Dana White won $1.2 million in 15 minutes during International Fight Week last year

If you were Dana White, who’s the first fighter you’d cut from the UFC roster?

White had a busy week in Las Vegas on that particular occasion; he had just finished up a bumper day that featured UFC 317 ceremonial weigh-ins, a launch press conference for Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford and a Power Slap event.

Dana White scores massive $1.2 million Baccarat win in front of CBS cameras

Any hardcore MMA fans who tuned into CBS Sunday Morning today in the hopes of learning some brand new information about Dana White likely would have left disappointed after his eight-minute profile on the show.

While issues such as fighter pay and the January 2023 incident where he slapped his wife were mentioned, he did little to delve into very many of the particulars. Instead, a general overview was given that heavily leaned on references to his well-documented friendship with President Donald Trump.

However, one interesting scene saw him take the cameras into a Las Vegas suite where he bet $1 million on a game of Baccarat on the Friday of International Fight Week 2025. He managed to score a big win, to the amazement of host Luke Burbank.

Asked about the result and winning $1.2 million within just 15 minutes, White replied with one of his famous catchphrases: “It definitely doesn’t suck.”

Dana White doesn’t always win big

While his many victories over casinos have become the stuff of legend, Dana White doesn’t always beat the house. His right hand man Hunter Campbell even told Adin Ross during a Brand Risk Promotions event that he sometimes begs him to stop during his late-night sessions.

You’re Dana White for the day. Who’s the first fighter you sign to the UFC? 👀

During the April 2025 broadcast, Campbell said: “I watch him and literally some days I’ll call him the next morning and say ‘I love you, I feel f—ing sick. I literally went home last night, it was three in the morning and I was physically sick watching what you did to yourself’.

“Even when he wins it’s like unnecessary trauma, I don’t understand. I don’t have that thing in me… I’m going to tell you what it is, it’s like being a fighter; you either are a gambler or you are not a gambler. It’s not about whether or not you have a risk tolerance or you’re a p—-, you either are or you are not.

“If you have that thing in you, which you [Ross] have for sure, and [Dana] has more than any human I’ve ever seen in my entire life, it’s who you are.”