Dana White defends UFC’s masculine attitude in ’60 Minutes’ interview

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO Dana White defended the UFC’s “unapologetically masculine” attitude on “60 Minutes” Sunday night.

Correspondent Jon Wertheim spoke with White about the UFC’s rise, particularly among young men. Wertheim pointed to White’s past criticism of the “wussification” of America and asked if attitudes had shifted. White said he believes they have.

“We are definitely unapologetically masculine,” White said.

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“Can this bubble over too much?” Wertheim asked. “When you hear toxic masculinity, what do you–”

“What’s that mean?” White interrupted, laughing. “What’s the definition of ‘toxic’? … How can somebody be too masculine? Can you be too masculine?”

After some back and forth, White finally answered.

“No. The answer is hell no,” White said.

White also emphasized his support for free speech and opposition to cancel culture, condemning people losing jobs over controversial online posts.

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“I think you’re a disgusting human being if you’re celebrating the death of another human being, but people make mistakes and people are gonna do dumb things,” White said. “I don’t like trying to destroy people’s lives over doing something dumb.”

White recently confirmed plans with former President Donald Trump to host a UFC event at the White House in 2026 to mark America’s 250th birthday.

Though a Trump supporter, White told Wertheim that he is respectful of all presidents regardless of their political party. As an example, he recalled a moment he shared with former President Barack Obama during Trump’s second inauguration. 

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“I am an American citizen,” White said. “Biden was my president. Trump is my president. I was at the inauguration, and I was sitting behind all the ex-presidents and there was this stuff goin’ around like, ‘Dana’s mad-doggin’ President Obama.’ President Obama turned around—the only president that did—and shook my hand, and said, ‘congratulations on all your success.’ And I said, ‘thank you very much, Mr. President.’”

He added, “The sitting president or an ex-president of the United States wants to come to your event, you treat them with respect.”