Just a couple of hours removed from the last polls closing in America, Donald Trump claimed victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election after more than 70 million voters helped push him past the 270 points needed to win the electoral college.
Trump’s road to re-election – making a political comeback that saw him gain more support than ever after losing the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden, facing scrutiny for his unfounded claims of voter fraud ruining the election, and being handed felony charges in New York state – saw him perform lengthy speeches across America. He would often stretch past the hour-long mark, rambling and ranting off-script.
However, on Wednesday morning, Trump kept his acceptance speech to a brisk 25 minutes. In that short time, his first public appearance since it became clear he was en route to winning the election, Trump allowed just a few others to share the microphone with him: Vice President-elect JD Vance, a key campaign manager, and UFC CEO Dana White.
“Nobody deserves this more than him and nobody deserves this more than his family does,” an excited, and maybe even a little nervous White remarked. “This is what happens when the machine comes after you … This is karma, ladies and gentlemen.”
White’s brief remarks, or maybe even the fact he was given a platform over many others to provide comment, underscored how a relationship with the soon-to-be U.S. President has intensified over the past years, making him someone who gets microphone time over Trump’s own family members or other close aides.
If you have heard one interaction between the fight game’s top leader and Trump, you’ve kind of heard them all. The two frequently tell a story that reflects long-standing loyalty: White along with Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta were managing an embattled UFC during the early 2000s: The sport was controversial, outlawed in many places, and was struggling to turn a profit. When a crutch was needed, Trump swooped in and helped them. He offered up the Trump Taj Mahal for events, where the promotion would end up visiting twice in 2001. The lore around UFC’s ties to Trump, while some claim are exaggerated, certainly exists.
A relationship between White and Trump would mainly remain in the background for the next decade, only re-emerging once the 2016 U.S. Presidential race came around.
White, much less the mainstream or politically-coded figure eight years ago, appeared in front of the Republican National Convention with the humble acknowledgment of being a newcomer to the partisan scene: “I’m sure most of you are wondering: ‘What are you doing here?'” he said.
Four years later, he returned to the convention with a more fiery, attacking monologue as Trump sought to take down challenger Biden.
White became a part of the national fandom around the Republican party over those years, being a rare outspoken name in entertainment and sports to side with the Republican party. However, he hadn’t yet become as close to Trump as he sees himself nowadays.
As Trump looked to re-emerge in the public eye following a failed 2020 election, UFC events helped him get in front of young male audiences. He appeared on numerous pay-per-view cards over the past two years, getting a bright spotlight and countless flattering on-screen cameos per event. Broadcasts would relate him to the viewer, complimenting his loyalty to UFC and his great interest in the sport.
Analysts have related Trump’s presence at UFC events to a larger push to attract media figures in the “manosphere,” a term used to describe communities online that are geared toward 18-to-29-year-old men. Much like Trump’s presence around prank channel turned lifestyle brand The Nelk Boys, controversial live streamer Adin Ross, and podcasting juggernaut Joe Rogan, all of whom received a shoutout during White’s speech this week, UFC was seen as a way for the campaigning Republican to achieve what some have called “The Bro Vote.”
For White, continuing to side with Trump was a bet that ended up paying off this week. While the sports world had a reckoning with systemic racism following the 2020 killing of George Floyd, UFC remained distant from supporting any activism. Instead, they applied a hands-off approach, allowing the right-influenced politics of the sport to dominate. White kept strong to his allegiance with Trump following an unsuccessful 2020 election, remaining a vocal supporter throughout. The dividends for that unwavering support are being paid off now, with White being the sole figure in sports or even entertainment as a whole who was platformed by the President-elect this week.
Over the next four years, it will be seen to what extent White and UFC’s heavy lifting for the Trump campaign will bring benefits in return. As the promotion continues to face legal threats, with a second class action antitrust suit (Kajan Johnson et al. v. Zuffa) still looming in the background, the biggest ally possible in the White House could help. And as courting both domestic and international tourism groups to pay large sums of money in change for live shows continues to be a massive part of the promotion’s business model, being the favorite sports league of the country’s leader is a massive strength.
Whether it was a calculated political move by Trump, a sharp business decision from White, or simply a testament to their multi-decade partnership, the two have certainly mutually benefitted from the alliance they have formed as America pushes farther to the right.
