Dana White Urged to Step Down as UFC Prez After Viral Wife-Slapping Incident

Posted on: January 5, 2023, 09:45h. 

Last updated on: January 5, 2023, 11:39h.

Corey Levitan Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Entertainment, Expert Insight, Las Vegas, Restaurants, Las Vegas Myths.

Dana White faces calls to step down as president of the UFC.  That’s after video went viral earlier this week that showed him slapping his wife at a Mexican nightclub on New Year’s Eve. The video, published by TMZ, shows White saying something to Anne White, for which she slaps him in the face. Dana White then slaps her back before the two are quickly separated.

White apologized Monday in a video interview with TMZ, conducted while he and his wife were still on vacation.

It happened,” he said, admitting no memory of the incident because of intoxication at the time. “I don’t know why it happened, and my wife and I have apologized to each other, we’ve apologized to our kids, and this is one of those things that everyone is going to chime in. I could care less what people think about this. We’re more concerned about our kids and taking care of our family.”

Dana and Ann White, who have been married for 26 years and live in Las Vegas, were ushering in the new year with friends at the El Squid Roe bar in Cabo San Lucas. Things took a turn shortly after midnight.

Another Problematic Video

The PR nightmare now for White is another video – a 2014 interview that resurfaced following the incident – showing his response to news that Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was arrested and charged with assaulting his fiancée.

“There’s one thing that you never bounce back from and that’s putting your hands on a woman,” White told Fox Sports Live. “Been that way in the UFC since we started here. You don’t bounce back from putting your hands on a woman.”

This second video sparked a widely circulating opinion column by The Guardian reporter Karim Zidan, which questions whether White should remain at the UFC helm.

“Despite White’s attempt to control the narrative, his decision to physically assault his wife raises questions about whether the UFC president is fit to continue running the world’s largest mixed martial arts organization,” Zidan wrote. “It is difficult to imagine a commissioner for a major sports league such as the NBA or NFL striking their partner without facing significant consequences.”

In his video apology with TMZ, White said: “There was definitely a lot of alcohol involved, but that’s no excuse. I’m literally making no excuses for this thing at all. It’s never happened before. It’s the first time that it’s ever happened, and people are going to say what they’re going to say.”

In a separate statement provided to TMZ, Anne White described the incident as isolated.

“Dana and I have been married for almost 30 years,” she said. “To say this is out of character for him is an understatement. Nothing like this has ever happened before. Unfortunately, we were both drinking too much on New Year’s Eve and things got out of control, on both sides.”

In his opinion column, Zidan conceded how unlikely it would be for White to face consequences for his actions from the UFC. Taking his own slap at White, he explained: “There are plenty of examples of UFC fighters who continued to fight for the organization over the years despite allegations of domestic or sexual assault.”