ESPN E:60's Segment on Dana White, Was It Good or Bad?

As most of you probably know, ESPN's E:60 had a special on Dana White tonight. My first thoughts on this special came as soon as I saw the first commercial. I immediately thought "Great, because ESPN hasn't done enough to make sure people don't watch the sport."

I couldn't have been more wrong.

The show was very well put together, and ESPN did a great job of getting as many interviews and opinions as they could get. Guys like Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White, and even Pat Miletich, which I found very surprising.

I figured that they would portray Dana White as a profane, illiterate, psycho that blurts out whatever crazed thought that crosses his mind. And they would have been right to do so considering...

But instead of taking that route, they decided to look at all the good Dana has done, and even let Dana reflect on his comments towards Loretta Hunt. Of course, he still has no regrets pertaining to Loretta, but he did continue to apologize to the Gay and Lesbian community.

We were shown a different side of Dana as well.

Back in the days before the Las Vegas and the UFC, Dana was living in Boston and apart of a pretty dangerous background involving the mob. He says that one day he just got so afraid of the mobsters, that claimed he owed them money, that he just packed a single suitcase and left for Vegas. Leaving all of his other belongings behind.

It was in Las Vegas that Dana was introduced to MMA, and eventually entranced by it. Then of course came the story about how he convinced the Fertittas to buy the UFC, blah blah blah...present day.

Of course terms like "human cockfighting" were used, as well as a ridiculous usage of the Loretta Hunt rant video. And when I say ridiculous, I'm not exaggerating.

That may have been my only problem with the segment. The video was shown probably three or four times, even the most explicit parts, where non-stop beeping is all you can hear, was shown.

It was nice how they allowed Loretta Hunt to speak her piece. She was very professional about it all, especially considering the words/verbal spears Dana chucked at her.

One thing that actually caught me off guard was the usage of fighter interviews, and who they chose. Pat Miletich and Tito Ortiz were the only two fighters chosen, and both had very harsh words pertaining to Dana.

I'm not quite sure why ESPN decided to delve into Dana and Tito's battle over back surgery payment. Quite frankly, it made Dana look very ungrateful. Why they couldn't grab a guy like ESPN.coms MMA Live host Kenny Florian, I don't know. I'm sure Kenny would have said something nice. Hmmm, maybe that's why they didn't interview him.

Now, I must admit, I was a little skeptical about how this thing would turn out. I mean, I've had my fair share of gripes with ESPN and their awful MMA coverage, but this segment definitely looked like a step in the right direction.

It was very professional with seemingly no bias whatsoever. All sides were adequately spoken for, and the UFC was left unscathed. Was this a milestone accomplishment for the UFC? Depends on your view.

If you consider ESPN doing a very well researched and intelligent segment on the UFC a milestone, then by all means mission accomplished.

In my opinion, this E:60 segment was not really a big deal. Nothing positive will come of it, although nothing negative will come either. It won't have any kind of cultural impact, nor will it be remembered as a turning point for the UFC. Hell, it may not even be remembered next week.

All in all, good show and good representation of Dana White and the UFC. It showed Dana for who he is. He is not Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL or David Stern, Commissioner of the NBA. He is Dana White, President of the UFC, and he has no want to be like any other sports authority. People may hate him for it, but others will admire him.