“Need to develop a replacement plan for Dana” - Antitrust lawsuit unearths explosive email from UFC parent company executive

The ongoing anti-trust lawsuit against the UFC has resulted in plenty of information being made public, and the most recent piece of information dealt with the potential successor for Dana White.

The current UFC CEO remained in his role as president of the promotion following WME's purchase from Zuffa in 2016. However, there were a number of emails that were recently unearthed following an order from a federal judge, showing that WME executive Brent Richard raised several issues and risks facing the UFC before the media company eventually went through with the purchase.

Among the issues and risks listed were a fighter lawsuit, injuries that lead to CTE or death, pay-per-view volatility, competition in the market, and White. The email appeared to stress that there was a need for eventual change in terms of who would be calling the shots in the promotion.

Richard wrote:

"Need to develop a retention, transition, and ultimately replacement plan for Dana [White]." [h/t MMA Fighting]

Screenshot of WME executive Brent Richard's email [mmafighting.com]

The findings from the email indicate that the WME executive was under the impression that there would eventually be a need for a successor to White. That didn't end up happening, as White signed a new long-term deal in 2019.

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MMAFA founder Rob Maysey outlines how long the UFC anti-trust lawsuit trail will last

Rob Maysey has been vocal about the UFC anti-trust lawsuit and the need for change in MMA.

During an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, the Mixed Martial Arts Fighters Association (MMAFA) founder and attorney outlined when the trial proceedings will begin and how long it will last before a ruling is made:

"Both parties... stipulated to the judge that they believe the trial will last 4-5 weeks. So, that's what the judge is sort of calendaring in his schedule when he set April 9 as the start of our trial. He's contemplating April 9 going weeks out, that's our block of time for the trial... This should be resolved within the next year or so."

Watch the interview below (18:56-19:36)