Video: Dana White given warm welcome as he attends Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks NBA Playoffs game
Dana White was in attendance for the final game of the NBA Playoffs series between the Boston Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks. White, a Massachusetts native, received a warm welcome as he entered the TD Garden arena for the pivotal match.
With the series tied at 3-3, the Bucks and the Celtics squared off in a winner-takes-all game seven last night. The Celtics emerged victorious, winning 109-81 to seal their place in the Eastern Conference Finals opposite the Miami Heat.
Dana White grew up in Boston. He studied at MCU Boston but quit after one semester. Later, he worked as a bouncer at two local hotels, before taking a job as a boxing and fitness coach.
His infamous run-in with the crew of a local mobster, Whitey Bulger, over a sum of $2500, prompted White to leave Boston and relocate to Las Vegas. After working temporarily in a boxing gym in Vegas and even managing a few MMA fighters, he reunited with his old friends the Fertitta brothers and the trio bought the UFC, which was a struggling business at the time.
Dana White’s first stint in the MMA world
Before Dana White became the president of the biggest MMA organization in the world, he worked as a manager for the likes of Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell. White met the duo while learning Brazilian jiu jitsu from MMA pioneer John Lewis.
Under his guidance, Ortiz became the UFC light heavyweight champion. However, their relationship soured after White and the Fertittas bought the promotion and the former was anointed as the president of the organization.
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Not then,but now.UFC President Dana White,UFC-HOF-er Chuck Liddell &
Tito Ortiz, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertittađź“· http://t.co/C4GvUGxZ0h
Ortiz and White have barely seen eye-to-eye since their falling out, to the extent that a boxing match between the duo was being proposed and even came close to materializing.
White's relationship with Liddell, on the other hand, has been a direct contrast to his tetchy relationship with Ortiz. Liddell also went on to become a champion in the promotion and even locked horns with Ortiz on three occasions in his professional career. 'The Iceman' is regularly seen at UFC events to this day.