Dana White stands by what he said about suits ruining great businesses on the Pat McAfee Show earlier this week. But he clarified that when he mentioned issues at Barstool Sports, that was not criticism for that specific brand. His problem is with Penn Gaming, which acquired Barstool earlier this year.
“I had a situation yesterday with Barstool and it’s turning into a corporate f***ing shitshow too,” he said on McAfee’s Thursday show. “It’s what happens when you get these f***ing suits involved in your business.”
Earlier in the conversation, White implied that he was worried about what may happen to the show once McAfee and crew move to ESPN. He said, “most of them don’t know jack shit” when talking about executives in the entertainment space.
Later that evening at a UFC press conference, Dana White was asked about his comments about Barstool. He clarified that he is not ending the relationship between that company and the UFC.
“Basically what I’m saying is, when you build a company like Barstool Sports, the way that it was built with a guy like Dave Portnoy, once you get a bunch of suits involved… it just changes the dynamic of the whole thing,” he said. “Ask Vice how that went.”
During an appearance on The Kirk Minihane Show this week, Dave Portnoy raised questions about his future with Barstool Sports. He said his contract is up in 20 months. He is not confident that Penn Entertainment will renew it.
