Dana White speaks his mind and says what he wants, when he wants. He’s without a doubt one of the most vocal of league owners/commissioners.
I, like many MMA fans, enjoy White’s openness with his fanbase. I like the feeling of knowing what exactly is going on behind the scenes and how things are going within the UFC.
Although I’m glad Mr. White is in touch with his fanbase, I have to say it’s time for him to step aside now that the UFC will be going mainstream on Fox.
It’s not that I want White to sit idly by without being his usual outspoken self, but the post-fight analysis booth is not the time nor the place for his fan side to come out.
When presented a question that was intended to build up the new champion, Junior dos Santos, White instead chose to voice his opinion on Cain Velasquez.
Instead of building up his new champion, White chose to voice his opinion on national television. Does Roger Goodell completely discredit the Super Bowl loser? No, he focuses on congratulating the winner.
If White’s post-fight analysis wasn’t bad enough, he outdid himself when he responded to the critics about the Ben Henderson vs. Clay Guida match not being televised.
“For anybody to bitch about this fight and they didn’t get to see that fight, shut up. You should have bought tickets then if you wanted to see all the fights, and you don’t like to watch it on Facebook. Seriously, shut up,” White said with conviction.”
There are two problems with his response:
The first is fans shouldn’t have to go on Facebook to watch a No. 1 contender match. Putting preliminary bouts that normally wouldn’t receive air time on Facebook is one thing, but a title eliminator match belongs on TV.
The other problem is White telling his critics to “shut up.” Goodell, Bud Selig and David Stern aren’t telling their fans to shut up.
If White really wants to make the UFC and MMA go mainstream and be up there with “The Big Three” main leagues, he needs to understand what mainstream fans want.
He always prides himself on giving fans what they want to see, and now he needs to give fans the league commissioner they want too.
The mainstream fans want to focus on the individual players. They don’t care about the man who’s in charge, except to stay out of the product.
We love how White is open to talk with us as fans but national television is not where he should be voicing his opinion. The UFC is about the fighters and that’s what he should spend his on-air time talking about.
White is always quick to remind us that the UFC is a business and if a fighter can’t cut it then they’re released. He needs to heed his own words and be “just business” when in front of a national television audience.
Dana White is not supposed to be the star of a UFC event, the fighters are.
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