A timeline of the UFC's ownership changes: From Fertittas to Zuffa and beyond 

In the 30-year history of the UFC, the sport of mixed martial arts has grown tremendously and the promotion's ownership has changed hands numerous times.

The UFC was co-founded by Art Davie, a fight fan and wealthy businessman who partnered with Gracie jiu-jitsu Grant Master Rorion Gracie to create a martial arts tournament. The promoted idea of UFC 1, which aired in 1993, was to provide one representative of each respected martial art and have every fighter compete in a contest to determine the most effective discipline in a 'real' fight.

The winner would ultimately be jiu-jitsu representative Royce Gracie, sparking rumors of the event being 'rigged' as an essential paid promotion for Gracie jiu-jitsu.

At the time, the UFC was then owned by the Sephamore Entertainment Group and would put on similar events until 2001. Then, Dana White would famously convince Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta to purchase the company and form Zuffa, LLC. White was then appointed as the president of the company. Contrary to what some believe, White does not own the UFC and never has.

Under the guidance of White and the Fertitta brothers, the UFC would expand its business with the addition of UFC Fight Pass, the UFC Performance Institute, the UFC GYMs and more.

After the success of The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC would rise to mainstream media and continue its advancement under the Fertitta brothers until 2016.

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Who owns the UFC today?

Since growing into a multi-billion dollar company, the UFC would then be sold by Zuffa to WME-IMG in 2016 for over $4 billion.

In accordance to the UFC website, the deal between Zuffa and WWE-IMG is the 'largest financial acquisition of a sports property' in history. Shortly after purchasing the UFC, WME-IMG would rebrand to Endeavor, as it is now known today.

However, though Endeavor is the current owner of the UFC, the company announced the forming of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. in April 2023 to manage the merging of the UFC and WWE.

The new company, TKO, is currently run by executive chairman and WWE co-founder Vince McMahon. White's job position remains the same though he was renamed as the CEO of the UFC.