Gina Carano has opened up about how Dana White apologized to her after negotiations for a proposed fight against Ronda Rousey collapsed in 2015. ‘Conviction’ and Rousey are set to face each other on Saturday, May 16, 2026, at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Los Angeles, California. Ahead of the mega fight on Netflix, Carano appeared in the Jaxxon Podcast, where she revealed White’s apology to her.

“Dana actually was very cool with me,” Carano said in the podcast. “We had a moment, a long time ago, where Ronda was supposed to fight [me]. And I was like, ‘I’m not getting back into the fight world. Like it’s an ugly scene.’ So I walked away from it. 

Carano stepped away from MMA after her loss to Cris Cyborg in 2009 and transitioned to Hollywood. By 2015, she had built significant mainstream recognition, prompting White to pursue her return for a blockbuster bout against Ronda Rousey, who was then one of the UFC’s biggest stars. Carano revealed that White approached her at a hotel in Hollywood to pitch the fight, reportedly offering $1 million. 

She agreed but requested six months to train and assemble her team before any public announcement. However, Dana White publicly disclosed plans to sign her, prompting Carano to remind him that it wasn’t part of their agreement. A few days later, she received a text from White that read, “This b***h is effing us around.” When Carano highlighted that he may have sent the message to the wrong person, White replied, “I don’t think I did.” 

Communication between the two broke down, and the fight never materialized. 

“But then Dana came up to me at an event, and he actually knelt down, and he was like, ‘I’m sorry about that,’” Carano recollected during the Jaxxon podcast. “… I was sitting at a table with my family. His bald head [was next to me]. It was very nice… I mean, he could apologize, and he did apologize. And I was like, that was really cool. 

Carano’s relationship with Dana White only got better in the following years. The 43-year-old was fired from her role as Cara Dune in the Disney+ Star Wars series ‘The Mandalorian’ in February 2021 because of a controversial tweet she wrote on X. She was also dropped by her talent agency (UTA) around the same time. During the podcast, Gina Carano revealed Dana White was among the few to reach out to her at the time. 

“And then years later when… I got fired,” Carano continued. “He was one of the first text messages that said, ‘Hey, it’s going to be okay.’ And I was like… out of all the people that didn’t text me, Dana White’s the one [who texted me] and encouraged me. So, he’s cool in my book.”

Since the fight’s announcement earlier this year, Dana White has reacted to the bout, sharing an update about his relationship with Carano. 

Ronda Rousey reveals she initially approached Dana White for the Gina Carano fight

After the fight was announced, Dana White reacted to the bout during UFC Houston in February. White claimed he was in talks with Ronda Rousey for the fight to be made in the UFC, but it didn’t happen.

“Her and I have been talking about this since last year,” White said. “It just didn’t work out. But I’m happy for her.

He also spoke about his relationship with Gina Carano, which was once on the ropes. 

“Listen, me and Gina are in a really good place, we weren’t at one point,” he added. “I’m happy for both of them.”

After White’s statement, Ronda Rousey revealed why a fight at UFC failed to materialize. The reason was simple—UFC’s $7.7 billion deal with Paramount. Thanks to the broadcast deal, the UFC moved away from the pay-per-view model, which meant Rousey wasn’t about to get the sort of money she would have received had there been PPV.

“It no longer made sense for me to go over there because they didn’t want to pay us the money we deserve,” Rousey said. “Because then from the rest of the time, the deal, they’re going to have to pay everybody else more. So then I decided to look elsewhere.”

It’s also worth noting that Netflix had approached UFC for a broadcast deal, but they were only interested in the numbered cards and didn’t want the Fight Night events. But UFC ultimately chose to work with Paramount. 

Regardless, it appears both Dana White and Gina Carano are in a much better place in their relationship. But what did you think of White’s text to Carano?