Dana White reacts to UFC 251 PPV numbers, labels Jorge Masvidal a “massive star”

UFC President Dana White has reacted to the massive success of the UFC 251 card, which is reported to have done 1.3M pay-per-view buys.

The card, which was headlined by a welterweight title fight between champion Kamaru Usman and short-notice challenger Jorge Masvidal, went down last Saturday on the UFC’s much-discussed Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.

“It was a very successful event,” White said when asked about the UFC PPV buy rate for UFC 251 (via MMA Fighting). “We’re happy. This thing killed it across the board in every way you could possibly kill it. It was awesome. The thing did really well.”

The UFC boss also discussed the explosion in popularity of Masvidal, who is widely credited as the driver for UFC 251’s success.

Masvidal was recently involved in a heated contract dispute with the UFC, but was able to negotiate a new contract before stepping in on short-notice to fight Usman. White concedes that the outspoken welterweight has become “a big star.”

That said, White isn’t willing to attribute UFC 251’s success exclusively to Masvidal. He believes that Usman and the whole atmosphere of Fight Island also helped drum up interest.

“I said it to you guys the other night, when you put on a fight, a successful promotion of an event, it’s a big melting pot of different things,” White explained. “’Fight Island’ was a massive star in this thing. Masvidal is a massive star. Obviously, Usman, the champion and a guy that we’re all start to realize is tough to beat and a great card underneath.

“It all came together perfectly. It was a major success. Everybody’s healthy. It’s all good. Literally not one negative thing that I could point out.”

What do you think of these comments from Dana White? How much of a role do you think Jorge Masvidal had in the financial success of UFC 251?