How good at boxing was Dana White?

To many people, Dana White is the president of the UFC – but during his younger years, he was supposedly a very talented boxer. Interestingly, this claim is doubted by others – whilst certain people like Joe Rogan have gone on record to praise Dana White’s earlier boxing career as an amateur.

In this article, we shall explore these ideas and look at both sides of the story. We shall also look at Dana White’s general fighting background which is pretty appropriate, considering he founded the UFC which is MMA’s biggest fight promotion on earth.

What was Dana White’s boxing record?

According to Joe Rogan, Dana White was an amateur champion. Remember though, Joe Rogan is sometimes known for overexaggerating, so this is a real possibility in this case. When Dana White was once questioned by a reporter regarding his boxing past, he replied that his record was “something like 13–4″.

What’s worth mentioning is that White was born in 1969 – so he was probably boxing in the late 80s and early 90s. Back then, we’re talking pre-internet so records on amateur fighters weren’t freely available unlike they are today. With this said, it’s not too surprising that Dana White’s record isn’t publically available.

At the same time, it’s a little weird that White wouldn’t remember his own record too well. Whilst he’s had a genuinely busy life and it was many years ago, it’s still a bit weird to forget things like this. Still, the likelihood is that he probably did box for a short while on the amateur circuit at least.

Was Dana White a boxing champion?

As said, there’s no concrete record or evidence of Dana White’s amateur boxing record. Still, this doesn’t mean he’s lying and as mentioned, things weren’t recorded as easily back in the day. What we can deduce though, is that he probably wasn’t a fantastic amateur boxer either. In short, if he was someone who could have turned professional then you’d have probably heard at least something at some point.

However, this isn’t the case. Instead, it’s very possible that Dana White won a few interclub boxing bouts or fairly low level boxers – yet wasn’t exactly a prodigy on the amateur scene either. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with this and it’s not a put-down to White either. Instead, it’s probably a realistic take on what happened.

Sadly, the truth is that we’ll probably never know how good Dana White was at boxing during his prime. Having said this, let’s give him some credit – based on what we know he could probably destroy the average Joe in a fight or boxing match, and he certainly knew his stuff.

Dana White vs Tito Ortiz boxing match

The Dana White Vs Tito Ortiz boxing match was one of MMA’s ‘nearly moments’ that sadly never materialized. Interestingly, the two were once good friends and White even acted as Tito’s manager in his earlier UFC days. However, when Dana White’s power grew stronger within the organization, the pair fell out. Eventually, Ortiz quit the UFC but returned on the promise that he would fight Dana White in a televised boxing match.

This never happened and since then, both men have accused the other of backing out. Like Dana’s boxing record, we’ll probably never get to the bottom of this one. As a result, many people have pondered who would win in this ruleset. On the one hand, Tito Ortiz was a UFC champion and a professional fighter. On the other, Dana White is a boxing specialist and this would have taken place in a setting more comfortable for him (inside a ring, as opposed to MMA rules).

Really, the winner depends on how well you value Dana White as a boxer. If you’re skeptical of his amateur record then you’d favor Ortiz. However, stranger things have happened and Jake Pauls boxing wins against Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley prove that MMA doesn’t always translate well to boxing. In general, many fans are divided on who would win this hypothetical fight.

What other martial arts does Dana White know?

Aside from boxing, Dana White has never really trained in other martial arts. In brief, he mostly just loves boxing but still respects other styles. In other words, he’s got a good knowledge of all the disciplines that are used in MMA. So, he’ll know most of the submissions used in BJJ, and the takedowns used in wrestling. However, this doesn’t mean that he trains them.

At the same time, it would only be right to label Dana White a martial artist. As he devoted many years of his earlier life to boxing, he is certainly a martial artist in that sense. Nonetheless, it would be unfair to call Dana White a mixed martial artist, as he’s more of a boxing fanatic.

Is Dana White a good fighter?

As established, Dana White could easily hold his own in a fight. It’s no secret that boxing is great for self defense and he’s trained it for many years. With this said, he could easily beat untrained fighters – even during his 50s.

Another reason for this is the sheer size and power of Dana White. Despite his busy lifestyle, he’s always managed to stay in good shape and is very muscular. This has often caused UFC fans to speculate whether he’s used steroids over the years, as even when he gets older – he’s continued to be very muscular.

Apparently Dana White walks around at 95KG too which shows that he’s a big man. What’s more, Dana White is only 5’9 feet in height, so he’s not exactly a tall man. This means he’s got a very stocky build and packs a lot of power. Combined with his boxing background and technique – as well as in-ring experience means that he knows how to fight and take a punch. As a result, fighting Dana White would not be an easy task for the average person.

Dana White the boxing coach

What is known about Dana White’s boxing past is that he used to teach people boxing and even taught boxercise. For those that don’t know, boxercise is a mixture of boxing techniques, alongside cardio-based movements. This was popular during the 90s and often appealed to a more casual demographic who were interested in fitness and boxing, without wanting the grueling nature that sparring demanded.

For a while, Dana White made a living as a boxing coach but this ended in a dramatic fashion. Two associates of the Irish gangster Whitey Bulger tried to extort him for thousands of dollars. Overnight, White left Boston for Las Vegas where he eventually went on the create the UFC. Who knows, without this shakedown attempt, Dana White may have stayed in Boston and continued his boxing career – and the UFC may have never been founded.

These days, White doesn’t really box due to his busy schedule…but his son does. His one son has trained Muay Thai, whilst his other (Aidan White) has fought in amateur boxing where his father was his cornerman. So, it seems in this case that the White family legacy has continued to produce boxers.

Conclusion

Overall, it’s fair to say that Dana White is a skilled boxer and knows the technical side of the sweet science. It’s also fair to assume he fought a few times as an amateur and has gotten his hands dirty in that sense. At the same time, he’s perhaps not as skilled in boxing as some make out and probably couldn’t have been a professional. Still, as he went on to be a coach then it does indicate that his knowledge of the game is strong enough for people to train and learn under him.

Hopefully, this article has helped separate fact from fiction. As we’ve seen throughout, sadly there are a lot of grey areas when it comes to Dana White’s boxing past so we’ll probably never know the full story.