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Dana White On Vince McMahon: ‘He’s An Absolute Savage’

“He’s the Michael Jordan of the business world”

Justin Barrasso

Dana White On Vince McMahon: ‘He’s An Absolute Savage’
Dana White On Vince McMahon: ‘He’s An Absolute Savage’ /

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Dana White on Vince McMahon: “He’s the Michael Jordan of the business world”

Vince McMahon always viewed the UFC as competition. As a result, Dana White–a fellow promoter with New England roots (McMahon promoted heavily in Massachusetts’ scenic Cape Cod early in his career)–became an instant adversary.

Despite success extending the UFC around the globe, which is also a strength of the WWE, White never found common ground with McMahon. Yet that has changed dramatically since WWE merged with Endeavor, the parent company of the UFC. Now under the same banner, White, the UFC CEO, and McMahon, WWE’s Executive Chairman of the Board, after decades of opposition, are finally working together.

“My history with Vince isn’t a good one,” said White. “He tried to f--- me so many times for no reason whatsoever except just to f--- me. But that’s in the past. Now that Vince and I are allies, no one’s been a better partner than Vince.”

Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Courtesy Zuffa LLC

As promoters, White and McMahon share a lot of connective tissue. Both men took brands considered too niche and violent into the mainstream. White is doing that again with his Power Slap promotion, which has a fight card later tonight from Vegas. And he is grateful to work with McMahon, who brings six decades worth of expertise and high-level acumen to his work.

“Since day one of the deal, it’s like I’m dealing with a different guy,” said White. “It goes to show that when you oppose him, or he thinks you are opposing him, the guy comes after you blindly. Once you are aligned, Vince is an incredible partner.

“We’ve probably spoken on the phone 20 times since the deal. It’s all added-value conversation–with Vince doing work and raising the bar for both companies.”

Contents

  1. The (Online) Week in Wrestling
  2. Logan Paul must-listen every time he picks up a microphone in WWE
  3. Tweet of the Week

As WWE seeks a new media rights deal for Raw and NXT, White has been eager to watch McMahon at work, particularly now that they are both part of Endeavor. This is a marked change from the past, where White shared positive working relationships with Paul “Triple H” Levesque and Stephanie McMahon–but never with Vince.

“Triple H and Stephanie have always been great to work with,” said White. “I’ve always had a great relationship with them, always, even when we weren’t aligned back in the day. But the most amazing story is the relationship with Vince McMahon.”

White finds himself in awe of McMahon’s work ethic and tenacity, especially considering the longtime WWE boss is two years shy of turning 80.

“Vince McMahon, man, he’s an absolute savage,” said White. “Even with the stuff that went down with us in the past, I respect it. I love killers. He’s definitely a killer. He’s the Michael Jordan of the business world.”

The (Online) Week in Wrestling

  • Congratulations to Lyra Valkyria, the new NXT women’s champion. Becky Lynch was fantastic as champion–so much so that it was another reminder that she should be wearing a belt in WWE.
  • While I do not agree with the decision to promote it as a dream match, the Bryan Danielson-Andrade encounter on Collision was superb. And setting up Danielson-Malakai Black, with the potential of House of Black vs. the BCC, is another outstanding move.
  • On the subject of champions in WWE, Rhea Ripley has been handed more of an opportunity on Raw–and she continues to display new layers that keeps her work incredibly entertaining.
  • LA Knight vs. Roman Reigns is official for Crown Jewel. With the world titles unlikely to change hands, it was smart to add Logan Paul-Rey Mysterio to the card, where Paul is expected to walk away with the US title.
  • Kazuchika Okada returns to the ring tonight on Dynamite, where he will team with Orange Cassidy against Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli. This marks the first match between Danielson and Okada since Forbidden Door in June, and it should be spectacular to witness Okada work his craft with Castagnoli.

Logan Paul must-listen every time he picks up a microphone in WWE

If Logan Paul were on Raw, would you ever change the channel?

I wouldn’t. If he’s cutting a promo, I’m listening to every word.

How did we arrive here?

Courtesy WWE
Courtesy WWE

There are few wrestlers who make their interviews such appointment-viewing endeavors. CM Punk fits that distinction, as do Roman Reigns and Bryan Danielson. Paul’s body of work is much smaller, and he (wisely) picks his spots as he comes and goes from WWE programming, never overstaying his welcome. But it’s hard to argue with the results.

Paul was back on the microphone this Monday on Raw, where he escalated his feud and continued to bring a different side out of Ricochet. They revisited their rivalry, which had been dormant since SummerSlam, as Paul had fun at the expense of ring announcer Samantha Irvin. Ricochet took exception, defending his real-life fiancé, and attacked Paul.

That scene unfolded as Paul cut a promo beside Dominik Mysterio, setting up the stage for a tag match against Rey Mysterio and Ricochet (two former Lucha Underground stars). It will be even more meaningful when Paul wins the United States championship from Mysterio at Crown Jewel. While he is not ready to dethrone Reigns or Seth Rollins, the US title is a perfect opportunity to put some gold on Paul.

I never envisioned Paul becoming such a compelling figure in WWE. And his run will become even more meaningful once he wins a title in two weeks.

Tweet of the Week

More than 20 years into his career, Prince Nana has put in the work–and now he is capturing a significant amount of attention.

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Justin Barrasso
JUSTIN BARRASSO

Justin Barrasso has been writing for Sports Illustrated since 2014. While his primary focus is pro wrestling and MMA, he has also covered MLB, NBA, and the NFL. He can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com and followed on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.

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