Dana White finally shared what went down between him and Barack Obama during Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The UFC president was spotted chatting with Obama in the Capitol Rotunda back in January, but he hadn’t spoken about it until Sunday night’s 60 Minutes. CBS host Jon Wertheim pressed him on UFC’s image of “taking a side” in politics.
"I am an American citizen. Biden was my president. Trump is my president," White said. He explained he was seated behind former presidents when rumors started that he was “mad-dogging” Obama.
"President Obama turned around, the only president that did, and shook my hand and said, ‘Congratulations on all your success.’ And I said, ‘Thank you very much Mr. President.’ That’s what happened. I never talked about that publicly."
White added that if Obama ever wanted to attend a fight, he’d show him respect. "If President Obama called and said, ‘Hey, I’d like to come see a fight.’ I’d be like, ‘Yeah, buy some tickets and good luck’ or whatever? No, the sitting president or the ex-president of the United States wants to come to your event, you treat them with respect."
White has long been tied to politics. He backed Trump in 2016 and spoke at the Republican National Convention. Since then, he’s popped up at Trump rallies and stayed close to the former president.
Trump himself has shown up at multiple UFC fights before, during, and after his presidency.