Renowned MMA reporter Ariel Helwani has reacted to UFC President Dana White‘s recent media scrum surrounding the New Year’s Eve altercation with his wife.
White has begun 2023 shrouded in controversy owing to a physical confrontation with his partner Anne at a nightclub in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. During a heated argument, the pair were seen exchanging slaps in footage obtained and released by TMZ.
For the first time since the interview he conducted alongside the emergence of the video, White addressed the incident publicly on Wednesday during a surprise appearance at UFC Vegas 67 media day.
In his initial address, White reiterated his stance on his actions and dismissed the notion that any form of defense is acceptable. While those remarks were praised, some others during questioning from the media caused further debate.
Most prominently, that surrounded talk of a possible punishment, with the UFC president suggesting that the consequences for the domestic violence incident is the fact that he has to live with what he did and with the label of it.
Helwani, however, has disputed the claim that the ‘crime’ can be the same as the punishment.
Helwani: White Isn’t Getting Punished
During Wednesday’s episode of The MMA Hour, host Helwani watched and reacted to White’s media scrum. While he respected the 53-year-old’s decision to face reporters, the Canadian wasn’t impressed with his self-assessment of any potential punishment.
After hearing the presser comments, which included a claim that departing the UFC would punish the promotion and its fighters rather than him, Helwani concluded that there won’t be any form of consequence for White.
“I feel like the takeaway here is nothing’s going to happen,” Helwani said. “In no walk of life (is the action the same as the punishment)… Just because you live with something, that doesn’t mean that it’s a punishment. You could say that to any criminal then. ‘Oh, you’re gonna have to live with the fact that you hit that person while drunk driving.’ No, you have to pay the consequences.
“It’s not just the feelings world that we’re living in here. I certainly don’t think he subscribes to that. Again, I feel you have to recognize and respect the fact that he is up there facing the music… But it’s not on him to decide punishment,” Helwani added. “This idea that we’re gonna ask him to punish himself or want to know what he thinks the punishment is, or his justification that, ‘Because I have to live with my actions, that’s punishment enough,’ doesn’t fly.”
Alongside a clip of himself reaction to the scrum, Helwani shared the same sentiment in an Instagram post, insisting that we all face repercussions for our actions — ones that we don’t get to decide for ourselves.
Do you agree with Ariel Helwani’s takeaway from Dana White’s media scrum?
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