Dana White and Vince McMahon have had an interesting relationship throughout the years.
The frontmen of their companies have never been direct competitors within the same sporting parallels, as White runs mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), as the current CEO, while McMahon is Executive Chairman of professional wrestling powerhouse, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). There has been minor crossover during their time, however, most notably with Heavyweight superstar and former champion, Brock Lesnar.
Luckily for White, he and McMahon are no longer rivals in any capacity after UFC’s parent company, Endeavor, brought WWE under its umbrella, saving him some headaches.
“My history with Vince isn’t a good one,” White told Sports Illustrated. “He tried to f—k me so many times for no reason whatsoever except just to f—k me. But that’s in the past. Now that Vince and I are allies, no one’s been a better partner than Vince.”
McMahon has notoriously been one of the best businessmen on the planet for his arguably merciful approaches to certain situations in the professional wrestling world. Not always have his decisions been in the best of taste, unfortunately. Earlier this year (January 2023) several accusations surfaced, alleging McMahon of using millions of dollars of WWE funds to silence multiple women who claimed infidelity and sexual misconduct.
A leave of absence from WWE briefly followed for McMahon before his eventual return in a behind-the-scenes capacity. For White, he can’t help but sing the WWE head’s praises now that they’re on the same team.
“Since day one of the deal, it’s like I’m dealing with a different guy,” White said. “It goes to show that when you oppose him, or he thinks you are opposing him, the guy comes after you blindly. Once you are aligned, Vince is an incredible partner.
“We’ve probably spoken on the phone 20 times since the deal,” he concluded. “It’s all added value, conversation with Vince doing work and raising the bar for both companies.”