UFC president Dana White has a long history of verbally sparring with media, and the latest subject of his ire is ESPN’s Darren Rovell (a frequent participant in Twitter fights). Their animosity has really heated up over the past few months, starting with Rovell’s May report that the UFC was for sale and White’s denial of that report, which then came true last week at one of the values ($4 billion) Rovell mentioned and to one of the companies (WME-IMG) he listed as a finalist. Rovell then tweeted Wednesday about apparent issues with the sale, and White went off on him:
Not sure there's been an acquisition that has soured as quickly as the UFC. Have to wonder what protections WME-IMG has before deal closes.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) July 20, 2016
he doesn't hate UFC he's just a total douche who needs to talk about just about anything to stay employed.
— danawhite (@danawhite) July 20, 2016
no fight there. Half a slap and that ones OVER!!!!
— danawhite (@danawhite) July 20, 2016
Rovell hasn’t fired back yet, which is surprising given his long history of Twitter wars. Perhaps he’s content just to sit back on this one, given how well White’s trashing of his reporting went previously. It’s going to be interesting to see if White can continue fighting with media after this sale goes through, though; will WME-IMG be as supportive of an executive who seems to feel it’s his duty to battle reporters at every turn, even when their reports are accurate?
In any case, this is just part of a big week for White, who spoke at the Republican National Convention in support of Donald Trump Tuesday and has also had to deal with major criticism over Brock Lesnar’s positive drug test. If Rovell’s report of issues with the sale is accurate, White may have even more on his plate in the days ahead.
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