In a recent interview with the Associated Press, UFC President Dana White discussed the potential opportunities for growth following the announcement of the impending WWE-UFC merger under the Endeavor Group. He said,
“You have the power of the fanbase of WWE. You have the power of the fanbase of UFC. You have the power of the viral. I don’t even know what the hell this thing is yet, the viral ability and whatever that fanbase is going to be for Power Slap. We can reach all these people in so many different ways. There is a lot more resources now. WWE has a lot more resources. It’s a phone call away now. All they have to do is pick up the phone now and say, ‘Hey, how did this happen? I need this. I need this contact. How did you do this?’ You all work together to make sure that everybody wins. We’ve been together on the same weekend many times. Come out of a UFC event, you have Monday Night Raw. Who knows. These are all things that can be figured out on the business side.”
White then proceeded to highlight the difference between WWE and the UFC, making it clear that since UFC is legitimate competition as opposed to professional wrestling, “there won’t really be any type of crossover.” He said,
“The difference between UFC and WWE is, if you look at the WWE, they have an entertainment value, and they have these guys that are incredible athletes that go in there and do their thing. It’s well known that it’s scripted. When you look at the UFC, this is as real as it gets. That’s our tagline. You have these guys that are incredible athletes that have to be well-rounded and well-versed in all these different aspects of martial arts. Then you have the entertainment side of it too, but it’s real fighting, it’s real. There are no predetermined outcomes in the UFC. There won’t really be any type of crossover.”
