UFC CEO Dana White has ruled out entering politics after President Donald Trump publicly offered him the position of White House press secretary, later admitting that the announcement was partly made in jest. Dana White will remain at the helm of the UFC after declining to take up the White House press secretary position offered by his longtime friend, President Donald Trump.
The situation took an unexpected turn on Monday, November 9, when White appeared alongside Trump during a White House press briefing. After days of speculation following the president’s announcement on social media, White made it clear that he had no intention of entering politics.
“Thank you for the offer, sir. I do not want to be in politics,” White told Trump when asked to respond to the proposed appointment.
Trump jokingly reacted by saying he was “devastated” before bringing the briefing to an end. The unusual job offer first emerged on Saturday, November 7, when Trump announced on Truth Social that he had offered White the role of White House press secretary. In his post, the president praised the UFC CEO and suggested that he could bring several prominent fighters, including Khabib Nurmagomedov, Islam Makhachev, Justin Gaethje, Daniel Cormier and Amanda Nunes, to serve as his assistants. Trump even encouraged White to accept the position, describing him as someone who would be a press secretary like no other.
However, the president clarified the following day that the announcement was not entirely serious. Speaking to reporters in Florida on Sunday, Trump said he was “only kidding” and described the idea as “just a little fun.” He explained that he had thought of White after experiencing what he described as a difficult day dealing with the press. The president also said the inclusion of UFC fighters as potential assistants should have made it clear that he was joking. Trump revisited the subject during Monday’s White House appearance, saying he was “sort of kidding” when he first mentioned White for the position.
“We were having a very bad press day and I don’t know why, I thought of his name, he’s been a friend for a long time,” Trump said. “I said I think I’m going to get Dana White to be my new press secretary. I said it to a group of the press and that was it. I was sort of kidding. “Then they wrote the stories as though I wasn’t kidding and then [Dana] was inundated and I was inundated. He was here anyway and we thought we’d have a little fun and we brought Dana here. He would be fantastic.”
Before making his position clear, White explained why he had not immediately responded to Trump’s announcement. The UFC boss said he had received calls from several media outlets but preferred to wait until the president addressed the matter himself.
“I don’t tell the president no to anything,” White said during the press briefing. “I didn’t say no. Literally every media outlet was calling me and I didn’t want to be disrespectful and say anything until he said something first.”
White and Trump have maintained a close relationship for more than two decades, dating back to the early days of the UFC’s expansion. Trump hosted UFC events at his Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City in 2001 and has remained a regular presence at major UFC events over the years. White also publicly supported Trump’s presidential campaigns, including speaking at the Republican National Convention in 2016, 2020 and 2024.
Their relationship reached another major moment in June 2026, when the UFC staged a historic event on the South Lawn of the White House as part of the celebrations marking America’s 250th anniversary.
Despite their longstanding friendship, White’s response makes it clear that he intends to remain focused on his work with the UFC rather than take up a political appointment. For now, the White House press secretary position remains without a permanent occupant.
