One of the biggest rivalries in UFC history didn’t take place between two competitors who clashed inside the Octagon.
Dana White has dealt with many athletes that are hard to work with while building the UFC into what it is today.
The UFC CEO may have had complicated relationships with several stars, with White recently denying that Jon Jones will headline the event at the White House, but there is one example that stands above the rest.
One of the promotion’s first stars regularly butted heads with the promoter throughout his career.
Their feud even got physical at one stage, with White sharing details of a plane brawl that they got into, though the UFC legend now hopes that they can put this behind them.
Tito Ortiz hopes to put his rivalry with Dana White behind them by shaking the UFC CEO’s hand
Dana White may have had disagreements with many fighters over the years but his public rivalry with Tito Ortiz remains one of the biggest feuds in the history of the sport.
‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ accomplished great things in the UFC and became a star for the promotion as a staple of the marquee light heavyweight division.
His success didn’t stop him from constantly being at odds with White for a multitude of different reasons, with there even being talk of a potential boxing match between them.
Ortiz may have left the UFC in 2012 but the promotion’s CEO isn’t necessarily the type to bury the hatchet and move on from a grudge, especially one that became personal.
In a recent interview with The Schmo, Ortiz spoke about the UFC’s upcoming event at the White House and said that he hopes he can shake White’s hand at some point in the future after accepting the blame for their rivalry.
“I’m just excited to see what Zuffa has been doing and what Dana, all the hard work’s been paying off. Time is all behind us. I don’t look in the rear-view mirror, all the stuff I did before. Now it’s just about the future, looking through the windshield.
“Hopefully, one time me and Dana shake hands and just smash everything that was behind us. That was before, that was a different Tito Ortiz… I didn’t know many things, I didn’t trust a lot of people and that was my fault. It was my bad and it’s behind me now.”
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Dana White named one of Tito Ortiz’s losses as his favorite moment in UFC history
Tito Ortiz may be prepared to move on from his rivalry with Dana White and finally squash the beef but that doesn’t mean that the feeling is the same on the other side.
In an interview with GQ Sports in 2022, White was asked to name his favorite moment in UFC history, which he responded to with a big smile on his face.
“When Chuck Liddell knocked Tito Ortiz out. That was my favorite, favorite moment that has ever happened in UFC history.”
Ortiz’s run in the UFC ended following a series of three consecutive defeats before he went on to compete several times for Bellator.