Dana White teases most important factor to influence UFC's plan for next year: "There are really big things working"

The UFC is as big as ever, with promotional CEO Dana White leading the way and taking the sport of MMA to astronomical heights. After yet another successful year, White is now planning for 2025.

In an interview with TNT Sports, White revealed that the UFC is looking to enter new territories next year and that 'Dana White's Contender Series' could feature some updates. However, the underlying factor remains the UFC's upcoming broadcasting deal negotiations.

“I'm looking to go to territories that we haven’t been to. What’s big about next year is our rights deal is up, so that’s going to be very interesting to see how this plays out over the next 12 months because that will play out in the next year. So, um, there’s really big things working with the UFC right now, you know, not just territories we haven’t been to. We’re looking at new deals, and obviously, you know, the talent that came off this season of the Contender Series. Every year, it’s fun to see who’s going to do."

The UFC's current broadcasting deal with ESPN expires next year. While White has hinted that re-signing with the sports network is on the table, the emergence of streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime in the live sports sphere is critical. Notably, the UFC and ESPN have had disagreements during their partnership, especially concerning pay-per-view pricing.

In the same interview, the UFC head honcho also touched on future events in the United Kingdom, especially with Tom Aspinall holding UFC gold.

"We talked about England being a very important market to us. He’s [Aspinall] a very important fighter in that market. We’ll see what happens in 2025."

Check out Dana White’s comments below (3:32):

---

Dana White comments on past issues with ESPN and current relationship

While Dana White has been critical of ESPN previously, it appears the world's leading MMA promotion and the global sports broadcasting juggernaut are on good terms.

In an interview with Sports Business Journal, the UFC CEO said:

"Yeah, everyone is kicking the tires. And over the however many last years that we’ve been together, I’ve had some headbutting with ESPN, but I feel like we are in a really good place right now and I’m really happy with my relationship with them and the way that this whole thing is running. We’ll see how it plays out... I think everyone is kicking the tires and is interested in making a bid."

While both parties share a good relationship, ESPN's $76 billion renewal with the NBA could complicate the finances of a potential renewal with the UFC.