"I would equate Florida to Abu Dhabi" - Dana White says Ron DeSantis and Florida were "massive" for UFC amidst COVID-19
Dana White recently thanked the governor and mayor of Jacksonville, Florida, for welcoming the UFC in the aftermath of the pandemic. Shunning his critics, White continued to organize UFC events during the COVID-9 pandemic, unlike all other major sports leagues.
When asked if any U.S. politician had lauded his efforts, White mentioned former U.S. President Donald Trump, whom he staunchly supports. The UFC head honcho also thanked the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, along with the city's mayor for welcoming the UFC post-pandemic.
White likened Florida to Abu Dhabi, where the company staged shows during the pandemic. The 53-year-old told Tucker Carlson on FOX News:
"Florida was massive for us. I would equate Florida to Abu Dhabi during these times. Governer DeSantis and the Mayor of Jakcsonville, Florida, told us, 'Come on in. We'll host you here. You can do your events here. I have fighters from all over the world.' So the fighters that were from other countries were all brought into Abu Dhabi. All the Americans, we fought down in Jacksonville, Florida."
Watch Dana White's comments at the 8:10 mark of the video below:
Dana White kept UFC alive during the lockdowns. He didn't cave to pressure. Here's how he did it. https://t.co/0Ra6ZJJAJc
Jacksonville has become a familiar stage for Dana White since the pandemic
Jacksonville, a city in Florida, was the first to invite Dana White to stage UFC events while the world dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic. The UFC 249 card, headlined by Justin Gaethje and Tony Ferguson, went down in May 2020 with no fans in attendance.
The UFC became the first to host a full-capacity event at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, a year later. UFC 261, featuring a rematch between Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal, was a sellout with a footfall of 15,269 paying $3.3 million at the gate.
It was great to meet with the legend @DanaWhite in Jax ahead of the big fight between @GameBredFighter and @USMAN84kg this Saturday in a sold out @VyStarVetArena! #UFC261 https://t.co/C47XWlsgCK
Most recently, the promotion organized UFC 273 in Jacksonville in April this year, returning for a third time since 2020. The event was headlined by a featherweight title clash between Alexander Volkanovski and 'The Korean Zombie' Chan Sung Jung. The co-main event of the night featured a bantamweight title clash between Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling, which was a rematch of their UFC 259 bout that ended in a disqualification.