WASHINGTON, DC, November 7, 2026 — President Donald Trump offered the White House press secretary role to UFC President and CEO Dana White in a Truth Social post Saturday, naming six mixed martial arts fighters as potential assistants to “defend us against the Lunatic Left.” White, 57, has not publicly accepted but posted an image of himself at the briefing room podium captioned “On to the next chapter.”
A Quarter-Century Alliance
The offer extends a relationship that began in 2001 when Trump’s Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City hosted a UFC event at a time when the sport was banned in 36 states. New Jersey was among the few that sanctioned it. Since then, Trump has attended multiple UFC cards, including four as sitting president. White introduced Trump at the 2024 Republican National Convention and spoke at the 2016 and 2020 conventions. In June, the UFC held its Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn, where lightweight champion Justin Gaethje — one of the fighters Trump named Saturday — won the main event.
From $2 Million to TKO Group Holdings
White’s business trajectory mirrors the combat sports industry’s mainstream ascent. Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta purchased the UFC for $2 million in 2001 and installed White as president. He co-created the reality series *The Ultimate Fighter* in 2004 to broaden the brand’s appeal. The promotion sold in 2016 for $4 billion to a consortium led by WME-IMG, with White retained as president. He assumed the CEO title in 2023 after a reorganization into TKO Group Holdings. Forbes estimated his net worth at over $600 million in 2025. Beyond the UFC, White runs Power Slap, a slap-fighting promotion founded in 2022, co-founded Zuffa Boxing in 2025, and joined Meta Platforms’ board of directors the same year.
A Promoter’s Media Playbook
White’s public-facing style was forged in fight promotion: confrontational, personality-driven, and built for conflict. He routinely spars with reporters at press conferences, dismisses critical coverage, and uses social media to bypass traditional outlets. The Power Slap venture, criticized by some as spectacle over sport, reinforced a communications model that treats attention as the primary metric. On Saturday, Trump echoed that language, calling White “a violent Fighter and Warrior” who would be “a Press Secretary like none other.”
A Revolving Door at the Podium
The press secretary role has been vacant since Karoline Leavitt departed in August 2025 after seven months, citing family reasons following the birth of her second child. She joined Fox News as a contributor in November. During her maternity leave, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent held briefings. Katie Zacharia succeeded Leavitt but lasted five days — the shortest tenure in White House history — after scrutiny over her legal credentials and a briefing that lasted five minutes. Trump said Zacharia told him, “this is a lot tougher,” to which he replied, “welcome to the world of Trump.”
What a Sports-Promoter Strategy Means for the Briefing Room
Trump’s proposal to install fighters as “assistants” — Islam Makhachev, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Justin Gaethje, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, and Kayla Harrison, whose name Trump misspelled as “Kayla Harris” — signals a briefing room staged as a corner. Harrison, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and UFC bantamweight champion, is scheduled to defend her title at UFC 334 next week. The UFC did not respond to requests for comment from multiple outlets Saturday.
Sources
- Trump Offers Press Secretary Role to UFC CEO Dana White, Asks That He Bring Assistants to ‘Defend Us Against the Lunatic Left’
- Dana White
- Trump claims he offered job of White House press secretary to UFC CEO Dana White
- Donald Trump offers White House press secretary job to UFC CEO Dana White
- Trump Offers Press Secretary Role to UFC CEO Dana White, Asks That He Bring Assistants to ‘Defend Us Against the Lunatic Left’
- 'Dana please take the job': Trump offers UFC boss press secretary role, asks for six fighters
Photo: Andrius Petrucenia (CC BY-SA 2.0)
