White To Join President’s Task Force To Help Economy

Due to the coronavirus, the United States has seen a hit in the economy as well as general entertainment. All major sports have been postponed, with combat sports moving around events daily. The President is looking to use sports figures as a way to boost the former of the two.

During his daily coronavirus task force press conference, President Donald Trump named an extensive list of sports leaders to help restart the United Staes economy. Two names that come in mind: WWE’s Vince McMahon and the UFC’s Dana White.

“In sports – we want to get our sports back, so importantly… we have to get our sports back,” Trump stated. “I’m tired of watching baseball games that are 14 years old. But I haven’t actually had too much time to watch. I would say maybe I watch one bater and then I get back to work.”

“The NBA, Adam Silver. Major League Baseball – we miss our baseball… Rob Manfred, thank you very much. NFL, Roger Goodell, thank you, Roger. UFC, Dana White, the great Dana White. PGA, Jay Monahan. LPGA, Michael Whan. USTA, Patrick Galbraith. Major League Soccer, Don Garber. WWE, the great Vince McMahon. NASCAR, Lesa Kennedy. NHL, Gary Bettman. From the New England Patriots: Bob Kraft, Dallas Cowboys: Jerry Jones, Dallas Mavericks: Mark Cuban.”

Trump and the UFC have a history with one another. The President has been a supporter of the UFC long before major figures were, and recently went to UFC 244 in New York City, featuring Jorge Masvidal v. Nate Diaz for the BMF Title. He became the first sitting President to go to a UFC event. Trump was also one of the first people to welcome the organization to Atlantic City. In an interview with MMA Junkie a few years back, Dana reflected on that time when he first joined the UFC.

“When we first bought this company, no venues would even take us,” White stated. “Donald Trump was the first guy to say, ‘We’ll do the fights here.’

“Donald Trump gave us our first shot over at [his arena], and then when we left and went to a bigger arena at the Meadowlands, he was one of the first guys there in his seat. He watched the whole card.”

The UFC has been affected by the coronavirus in a number of ways. The organization had to postpone three events last month. After finding a way to hold UFC 249, the event in California was postponed following a call to top executives at Disney. Now, Dana White is potentially looking to follow McMahon’s lead and hold events in Florida.

Trump is looking to reopen the country on May 1, with White looking for the UFC to come back on May 9. When it comes to the event, it may very well be closed off to fans due to the coronavirus.

The team is scheduled to meet in a conference call later today (Wednesday, April 15). Stay tuned as more information should be revealed regarding the call and the group in general.