UFC President Dana White recently revealed that Vince McMahon helped the Las Vegas promotion in securing a lucrative deal.
UFC is all set for its first ever show in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia next year, as part of the Riyadh Season. The company will be collaborating with the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (SGEA) to organize the show.
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Vince McMahon Helped UFC Las Vegas Promotion Secure A Deal
Dana White gave credit to Vince, the Executive Chairman of the WWE, for securing the aforementioned transaction in an interview with Sports Business Journal. According to him, McMahon handled all of the calls and made sure White was informed at all times.
“It was Vince McMahon (who arranged UFC’s Saudi deal). It was 100 percent Vince McMahon. He made every call, he didn’t make one move without picking up the phone and calling me, and getting me in the loop, and seeing if I was cool with this and that. And he went from being, oddly enough, I don’t know why, an enemy (of UFC’s), to being an unbelievable, incredible partner.”
WWE recently had a premium live event in Saudi Arabia called Crown Jewel, which is part of their current 10-year deal with SGEA.
Following the historic merging of their two firms, Dana White and Vince McMahon seem to have moved from being bitter rivals to business partners. ‘TKO Group Holdings’ is the new umbrella organization that unites the UFC and WWE.
Before the Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou match, McMahon was questioned about his relationship with White in an interview with MMA Junkie, given their illustrious background. The Executive Chairman of WWE refuted any disagreements with White.