CLEVELAND — Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, boosted Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention, where the billionaire businessman has officially been nominated as the party’s presidential candidate.
During a speech at the event on Tuesday, White recalled how he started the UFC and the hand Trump had in it.
“Nobody took us seriously, nobody,” White said. “Except Donald Trump. Donald was the first guy that recognized the potential that we saw in the UFC and encouraged us to build our business.”
White said that Trump would often send notes of encouragement to him but that his interest in the business is personal rather than financial.
“You can really tell a person’s true character when they’re happy for somebody else’s true success,” he said. He said that Trump’s “sense of loyalty and commitment will translate into how he will run this country.”
Trump, an outsider to politics until he ran for the presidency, has often used sports celebrities to draw attention to his campaign, including retired Indiana college basketball coach Bobby Knight and famed boxing promoter Don King.
