David Senra · May 10Dana White: The Man Behind the UFC
The UFC paid for production itself as a last $10M bet, so Spike only supplied airtime and the UFC owned the show. The Bonnar vs. Griffin finale led to a napkin renewal and built stars like Forrest Griffin; Season 34 is now running.
Tips
- Dana White paid for The Ultimate Fighter himself so Spike TV had no risk and he kept ownership▶ 11:23After the Bonnar vs. Griffin finale Spike executives agreed to a renewal on a napkin, and the UFC owned 100% of everything it had funded.
- Dana White and the Fertittas put in a last $10M on The Ultimate Fighter▶ 11:48The finale crowd stomped and chanted for one more round, Forrest Griffin became a pay-per-view star, and the show led to a renewal.
- Dana White sold a taboo sport to TV as a reality show Trojan horse▶ 7:20Season 34 of The Ultimate Fighter is running now, and the show built Griffin and Chuck Liddell into stars.
- Dana White never edits a fight and lets fans decide if it was good▶ 9:39Fans in the arena chanted for one more round after Bonnar vs. Griffin, which an edited fight could not have earned.
