According to one UFC legend, Dana White has an inner circle that is difficult to break into.
White has served as the UFC’s public face ever since Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta acquired MMA’s longtime leading promotion in 2001.
He’s since been credited by many for the rapid growth of MMA and has served as a key figure in the careers of hundreds of fighters.
Of them, though, one former two-division champ says just two have actually been able to “get close” to the UFC’s head honcho.
Henry Cejudo names Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov as the only fighters Dana White got ‘close’ with
During an appearance on Jake Shields’ Fight Back podcast, former flyweight and bantamweight UFC champion Henry Cejudo commented on White’s approach to promoting.
Cejudo hasn’t always seen eye to eye with White, and many even maintain that his shock 2020 retirement was down to a pay dispute with the UFC.
With that in mind, Cejudo unsurprisingly doesn’t consider his relationship with White to be as close as the UFC CEO’s association with two of his organization’s all-time top stars.
“Not a lot of people have relations with Dana, you know what I’m saying? If you talk to anybody that knows him…he has a [tight] inner circle.
“I just don’t think he really gets close to anybody, as a fighter. I think the only people I can think of is maybe Khabib [Nurmagomedov], bro, and maybe Conor [McGregor].
“But as a promoter, dude, he’s the GOAT. He’s the greatest of all time.”
Dana White has one issue with ‘incredible partner’ Conor McGregor
While McGregor has a stronger relationship with White than many of his fighting peers, the Irishman does have one habit that has frustrated the UFC CEO for years.
During a 2024 interview with Lex Fridman, White described McGregor as “incredible” to work with in every way but one – punctuality.
“Conor McGregor has been an incredible partner to work with.
“If Conor showed up to things on time there wouldn’t be one f—ing bad thing I could say about Conor, you know what I mean?
“If you put a gun to my f—ing head, right, and said, ‘Don’t lie, motherf—er, tell me all the bad things about Conor McGregor,’ I’d say the guy doesn’t show up on time. That’s it.”
In contrast, White has had public falling outs over the past two and a half decades with star names like Randy Couture, Jon Jones, and Francis Ngannou.
The common theme among disagreements between fighters and the UFC CEO has often appeared to be finances, with White blasting Jones and Ngannou for contractual demands.