Dana White has declined that pay-per-view is dead, only 24 hours after announcing the groundbreaking deal of the UFC of $ 7.7 billion with Paramount+.
The UFC president initially declared the end of the pay-per-view model during the announcement of Monday of the seven-year-old Paramount Partnership. The deal makes all 13 numbered UFC events and 30 fighting evenings available on Paramount+ without extra costs from 2026, which marks what a definitive shift seemed to be of the PPV structure that has defined UFC programming since 1993.
Paramount+ Deal changes UFC Media Landscape, but Pay-per-View retains a role
Dana White had emphasized that the new scheme would eliminate the financial barriers for fans, which currently pay $ 79.99 on top of ESPN+ subscription costs to access Premium UFC events. TKO president Mark Shapiro continued and called Pay-per-View an “outdated” system and explained it “to the past”.
Dana White
However, by Tuesday, Dana White was already moderating attitude During interviews with multiple points of sale. Speaking to the New York Post, he offered a more nuanced perspective on PPVs future.
“What I like about this company is, I can impose what we think the fighting will be for a year, and a fight will pop up that I have never seen coming. A star will come out of something. Everything is possible. And you could do a one-off pay-per-view,” said White.
The UFC chef pointed to its immediate involvement with other combat sports companies to illustrate his point. “I’m going to be on pay-per-view this Saturday. Pay-per-view is not dead,” he said.
White’s fast reversal is because the UFC maintains multiple business interests outside his core MMA program. The organization remains involved in boxing promotion, Power Slap competitions and Jiu-Jitsu events, all of which can use the pay-per-view model.
The Paramount Deal is an important financial upgrade for UFC, so that the income of the media rights almost doubles from around $ 350 million a year that it receives from ESPN. However, White’s comments suggest that the organization wants to retain the flexibility for special events or cross-promotional possibilities that can justify premium prices.
The timing of the clarification of White has imposed criticism of observers in the industry who notice the apparent contradiction with the final statements of Monday about the fall of PPV. The quick change in messages took place less than 24 hours after the first announcement.
The Paramount Agreement officially starts in January 2026, where UFC will continue its current ESPN scheme until the rest of 2025. During this transition period, fans will still encounter the existing pay-per-view structure for numbered events.
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