The UFC is giving back to its hometown.
UFC president Dana White told ESPN on Monday that the mixed martial arts organization will donate $1 million to the families of the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas on Sunday that killed at least 59 people and injured 527 more. UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, and White said the first order of business at work Monday was checking in with every employee.
“At the end of the day, this is our city,” White said. “We love this place. The first thing when we got up this morning, everybody, personally, got it together and made sure anybody they know or love was OK. Then we came in here and made sure all of our employees are OK.
“Then you start thinking about this city, our hometown, and we felt we needed to do this. This is something we needed to do.”
The UFC has been linked to Las Vegas since 2001 when casino owners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta purchased it for $2 million, but there had been fights in the city even before then. White called the tragedy “disgusting” and assured Las Vegas would pick itself up.
“Las Vegas has (billionaire businessmen) Sheldon Adelson and Steve Wynn,” White told ESPN. “We have MGM Corporation and tons of other businesses that thrive in Las Vegas. We’ll take care of our own.
“If anyone else out there wants to help Las Vegas right now, plan that next trip. Don’t be afraid to come here. This city is safe. Tragedies are happening all over the world right now and it’s horrible, but don’t let it make you afraid to live.”
The next big UFC fight is UFC 217 between lightweights Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee set for Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
