December 19, 2024

Dana White: ‘I’ve never been a fan of the UFC going public’

By Milan Ordoñez@Mr_Ordonez

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Late last week, reports surfaced about the possibility of the UFC going public within the year. Not only does this mean that the company’s finances will be unveiled, it also gives absolutely anybody in the world the chance to own a piece of the UFC.

This has been in discussion since the UFC was sold for $4 billion in July 2016. It is an idea that UFC president Dana White apparently never got on board with.

“I’ve never been a fan of the UFC going public,” said on 8 News NOW Las Vegas (via MMA Mania). “Can you picture me running a public company? No, I can’t either.”

White is not even confident he would be around long enough if this move pushed through.

“Let’s take some bets on how long I’ll last in a public company. What’s the over-under on that one?”

A couple of weeks ago, White announced his signing of a new seven-year contract with the UFC, which coincided with the company’s new deal with sports broadcasting giant ESPN.

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