Dana White has apologised for slapping his wife in a club on New Year's Eve.
Dana White has spoken out
The 53-year-old UFC boss was filmed rowing with his wife Anne on Saturday night (31.01.22) at El Squid Roe in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico when she appears to react to something he said by slapping him, and he then slapped her back before they were split up.
Speaking to TMZ, he said: "My wife and I were out Saturday night on New Year's Eve. Unfortunately that is what happened.
"I am one of the guys who says there is never, ever an excuse for a guy to put his hands on a woman and now here I am on TMZ talking about it.
"This is one of those situations that is horrible. I am embarrassed. We have three kids and since the video popped up, we have shown the kids and we are more focused on our family right now.
"People are going to have their opinions on this and people's opinions would be right, especially in my case. You don't put your hands on a woman, ever."
In a statement to TMZ, his wife Anne is quoted as saying the couple have both "apologised".
She said: "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 apologised to each other."
It's unclear what the incident will mean for UFC's Las Vegas event on January 14, which White would be expected to attend.
However, he added: "My legacy and all this other stuff with work doesn’t mean anything to me. It’s all about your family. It’s about your wife and kids."
Back in 2014, the promotor insisted UFC fighters who were violent towards women wouldn't have a future in the company.
He said: "There’s one thing that you never bounce back from and that’s putting your hands on a woman.
"Been that way in the UFC since we started here. You don’t bounce back from putting your hands on a woman."