50 of the best moments of Dana White’s career
By Amy Kaplan
Dana and Ben Askren squash beef
By Davidson Baker
Many of the sport’s elitists in regard to one’s fandom thought for many years that Ben Askren would retire undefeated, without testing himself against the proverbial world beaters the UFC has to offer.
So when the former Missouri Tiger wrestling standout was brought into the mix via a blockbuster trade that miraculously sent it’s longest-reigning titleholder to ONE Championship, naturally people were curious how exactly it came about.
At a UFC 235 pre-fight press event, the question was asked, and Dana promptly answered.
“I’m the one that wanted to bring Ben Askren into the UFC. We’re good.” White said.
Askren, with a smile stretching across from one ear to the other, acknowledged the tranquility between the two parties.
“I’m good as well. All I need is opportunity.” Askren said.
Askren has been granted exactly that, with two fights both landing on major UFC pay-per-view main cards, both against fighters ranked inside the top 6 at the time in the UFC welterweight division.
ESPN+ deal
By Joe Duffy
The UFC spent years trying to gain mainstream traction. The sport was one that was largely criticized in its early years and the black eye left on the sport from that time was tough to get past at first. The Fox deal was a huge step for the UFC and White to get more eyes on their product, but the move to ESPN in early 2019 was truly the coming-out party for the UFC in the mainstream.
ESPN has been the household home for sports and entertainment for years now. The deal means the UFC will stream its pay-per-views through the ESPN+ streaming service. Fights will be exclusive to ESPN and ESPN+ and out of it the UFC earned a near $750 million dollars in broadcast rights, and the company will earn a set amount of money for each pay-per-view. The deal is one that not only brings in a ton of money for the company but one that brings the sport to the mainstream and will ultimately help to advance it. The ESPN deal struck by White is one that will always be seen as a feather in his cap.