Dana White predicts issues for Barstool Sports after Dave Portnoy buyout
In an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show“, Dana White explained how executives can ruin a creative media product. More importantly, however, was the example he provided: Barstool Sports, without David Portnoy at the helm.
McAfee, who recently agreed to a broadcast deal with ESPN, asked White for his experience working with Disney. White then explained why executives (aka suits) can present issues in business partnerships.
“Let me tell you what, once you start to get suits involved in your business and these f–king corporate guys who think know what they’re f–king doing… and most of them don’t know jack s–t.
“You’re gonna see it with Barstool over the next couple of years too. They came in and they bought it out, they bought Portnoy out.
“I had a situation yesterday with Barstool and it’s turning into a corporate f–king s–t-show too. It’s what happens when you get these f–king suits involved in your business.”
Quote via New York Post
White’s example of Barstool Sports is certainly warranted. Penn Entertainment recently completed its buyout of Barstool Sports. For Portnoy, that is a massive payday, but it has also put his position in the company in question. Previously, Portnoy sat atop Barstool Sports and had full creative control. That difference will likely result in changes at Barstool Sports, which may be for the better. That said, if your opinion of the suits is anything similar to White’s, you would probably disagree.
The changes at Barstool Sports can already be seen. The company recently fired Ben Mintz for saying the word that a white person cannot say and he did it during a live stream. I am not here to debate if Mintz should have been fired. That is not up to me. The note-worthy aspect is that Penn Entertainment wanted to fire Mintz while Portnoy disagreed. At the end of the day, Portnoy, the company’s founder, did not get the final call.
White later clarified his statements at the Power Slap 2 Post-Fight Press Conference where he made it a point to say his issue was with Penn Entertainment, not Barstool Sports.
“No, that’s not true,” White told reporters on Wednesday. “Listen, what I said today on Pat McAfee was not about Barstool Sports it was about Penn Gaming.
“Basically what I’m saying is, when you build a company like Barstool Sports, the way that it was built with a guy like Dave Portnoy, once you get a bunch of suits involved… it just changes the dynamic of the whole thing. Ask Vice how that went.”
Quote via New York Post
If you have not got the memo, let me clarify. If you start something unique or interesting and lead that product to success, once you sell out, the suits will burry your product into the ground. So, do not be a sellout unless you are ready to call it quits.
If the suits running Barstool Sports was not enough, the company is losing a lot of its top talent. The company very quickly transitioned from entertainment to meaningless nonsense meant to farm social media clicks.
Why do you think Alex Bennett are Jordyn Woodruff were so willing to brag about not washing their hands? As much as people like Kelly Keegs try to keep the ship afloat, it is sinking quickly. Real talent like Caleb Pressley can only do so much when the company hires useless people while letting the suits run the show.
Is Dana White correct about Barstool Sports? Probably. Do not be afraid to comment if you disagree.
***
CLICK HERE for more of our UFC/MMA content
Check out the Vendetta Shop
Subscribe to Vendetta’s YouTube
