Sports
UFC president Dana White does not see a vibrant future for Barstool Sports following getting purchased out by Penn Entertainment earlier this year.
Through a Wednesday look on “The Pat McAfee Show,” White appeared to disapprove of Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy’s choice to sell the business to Penn Entertainment and explained why bringing in corporate “suits” is undesirable for small business.
It came a single day following Portnoy revealed on “The Kirk Minihane Show” that his contract is up in 20 months, and he’s not certain if he will attain an extension with the parent business.
“I would substantially rather do this show than any of the linear Television shows out there,” White stated of “The Pat McAfee Show,” which is moving to ESPN in a multimillion-dollar deal anticipated to start in the fall, The Post’s Andrew Marchand reported. “It’s substantially, substantially greater.
“Let me inform you what, after you begin to get suits involved in your small business and these f–king corporate guys who assume know what they’re f–king doing… and most of them do not know jack s–t.
UFC president Dana White on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Might 24, 2023. Twitter
“… You are gonna see it with Barstool more than the subsequent couple of years as well. They came in and they purchased it out, they purchased Portnoy out.
“I had a scenario yesterday with Barstool and it is turning into a corporate f–king s–t-show as well. It is what takes place when you get these f–king suits involved in your small business.”
White and his former small business partners, Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, sold UFC to Endeavor in 2016 and partnered with ESPN on a blockbuster Television deal in 2019.
Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports is observed in attendance through the UFC 281 occasion at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2022 in New York City. Zuffa LLC
White’s comments sparked rumors that he ended his connection with Barstool Sports, and the UFC boss cleared the air through a press conference for his TBS competitors show, “Power Slap.”
“No, that is not correct,” White told reporters on Wednesday. “Listen, what I stated these days on Pat McAfee was not about Barstool Sports it was about Penn Gaming.
“Basically what I’m saying is, when you make a business like Barstool Sports, the way that it was constructed with a guy like Dave Portnoy, after you get a bunch of suits involved… it just alterations the dynamic of the entire factor. Ask Vice how that went.”
Dana White speaks with the press following the occasion at UFC Apex for UFC Vegas 73 – Dern vs Hill occasion on Might 20, 2023, in Las Vegas, NV. Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photos
Penn, a brick-and-mortar casino business, acquired 36 % of Barstool Sports from The Chernin Group for $163 million in early 2020 and purchased the remainder of the business for an more $388 million in February 2023.
Prior to White’s Wednesday look on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Portnoy played coy about his future with Barstool Sports whilst discussing its parent business.
“Who knows exactly where I’ll be in three-five years,” Portnoy stated. “I assume Dan [Katz], which I would say is incredibly superior for Barstool, is clearly locked in for a incredibly lengthy time. He’s generating this big fantasy factory there. I assume it is terrific for Barstool.”
Portnoy stated he has no finish-date in thoughts for his time at Barstool, adding that his contract is up in 20 months from Might.
“There’s been some speak about it. Like you stated [previously], who knows what they’re pondering at this point,” he stated.
Portnoy — who founded Barstool Sports in 2003 as a absolutely free print tabloid for transit commuters in the Boston region — previously addressed backlash that he is a “sellout” following the controversial firing of host Ben Mintz for rapping a racial slur on a reside stream.
“So I got every single Tom, Dick and Harry considering that this Mintzy factor saying, ‘Pres, you are a sellout. Hey Pres, you sold out,’” Portnoy stated in a video on Twitter, admitting that is specifically what he did. “You’re just figuring that out? I began a business and I f–king sold it the f–k out. Created hundreds of millions, created millions for everyone that grinded.
Warning: Explicit Language
“Yeah we sold the f–k out due to the fact that is what you do when you are an entrepreneur. You begin this tiny business you dream a single day and you sell it the f–k out. Still signifies this choice sucks. I hate it, it tends to make me want to puke.
“But guess what, when I sold out, a couple words, a couple items is incredibly clear: you say these items, these choices are no longer mine. I cannot safeguard you, you know why, due to the fact I sold out.”
Portnoy previously stated he disagreed with Penn CEO Jay Snowden about the choice to fire Mintz, adding that the move could be a “death blow” to Barstool’s reputation.
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