A number of fighters have contracted (and thankfully beaten) COVID-19. Now, UFC President Dana White is the latest to test positive for the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
White, 52, revealed the news on The Jim Rome Podcast on Wednesday. Members of White’s immediate family have tested positive as well.
The longtime UFC chief told Rome on episode #200 of the podcast that he believed he’d contracted the virus while visiting family in Maine for Thanksgiving. “Somebody up there had it. And we get back, and we all tested positive for COVID. Literally the whole family. And my family up in Maine too. So other than that, everybody’s awesome.”
This past Sunday, White explained, he realized he had lost his sense of smell. His first call, he said, was to Joe Rogan. Rogan advised White to get tested as soon as he got up the following morning, and recommended monoclonal antibodies and an NAD drip. White did all of it.
White also revealed that he was fully vaccinated, but contracted the disease regardless. He’s now isolating, but stated that by Tuesday, his sense of taste and smell had returned. “Could not feel better. Feel like a million bucks. I’m doing two-a-day workouts by the way too, for the next 10 days, while I have COVID and I’m quarantined.”
As to why he called Rogan first? White explained that “I’m vaccinated. It’s not like I’m some crazy anti-vaxx conspiracy theorist or any of that stuff. But Rogan is a very brilliant guy, very smart guy who talks to the best and the brightest out there.”
White continued by saying that he’s not “a believer in the narrative, but at the end of the day, Jim, this is a free country. What happens is, if you get this stuff, they tell you ‘stay home for the next 10 days until you don’t test positive.’ That doesn’t seem smart to me. Again, just like when we went through COVID, I believe in finding solutions to problems and answers. Rogan has worked with over 30 or 40 people who have done this, and he swears by this. And he’s a good friend of mine that I’ve known for over 20 years, so I believe in what he’s saying. The things that he explained to me on how these things work made sense to me.”
The UFC is in action this weekend in Las Vegas, with the Apex hosting UFC Vegas 44 on Saturday. Based on White’s quarantine requirement, it seems unlikely he’ll be in attendance.
