Dana White Enters Vince McMahon's Territory: Does He Have A Chance In Hell?

UFC 205 in New York broke a number of attendance and sales records for both UFC and Madison Square Garden Co MSG. UFC 205 was the UFC’s first major event in New York after a ban on MMA was lifted in the state this year.

While UFC in NYC may be a relatively new phenomenon, New York has been the site of some of the biggest World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. WWE events for decades. Even before WWE became the international entertainment juggernaut it is today, the company was based in the Northeast. In fact, Madison Square Garden hosted the first-ever WrestleMania event back in 1985.

Now that UFC president Dana White is making a push into New York, he is invading WWE CEO Vince McMahon’s territory. However, the UFC and WWE will likely continue to opt for cooperation rather than competition.

UFC And WWE: Friends, Not Foes

White and McMahon have worked together closely in recent years to cross-promote events and superstars. Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey appeared at WrestleMania 31 in 2015. MMA and professional wrestling crossover superstar Brock Lesnar took a hiatus from WWE this year to fight for UFC in July.

White has said that McMahon has been difficult to work with in the past, but the relationship between the UFC and WWE has improved as of late.

“I would say that this last Brock deal and when Ronda went over and did WWE WrestleMania, those were the two out of all the years of dealing with Vince and everybody, those were probably the two best experiences,” White said of his relationship with WWE and McMahon.

Following UFC 205, WWE executive vice president of talent Paul “Triple H” Levesque said UFC superstar Conor McGregor has all the elements required to be a WWE performer.

“He’s got the personality, the skills, the talk. He’s an entertainer, for sure.”

With UFC likely to make a big push into New York in coming years, investors should expect even more cooperation between the UFC and WWE in the near future.