One of the most influential and richest people in the world of mixed martial arts leads the largest organization MMA (Mixed Martial Arts). Dana White has been the UFC’s unchanged president since the Ferrit brothers bought. With one of them, Lorenzo, he has been close friends since childhood. Now he owns 10% of the famous promotion.
early years
Born Dana Frederick White July 28, 1969 in American Manchester, Connecticut. His father and mother are of Irish descent. He has a sister Kelly. The family moved many times when he was little. Young Dana managed to visit many parts of a large country. He graduated from high school in the small town of Hermon, which is located in Maine.
In 1987 he entered the pretty good Boston University in Massachusetts. Since that time, he began to attend boxing and gymnastics training. In addition, in order to earn a living, Dana worked as a security guard in one of the elite nightclubs of the city.
Studying did not attract the young man too much. He almost did not attend classes, for numerous absenteeism and poor performance, he was expelled from the university at the very beginning of the 2nd year. From the youth of Dana White was very adventurous. He constantly tried to find sources of income that would allow self-realization.
First try
The first project of Dana White was an aerobics and boxing program for children of all ages and women. He developed a general developmental set of exercises that included movements from gymnastics and boxing. Soon, three gyms worked according to his system, paying a considerable profit to the author of the technique.
In 1990, in one of the city bars, Dane White was attacked. Several people brutally beat him for almost 15 minutes. He had a long and expensive treatment, one operation in Germany cost 10 thousand US dollars. The business had to close due to problems with the tax office.
Introducing Mixed Martial Arts
In the first half of the 90s, Dana White began to study Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, meeting with the strongest representatives of this Eastern teaching, which dominated mixed martial arts, which had just begun to become popular. He tried to become a sports promoter in boxing and even made contracts with several boxers. But he could not break into the elite of the business. He had no connections, no money, in addition, he needed a lot of time to start earning well.
And the young promoter decides to pay attention to other types of martial arts. He began to organize street fights. Dana White soon gained fame in the pioneering world of mixed martial arts. And all thanks to the collaboration with many strong fighters of various styles.
Buying UFC
Having gained the necessary experience in mixed martial arts, he realized that MMA will become a real "gold mine" in the near future. Dana White worked with some fighters who played for the virtually unknown to the general public promotion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). It was one of many companies, no better and no worse than others. The company was engaged in the organization of battles, in addition, it experienced serious financial problems and difficulties in popularizing its brand.
Dana decided that it could turn out to be a great business if he bought and promoted the company. The cost of the project was $ 2 million. In 2001, he turned to multimillionaire Lorenzo Feritte, his former classmate, who, together with his elder brother Frank, owns a casino network in Las Vegas. The brothers bought the UFC and appointed Dane the president of the company.
On the crest of success
Since that time, White has been the permanent leader of the company, playing a decisive role in the development of mixed martial arts in the world. First of all, he significantly changed the rules, bringing the battles closer to a level acceptable to the general public.
MMA has become more like a sport, punches in the groin, kicks of a lying opponent with legs and knees were prohibited. The company began to conduct an active marketing policy. After the reality show, where promising fighters fought for the right to conclude a contract with the UFC, the popularity of the promotion began to grow rapidly. In 2007, Pride, the world's most popular MMA, was acquired, and a year earlier, the American WEC. Now it is the largest company engaged in the organization of battles.
The UFC is supported by most of the world's top rated fighters, including Irish McGregor and Russian Nurmagomedov. Some publications call Dane White the father of Conor McGregor for being too friendly and soft towards the former champion in two weight categories. He always stands up for the Irishman, believing that he does not receive the respect that he deserves. Even in the last fight of McGregor - Nurmagomedov, Dana wanted Conor, whom he considers one of the greatest fighters in the history of mixed martial arts, to defeat.
personal information
He met his wife Anna when he was still in high school. A married couple has three children: a daughter and two sons. He claims to be an atheist, although he admits to being "fascinated by religion." He is a fan of the Irish rugby national team and is a fan of the Boston Red Sox baseball team. And, of course, he has been interested in boxing since his youth.
The state of Dana White is estimated at 495 million US dollars for 2017. His monthly income as president of the UFC is $ 20 million. He owns a 10% stake in Zuffa, which owns UFC. In addition, he leases a large plot of land located on the outskirts of New York. Dana is engaged in charity work; in 2017, he made a significant financial contribution to the development of athletics.