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PHOENIX, AZ – JUNE 10: Dana White prepares for the face-offs while meeting with the press and the fans during the UFC 263 press conference on June 10, 2021, at Arizona Federal Theatre in Phoenix, AZ. (Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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PHOENIX, AZ – JUNE 10: Dana White prepares for the face-offs while meeting with the press and the fans during the UFC 263 press conference on June 10, 2021, at Arizona Federal Theatre in Phoenix, AZ. (Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The UFC, or the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has become the world’s biggest fight promotion in the 21st century. It has brewed stars like Conor McGregor, Ronda Rousey, and Jon Jones, among many others. The UFC President, Dana White, has turned himself into a multi-millionaire. But it was not always like this.
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Dana White‘s introduction to the world of MMA started around 2001. His mother, June White, mentioned in her book ‘Dana White, King of MMA: Dana White an unauthorized biography writer‘ that the UFC boss struggled for over four years. During White’s struggle, he lost a significant amount of money and his success was highly unlikely. But the UFC became a phenomenon after the introduction of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ reality show.
In January of 2005, the UFC premiered a new reality television show on Spike TV called "The Ultimate Fighter".
The Ultimate Fighter was a competition between upcoming fighters, that competed against each other to earn a six figure UFC contract. pic.twitter.com/1NfaykOAeN
— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) April 9, 2018
June White wrote, “The UFC exploded with the introduction of The Ultimate Fighter reality show on Spike television in 2005. Now, even in these tough economic times, Dana has had no problem selling out 44,000 seat arenas, and every year the company’s profits continue to climb.”
The income of Dana White – then and now
There is a vast difference between how much Dana White used to earn almost twenty years ago and how much he earns now. His mother mentioned that he had struck a deal that earned him $66 million dollars. It was nothing compared to his $10,000 dollar earnings back in 1993.
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LAS VEGAS, NV – JANUARY 20: UFC President Dana White interacts with the media during the UFC 197 on-sale press conference event inside MGM Grand Hotel & Casino on January 20, 2016, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
She also revealed how the famous promoter would keep getting calls for interviews with magazines like MSNBC, 60 Minutes, The Rolling Stone Magazine, Time Magazine, Men’s Fitness, and Playboy among many others. However, the fame didn’t get to him. He remained elusive and was the one to bring MMA to the mainstream.
Endeavor Group is not the parent company of the promotion. But White remains its President and one of the biggest names in association with it. The UFC has acquired a big space in sports viewership around the world, and it does not look like it will stop anytime soon. It also has several important competitors in the MMA business, which only adds to further competition and innovation in the business.
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Written by
Edited by
Rohini Kottu