Dana White is not stepping away from UFC.
The UFC president spoke to the media in advance of UFC Fight Night 217, and addressed the New Year’s Eve videotape that showed a domestic incident with his wife at a nightclub in Cabo, Mexico.
White could be seen saying something to his wife, who slapped him. White then slapped her twice in response before the couple was separated, the NY Post reports.
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“It was obviously a horrible personal experience,” White told reporters.
“There’s no excuses for it. It’s something that I’m gonna have to deal with and live with for the rest of my life.
“One thing I do want to clarify … is the people that are defending me. There’s never an excuse. I’m sure you guys have read some of the same stuff that I’ve seen. There’s no defence for this. People should not be defending me, no matter what. All the criticism that I’ve received this week, and will receive in the future, is 100-per cent warranted.”
White, 53, was asked whether there will be self-imposed repercussions or discipline from the company.
“What should the repercussions be? You tell me. I take 30 days off?” White asked.
“How does that hurt me? Me leaving hurts the company. Hurts my employees. Hurts the fighters. Doesn’t hurt me. I could have left in 2016. Do I need to reflect? No, I don’t need to reflect. The next morning when I woke up … I own this. I’m telling you that I’m wrong.”
White said that he has had “plenty of discussions” with Endeavor boss Ari Emanuel and ESPN leadership and that “nobody is happy about this.”
White said that his punishment is, “I’ve got to walk around for however long I live — is it 10.4 years or another 25 years? — and this is how I’m labelled now. My other punishment is that I’m sure a lot of people, whether it be media, fighters, friends, acquaintances who had respect for me might not have respect for me now. There are a lot of things I’m gonna have to deal with for the rest of my life that are much more of a punishment than, what, I take a 30-60-day absence?”
This article originally appeared on the NY Post and was reproduced with permission.
