UFC president Dana White has offered no excuses for slapping his wife on New Year’s Eve. However, that hasn’t stopped MMA fans, UFC fighters and media members from supplying justifications for White’s actions.
On Monday, TMZ released a video of White slapping his wife, Anne, while the couple was out in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. TMZ also released an interview where White spoke about the incident.
During the interview, the TMZ representatives seemed to attempt to set White up with an excuse for his actions by saying, “We were told by people who were in the club that, at least for them seemed, that there was a lot of alcohol involved in this situation.”
To his credit, White did not take the bait that was thrown his way, “There was definitely a lot of alcohol involved, but that’s no excuse. I am literally making no excuses for this thing at all,” said White. “It’s never happened before. It’s the first time that it’s ever happened. People are gonna say what they’re gonna say. It just is what it is and whatever people do say, it’s deserved, I deserve it.”
Not long after the video — and interview with White — were published, the MMA section on Reddit disallowed comments because “Discussing whether it’s ok for men to hit women is not what this subreddit is about”
The UFC has so many toxic fans that within minutes of the Dana White domestic violence video coming out, the MMA section on Reddit had to disallow comments about it because scores of UFC fans were posting about how actually it’s OK for men to hit women. pic.twitter.com/YGq5oZzWvp
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) January 3, 2023
The most common refrain on social media from those looking to justify White slapping his wife is that she hit him first, which ignores White’s statement to TMZ, “You’ve heard me say for years, there’s never, ever an excuse for a guy to put his hands on a woman.”
A few current and former UFC fighters offered their opinion on the matter, again, offering excuses for White, that he himself did not attempt to muster.
Was Dana White wrong , “YES” . Men shouldn’t hit women. Do I feel this is a reflection of who Dana White is , NO. Dana has been a component of second chances . I think speaking up against the topic and maybe sit out two events is fair! He admitted he was wrong !
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) January 3, 2023
This is why you shouldn’t drink alcohol..
— Kevin Lee MTP (@MoTownPhenom) January 3, 2023
But you wouldn’t just let a toddler hit you and there was no repercussion right
— Kevin Lee MTP (@MoTownPhenom) January 3, 2023
As for the media, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith was incredibly soft on White when speaking on “First Take.”
“Dana White is not just somebody I know and support, nor you. He’s a friend. I love him,” Smith said. “I just wish the best for him and his family. He knows how wrong he was to do this. He knows that we’re on this. He knew ahead of time because I reached out to him to let him know that I would be talking about this this morning. He knows that he crossed a line that he never crossed before and that he swears he will never cross again. He is incredibly ashamed of himself. That’s where we are right now.”
Meanwhile, longtime combat sports journalist, Kevin Iole, provided cover for White in his Yahoo Sports story, quickly pointing out how White, “works and plays at a breakneck pace” and has done a lot of good for this world, “championing numerous charitable causes, creating thousands of jobs, privately going out of his way to help scores of needy, ill and down-on-their-luck people…”
Again, White himself offered no justification or excuses for slapping his wife. However, he didn’t need to because it turns out that many people were ready to provide him with more than enough of it.
