Dana sounds off (again)
Best of friends, worst of enemies: Tito and Dana.
From 411mania, by way of The Wrestling Observer:
Dana White is interviewed in the new issue of Playboy that hits stands tomorrow. Highlights are below.
On UFC's place among the major American sports: "What are the major sports in America right now? The NFL and Major League Baseball, with the NBA third. The NHL was fourth, but now we're fourth, and we're still in our infancy. Our ratings on Spike TV beat most of the major sports in our 18-to-34 demo. Last year we beat four Monday Night Football games in the demo. In eight years, the UFC will be bigger than the NFL, bigger than World Cup soccer. It will be the biggest sport in the world."
On Mark Cuban & Donald Trump getting involved with MMA: "Mark Cuban's a smart guy. He's passionate about basketball, but I don't think he gives a sh*t about mixed martial arts. He sees some quick money in it. Trump's different. I have a ton of respect for him. When the Fertittas bought the UFC, most venues wouldn't deal with us. We were outlaws. Out first event was at the Trump Taj Mahal, and Trump actually came to the fights. You'll never hear me say a bad word about Donald Trump. He can have my seats anytime."
On MMA violence: "People think our sport's more violent than boxing. Wrong! They're weirded out because it goes to the ground. We grew up with John Wayne movies--you don't hit a man when he's down. It's un American! John Wayne would deck a guy, stand him back up and hit him again. So when Americans first watch UFC--one guy's on top of the other, hitting him when he's down--they say, 'Oh God, he can't defend himself!' It's not like that in Asia, where they've been doing martial arts since the samurai days."
On Tito Ortiz: "That big-mouthed bit*h, that clown. Back when he had the title, he refused to fight Chuck Liddell. He sat on the sidelines for a year and a half, crying, 'Aww, I don't have any money!' So I brought him back and made him a coach on The Ultimate Fighter. That year he made more than $6 million, yet he bit*hes about me. Well, I put up with Tito's sh*t when he was a decent fighter, but now he's not and I don't have to... Did you see what a wall flower he was on [The Celebrity Apprentice]? The guy has no presence. He was the idiot hiding in the back. If he actually did something, people would know how stupid he is."
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