Dana White addressed the media on Wednesday, publicly fielding questions for the first time since being caught on camera slapping his wife multiple times on New Year’s Eve.
White, 53, made no excuses for his actions but said there will be no repercussions in his role as UFC president, other than the label he will have to carry for the rest of his life.
“What should the repercussions be? You tell me,” White said at UFC Vegas 67 media day. “I take 30 days off? What does this do to me? I told you guys when we were going through COVID, COVID could last 10 years, I could sit it out and — you know what I mean? What would be the problem? This is a lot like COVID. Me leaving hurts the company, hurts my employees, hurts the fighters. I don’t feel it. It could be 2016.. I don’t know. Do I need to reflect? No, I don’t need to reflect. You know what I’m referring to? I’ve been against this. I’ve owned this. You’re wrong, I swear.
“But listen, we’ve had plenty of discussions internally, with Ari [Emanuel], ESPN. Nobody’s happy. This is what makes no one happy. Neither am I. But it happened, and I have to deal with it. And what is my punishment? Here’s my punishment: I’ve got to walk around for however long I live — is it 10. 4 years, or is it another 25 years — and this is how I’m labeled now. The other thing I can be punished for is that many people who used to respect me — fighters or friends– might no longer respect me.
“There’s a lot of things that I’m going to have to deal with for the rest of my life that are way more of a punishment than what, I take a 30-day [or a] 60-day absence? It’s not punishment for me. The punishment is that I did it, and now I have to deal with it.”
Footage was released more than a week after the altercation that took place between White and Anne. The video was taken in Cabo San Lucas on New Years Eve. White is seen grasping Anne’s wrist and then slapping her in the face. White responds by slapping her twice in the face before others nearby jump into the argument and the clip ends.
White apologized in a TMZ interview that was released with the original release of the video. However, the UFC’s parent company Endeavor has so far refused to make any comment about White’s involvement in the incident. Several media critics have called for White to face professional sanctions or to step down; the California Legislative Women’s Caucus called for White to be removed as UFC president.
On Wednesday, White reiterated his contrition and pushed back against any fans and fighters who have defended his action.
“It was obviously a horrible personal experience, and there’s no excuses for it,” White said. “It’s something that I’m going to have to deal with and live with for the rest of my life. One thing I want to make clear with the people who are defending my position is this: I did not expect it. There’s no excuse. I’m sure you guys have read some of the same stuff that I’ve seen. There is no defense for this, and people should not be defending me over this thing, no matter what. All the criticism that I have received this week is 100 percent warranted and will receive in the future.
” Everyone has an opinion about this. And they have every right to. I was very opinionated on this too, and I still am. It is crazy to think that I am sitting here having this conversation .”
“Nobody knows you better than your kids do,” White added. “My oldest is almost 22. So for 22 years, he’s grown up in a house with me and my wife and the rest of our family. They can hear, see and understand everything. They are able to see everything. No matter what perceptions you might have of yourself, your children know more than anyone. They know exactly who their mother is. That’s the most important thing to us. It was a private family matter, but it came out publicly. Our main focus was on our children. You want to talk about people being disappointed? Is there anyone more depressed than your children? That’s why we have been so focused on .”
White pointed out how ironic it was that the incident occurred so close to Dana White’s Power Slap league. The new slap league’s television debut on TBS was postponed back a week from Jan. 11 to Jan. 18, however all indications appear that the promotion will continue to have its first season televised as intended.
White said that his New Year’s Eve actions were his first ever contact with a woman. He responded to a 2014 interview where he claimed that “there is one thing you can never rebound from, and it’s getting your hands on a “
woman.”
“You don’t. You don’t bounce back from this. You don’t ever bounce back from this,” White said Wednesday. “For the rest of my life, like I said, however long that is, people are going to label me that. It was possible. That’s it. I did it. It’s not possible to bounce back. Every day you wake up and strive to improve on the last one. Whatever steps you’d have to take to make sure that you’re never in that situation and that never happens again, that’s what I need to do. It’s an accepted fact. There’s a couple things in life that you don’t bounce back from, and this is one of them. That’s a fact.”
White said he has not reached out to any UFC fighters regarding his actions and that incidents of domestic violence for UFC athletes will still be handled on a case-by-case basis moving forward.
When asked what he would have done differently about the UFC response, White answered straight away.
” I would have stayed home for New Year’s Eve,” White stated. White stated, “If I could change one thing I would have stayed home for New Year’s Eve .”
.”
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2023/1/11/23550758/dana-white-wont-face-punishment-by-ufc-endeavor-for-nye-incident?rand=96749
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