UFC president Dana White isn’t too happy with The New York Times.
White fired back in response to a recent report by the newspaper that exposes the promotions shortcomings in compliance with their own safety protocols in place for its trio of Jacksonville, Fla., events in return to business during the coronavirus pandemic.
The UFC live events last Saturday (UFC 249) and Wednesday (UFC on ESPN+ 29), and has another coming up this Saturday (UFC on ESPN 8), all of which are being held behind closed doors at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. These are the first UFC events since the promotion was forced to shut down temporarily because of restrictions and travel bans due to COVID-19. They’re being overseen by the Florida State Boxing Commission.
The New York Times, which obtained a copy of the UFC’s “Jacksonville Event Operations Plan” to help combat the spread of COVID-19, pointed out instances in which the promotion didn’t follow its own protocols.
The plan noted that UFC staff would wear protective gear, such as masks, at all times – something White, UFC commentators, fighters, and others shown throughout fight week didn’t follow. Also, post-fight interviews would be done at distance and not in the octagon, but that has been abandoned altogether through two events.
When asked about the New York Times story, White didn’t deny any of the facts reported and instead decided to lambaste the author, Kevin Draper.
“F*ck that guy. F*ck that guy,” White said during the post-fight news conference, which MMA Junkie attended. “You know what happened with that guy? That guy who’s never covered the sport was writing a story about Endeavor (UFC’s parent company) and then the UFC was one of the Endeavor … you know. And what happened when this guy and this paper covered the UFC – when they’ve never covered it before? What do you think happened?
“This f*cking story was huge. They did killer traffic. Now they’re writing stories, three a week, and they’re posting live results. I don’t care what this guy thinks or what he has to say, what he writes. Good for him, he’s pulling traffic.”
UFC president Dana White looks at his phone during UFC 249. (Douglas P. DeFelice, Getty Images)
And as far as repercussions the article could have on business? White couldn’t care less.
“I don’t give a f*ck,” White said. “Don’t give a f*ck.”
Three people involved with events in Jacksonville are known to have tested positive for COVID-19. Last Friday it was announced that Ronaldo Souza and his two cornermen had tested positive for the virus. They were sent away from the host hotel afterward, and “Jacare’s” middleweight bout with Uriah Hall was scrapped from UFC 249.
With one to go, White sees the events as a success but awaits Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 8 before he’ll claim victory.
“A lot of criticism coming into this week, the fact that we wanted to go, and this d*ck head from The New York Times that found out MMA was popular,” White said. “We’ve had two events now, all the testing that we’ve done, (and) we’ve had one positive. And I don’t know, you guys (reporters) sit in a different position than I. I don’t know how you feel how the whole thing has gone or how it’s felt, and if you’ve felt safe here, if you’ve felt comfortable, but it’s worked.
“We did what we said we would do. I don’t want to shoot my mouth off – we still have one more to go – but so far, so good. I think what you see now is now you see all the other sports leagues talking about, ‘We’re going.’
“Somebody had to get out and be first. I knew we would be, and I knew we could pull it off safely. Like I said before, health and safety is something we worry about all the time. So far it’s been super successful.”
Dana White responds to NY Times report critical of UFC's coronavirus plan: 'I don't give a f*ck'