Dana White is arguably the biggest promoter in the world of mixed martial arts. Hailing from Boston, White started his career as a boxercise coach and then purchased the UFC for $2 million in 2001. He, along with the Fertitta brothers (Lorenzo Fertitta and Frank Fertitta) took the valuation to $4 billion before selling the promotion in 2016.
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However, his life wasn’t always about smooth sailing. While living in Boston, Whitey Bulger and his crew threatened him. Bulger was an organized crime boss. According to White, Bulger’s crew thought he owed them money, but that wasn’t the case. He said, “It was Whitey Bulger’s crew yeah. Listen, Boston is a completely different city now than it was back in the ’80s. They felt that I owed them money, I did not.”
White, after the threats, left Boston and shifted to Las Vegas. In Las Vegas, White continued running boxercise business. There, he also met Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell and became their manager.
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Dana White’s brainchild saved the UFC
Dana White and his partners were struggling to keep UFC afloat after its purchase back in 2001. They kept investing the money, but it kept sinking. By 2004, they had invested closer to $40 million into the UFC. However, the growth wasn’t there.
Dana White, in 2005, came up with the idea of The Ultimate Fighter. With the last bit of investment, they made the final push. The Ultimate Fighter 1 finale featured Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar put on a show for the fans. Forrest Griffin ended up winning the fight, but Bonnar impressed everyone with his performance and also earned a contract.
The promotion started making a profit after the first season, and since then hasn’t looked back. The Ultimate Fighter started positively affecting their PPV buys. The UFC also acquired some very popular fighters like Brock Lesnar, a big name in the WWE back then, switching to MMA. Fighters like Anderson Silva and Georges St-Pierre became popular amongst fans, and the tide changed.
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