Dana White hoped one UFC fighter would lose in 2025: ‘They don’t like me and I don’t like them’

Dana White isn’t shy in admitting he wanted a member of the UFC roster to lose as recently as 2025.

White has made it clear that some fighters have gotten on his bad side. He’s long admitted that he took joy in watching Chuck Liddell finish Tito Ortiz when both men were in their prime under the UFC banner. While some believe White has toned down his animosity for some fighters, that didn’t stop him from hoping one of them would lose a fight last year.

During a radio appearance with Big Boy, White said an unnamed member of the UFC roster drew his ire enough to hope for a defeat.

“That’s a great question,” White said. “Probably the middle of last year. Listen, we have almost 1,000 guys under contract. They don’t all like me and I don’t like all of them either. So, it’s totally normal.”

Fans on social media have quickly speculated on who White is referring to. @GamblersDream on X shared a popular opinion on the fighter in question.

“Bryce Mitchell. Obvious.”

@dseanmac appeared to lean towards that theory, but stopped short of agreeing.

“Was going to say Bryce after the hitler thing but that was April and I think he likes Dana.”

MMA journalist Blaine Henry chimed in with his own answer, which has gotten some fans thinking.

“[Magomed] Ankalaev.”

It’s unknown whether or not White has any plans of revealing who he hoped would be defeated last year. One also can’t rule out the possibility that the UFC CEO will have another fighter in his dog house who he hopes gets his comeuppance.

While some have criticized White for publicly admitting he hopes to see certain fighters lose, others believe there is no harm in telling the truth as long as it doesn’t actually impact the outcome of fights.