8 things you didn't know about UFC president Dana White
Dana White is the public face of the UFC and is just as synonymous with the promotion in the eyes of casual fans as Conor McGregor is. He has been at the helm of the promotion for years and was instrumental in elevating MMA from the status of an obscure niche sport to something globally recognized.
Due to the fame that came with his success, a lot is known about Dana White, whether it's about his feud with Tito Ortiz and the fact that the two of them almost took part in a boxing match, to him claiming that he'd rather watch flies procreate than watch a Ben Askren fight.
That, however, doesn't mean that everything about him is well-known. There is still much about the UFC president that escapes general public interest, but this list covers 8 things about him that probably aren't known.
#8. Dana White and his mother do not get along
The exact reason behind the estranged relationship that Dana White has with his mother June White is unknown, but the two do not get along. In fact, his mother wrote an unauthorized autobiography on him titled Dana White, King of MMA. In this autobiography and several interviews, she made several startling claims.
First, his mother described him as a cruel and vindictive person, before making more damning claims like him allegedly sleeping with the UFC's ring girls and even his own sister-in-law, which is especially troubling given that Dana White is married, with children.
#7. Dana White (sometimes) lives at the UFC headquarters in Las Vegas
Back in early July, Dana White was part of one of Complex's longest-running videos, where celebrities reveal the contents of their shoe closet. While going over his sneaker collection, White revealed that he actually spends significant time at the UFC headquarters in Las Vegas.
He saw to it that the promotion's Las Vegas HQ featured a gym for him to work out in, a kitchen for his food, his closet, and more. With all of the comforts he requires from home, he can spend days at the HQ tending to business instead of hurrying to and from home.
#6. Mobster Whitey Bulger ran him out of Boston
Long before he was the most successful promoter in MMA history, Dana White spent his time as a personal boxing instructor for businessmen, wealthy housewives, and the like in Boston. Unfortunately, for him, he drew the attention of notorious mobster James 'Whitey' Bulger, who led the Winter Hill Gang.
White was approached by Bulger's enforcers and told that he owed them a cut of his profits. However, he paid them no mind. Sometime later, he received a phone call warning him to make the payment within a certain time frame. White claims to have immediately purchased a ticket to Las Vegas, fleeing Boston.
#5. Dana White was a boxing instructor
As stated in the previous entry, the UFC president was once a boxing instructor. Initially, he worked with children and teenagers from different backgrounds under a charity program of some sorts, but found that he was making no money. This led to him changing his client base.
He began working as a boxing trainer for businessmen, housewives with money to spare, and more. This longtime experience with boxing is what led to his confidence in his chances against former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz in a boxing match.
#4. He used to manage Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell
Despite the enmity between Dana White and Tito Ortiz, the two were once close friends, with White even acting as 'The Huntington Beach Bad Boy's' manager. But it wasn't just Tito Ortiz that he managed. The UFC president also managed legedary 205-pound champion Chuck Liddell in the latter's pre-UFC career.
However, upon assuming presidency of the world's premier MMA promotion, a conflict of interest arose and White could no longer work as any fighter's managers, for his primary interest became the financial well-being of the promotion.
#3. He suffers from Meniere's Disease
As a well-muscled man who appears to work out quite often and is surrounded by world-class athletes, White is known to be in good shape for a man of his age, who is under constant exposure to extreme amounts of stress. However, what some fans might not know is that he suffers from a medical condition.
Meniere's Disease is an inner ear disease with symptoms similar to vertigo but with heightened severity. He claims that he first contracted the disease after a prominent fight during his younger ears.
#2. He hates Steve Mazzagatti
There are countless people with whom Dana White does not get along. The UFC president has a poor relationship with renowned MMA journalist Ariel Helwani, for example, and who could forget the deep level hatred he feels for the likes of Bob Arum and Mario Yamasaki due to his controversial stoppages.
But there's another referee who has drawn his ire, and that is Steve Mazzagatti, whose skills the UFC president has disparaged time and again, claiming that he has no ability to control a fight and that he never knows when and how to intervene when fighters are either fouling or being inactive.
#1. Dana White used to be a bellboy
Dana White has had an eventful life, but according to him, his professional life as someone looking for work began at age 19, when he became a hotel bellboy. It marked one of the many odd jobs he held as a youth, before he transitioned into combat sports.
He went from working as a boxing instructor to parlaying his aggregate work experience into becoming one of the most successful combat sports promoters of the modern age.