53-Year-Old Dana White Drops “Two Things” That He Will Do Before UFC Retirement

UFC 286 was a very interesting event. On one hand, Leon Edwards clinched the trilogy fight between him and Kamaru Usman. He won via a judge’s decision. Justin Gaethje defeated Rafael Fiziev in the lightweight division, Marvin Vettori secured a victory as well. All these interesting results transpired at the event but Dana White wasn’t one to let off on any surprises. In the post-fight press conference, media personnel asked Dana White questions about his plans for Africa. The UFC president responded with two things he wanted to do before retiring.

The UFC has found some exceptional talents from Africa. Kamaru Usman, Francis Ngannou, and Israel Adesanya have all been the champions in their respective divisions. While Usman and Adesanya have Nigerian roots, Francis Ngannou hails from Cameroon. Thus, it’s evident that there is no lack of fighting talent in Africa and Dana White appears to know it well.

Dana White to fulfill two goals before he retires

Dana White has been on a mission for the past three decades. He has brought MMA and the UFC to the forefront after years of struggling to gain acceptance from the mainstream. Yet, it appears now that Dana White is thinking about his retirement. He, however, said there were two things he had to do before he retires.

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Talking to the media after UFC 286, Dana White was asked questions about his plans for Africa, given the fact that there was no African Champion in the UFC at this point. In response, Dana White said, “No listen, it’s great if we have African champions but that’s not the reason we would get here anyway. It will happen before I retire. Two things will happen before I retire. We will do at least one fight in Africa and there will be a PI in Africa before I am done here. These are signs of hope for African fighters who hope to perform at the highest level and make a career in MMA.

The fighting promoter has consistently highlighted the need to address this pressing issue.

Taking UFC to Africa has been important for Dana White

The UFC president has not talked about taking the UFC to Africa for the first time. In November last year, Dana White emphasized the fact that he wants to take the UFC to Africa. He also mentioned tentative details. He was targeting Nigeria as the country that will host the UFC.

Dana White was asked if the lack of large sports facilities will be a challenge for him. To which he had responded by saying “At the end of the day, we are pretty crafty” and had mentioned possibilities of using a soccer stadium for UFC. He had also talked about having a UFC Performance Institute in Africa. What do you make of White’s comments? Do you want to see the UFC make the trip to Africa? Let us know.

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