s my punishment: I’ve got to walk around for however long I live – is it 10.4 years, or is it another 25 years – and this is how I’m labeled now. My other punishment is that, I’m sure a lot of people, whether it be media, fighters, friends, acquaintances, who had respect for me, might not have respect for me now.”
Dana White has addressed critics of the Power Slap League
Promoting the upcoming Power Slap League, which has received mass criticism due to concerns for health and the potential of suffering brain injuries, White urged those who were worried or sceptical to not view the programe.
“We spend the money to make sure we have two healthy people in there, the proper medical attention during and after the fight,” Dana White said during a recent interview. “These are all the things we need to educate people on, just like we needed to educate people on mixed martial arts.”
“In Slap (Power Slap League), they take three to five slaps per event,” Dana White explained. “Fighters in boxing take three to 400 punches a fight. And guess what, you know what my answer to that is? If you don’t f*cking like it, don’t watch it. Nobody’s asking you to watch this. Oh, you’re disgusted by it? Watch ‘The Voice’. This is the best interview ever.”