UFC president Dana White admitted to slapping his wife, Anne, on New Year's Eve after a video of the incident went viral online.
White spoke exclusively with TMZ Sports -- who obtained and shared the video -- on Monday (January 2) and confirmed that he was the man shown slapping a woman in the face on a balcony.
"I’m in Cabo, Mexico for the holidays with my family, and my wife and I were out with family on New Year’s Eve, and unfortunately that’s what happened," White said (h/t Yahoo Sports). "I’m one of the guys, you've heard me say for years. There’s never, ever an excuse for a guy to put his hands on a woman. And now here I am on TMZ talking about it."
The video shows a woman with her head in her hands before turning to slap White in the face, who then retaliates before bystanders intervene to separate the two.
White confirmed that alcohol was involved during the incident and that he didn't "remember a lot."
“There was definitely a lot of alcohol, but there’s no excuse,” White said. “I’m literally making no excuses for this thing at all. It’s never happened before. It’s the first time that it’s ever happened, and people are going to say what they’re going to say. It is what it is. And whatever people do say, it’s deserved. I deserve it. It happened.
"I don’t know why it happened. My wife and I have apologized to each other. We’ve apologized to our kids.”
Anne White provided a statement to TMZ Sports claiming that the incident was out of character for her husband.
"Dana and I have been married for almost 30 years. To say this is out of character for him is an understatement -- nothing like this has ever happened before. Unfortunately, we were both drinking too much on New Year’s Eve and things got out of control, on both sides. We’ve talked this through as a family and apologized to each other. I just hope people will respect our privacy for the sake of our kids."
White has served as UFC's president since 2001, having signed a seven-year contract to remain in his position in March 2019, amid the promotion's broadcasting deal with ESPN.
Emmanuel Acho Rips Raiders For Benching Derek Carr: 'Bench Josh McDaniels'
Nick Wright: Why Eagles Fans Should Be Nervous Heading into the Postseason
Colin Cowherd on Eagles: 'They Can't Win Super Bowl Without Lane Johnson'
Colin Cowherd Says This Could Be the Perfect Team for Tom Brady Next Year
Colin Cowherd Ranks the Top 10 NFL Teams After Week 16
'Draymond is a Pansy': Jason Whitlock on Draymond Green Getting Fan Ejected
Former NFL Player Rips Dak Prescott: 'Dak is A**'
Emmanuel Acho Says Bill Belichick is Hurting His Legacy: 'He May Need to Retire'
MLB Insider: The Real Reason the San Francisco Giants Decided Not to Sign Carlos Correa
Colin Cowherd Blasts Lakers: 'It's Time to Consider Selling the Franchise'