Dana White on ignoring calls to shun Donald Trump, his hatred of ‘weak’ men, and a Zuckerberg shock
Dana White has disclosed that he ignored pleas from his inner circle to reject Donald Trump’s request for help during his first White House bid in 2016, a decision that cemented a political alliance now credited with helping propel Trump back to the presidency eight years later.
White, the president and chief executive of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, told TIME magazine that friends and advisers urged him not to speak at the 2016 Republican National Convention. “Everybody said, ‘Don’t do it. Don’t do it’,” he recalled. The warnings, he said, went beyond normal political caution: “The bigger one was ‘He’s never gonna win.’ And I was like, ‘Well, whether he wins or not, the guy’s been a good friend to me’.”
The friendship between the two men stretches back more than two decades. When White took over the struggling UFC in 2001, few venues would host its events, but Trump offered the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. Trump later described the first show there as “the most unbelievable thing I’ve ever seen”. Trump, interviewed for the same TIME profile, called White “a very good speaker, very inspirational-type speaker”.
Winning the youth vote
For the 2024 campaign, White’s role was far more than a convention speech. He developed what he called a “philosophy” that if Trump “stayed on Fox News, he couldn’t win the election”. Instead, White assembled a roster of podcasters and social-media influencers to expose the then-candidate to younger voters who had little exposure to traditional news outlets.
The strategy saw Trump appear on shows hosted by the Nelk Boys, Will Compton and Taylor Lewan of Bussin’ with the Boys, Adin Ross, Theo Von and, most notably, Joe Rogan. Trump acknowledged the impact, telling TIME: “Very important. He introduced me to people I never heard of, young kids. I mean, I was being interviewed by 20-year-old kids. I’m saying, ‘Where the hell did you meet these people?’ They’re called influencers. But I did a lot. I became friendly with some of them. They’re nice kids, and they do have a big audience, and everything helps.”
The relationship has been mutually beneficial. Trump reportedly calls White twice a month to discuss fights and has appeared at UFC events, including UFC 244 in 2019. Trump’s early backing of the UFC, when other venues shunned the sport, remained a cornerstone of White’s loyalty. “He championed the UFC before it was popular,” White has said.
‘Unapologetically masculine’
White’s public persona – built on the brutal spectacle of mixed martial arts – is one he describes as “unapologetically masculine”. In the TIME interview, he dismissed the term “toxic masculinity” as meaningless. “What is toxic masculinity?… Who has it? Who’s too masculine?… There’s a difference between being a douchebag and being masculine,” he said.
He reserved particular scorn for men who discuss their mental health in public. “Talking about it publicly, I just feel like it opens the door to make young men think that it’s OK to just f***ing go, ‘Oh, I’m having mental [health issues]’,” he said. “Handle it behind closed doors. Don’t show that weakness to anybody.” He added: “There’s nothing I hate worse than men that don’t act like men… so if that puts me in the manosphere, then I guess I’m in.”
White’s own conduct has come under scrutiny. In December 2022, he was caught on camera slapping his wife, Anne, during an argument at a club in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Footage showed Anne slapping him first, and he then slapped her across the face before the fracas was broken up. White later issued a grovelling apology, saying there was “no excuse” for his actions. Speaking to TIME, he reflected: “It’s just one of those things where you have to look at yourself, blame nobody but you. How the f*** did that happen? And how do we make sure that never happens again?”
A seat at the Meta table
Beyond the octagon and the campaign trail, White holds a position on the board of directors of Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. He was elected in January 2025. Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg announced the appointment alongside those of John Elkann and Charlie Songhurst, saying White would bring “a depth of expertise and perspective” to opportunities in artificial intelligence, wearables and the future of human connection. White said he had never been interested in joining any board until the Meta offer, citing his belief that “social media and AI are the future”.
Zuckerberg has been a known fan of mixed martial arts and attended UFC events. White said the TIME profile placed Zuckerberg “in the same category of alpha role models as Trump, Carl Icahn, and Michael Jordan”. White expressed surprise at Zuckerberg’s personality, saying: “What I didn’t realize about Mark until I got on the board… is Zuckerberg might be one of the biggest killers in the history of killers.”
