Shaquille O’Neal made over $500 million through salaries and endorsements during his time in the NBA. A man of enormous wealth, O’Neal set a rule early in his career that he wouldn’t receive gifts, and stuck to this principle throughout his life. But during a recent episode of his podcast, the four-time champion admitted to breaking his life-long rule, for his billionaire friend Dana White.
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In the latest edition of The Big Podcast with Shaq, O’Neal had on UFC CEO, Dana White. But before the show could kick off, O’Neal announced that he had a confession to make, and told the entire set,
“Dana is the only person I ever received a gift from.”
Shaq explained how on a trip to Vegas a few years ago, White called him to meet. The Laker legend recalled being slightly intimidated by this summons, but upon arriving at his room, he was presented with a watch studded with diamonds from White and his business partner, Lorenzo Fertitta.
“I dont usually take it [the watch], that motherf**ker had so many diamonds, I had to take it. But you know what’s crazy I can’t find that watch.”
But O’Neal later claimed that he hadn’t misplaced the timepiece Dana gifted him and hinted at the watch being at one of his 10 houses across the country. But White didn’t seem offended by Shaq’s mishandling of his gift. Instead, White praised O’Neal for his humility and explained why Shaq received such a gift from him and his partner to begin with. He explained,
“Shaq did a lot of great things for us early on, when we were trying to build the UFC. So when we are launching the Ultimate Fighter Season 1, Shaq came in and laid down one of the baddest commercials for the Ultimate Fighter that you will ever see.”
Back in 2001, the Fertitta Brothers and Dana White bought the UFC for a record-low price and began work on their first flagship show, UFC 1. However, the franchise was financially struggling and needed some cheap promotion. That’s where Shaq [a self-proclaimed MMA fan] stepped in and did the franchise’s first commercial for pennies on the dime. UFC 1 happened to be a resounding success, and the rest is history.
But despite having such close ties to Dana White, O’Neal hasn’t been able to make his MMA debut, a goal of his that has remained unrealized for decades now. But during his recent appearance on O’Neal’s podcast, White explained if Shaq even had a shot at making the fighting card on his prestigious promotion, let alone win a fight.
Dana White on Shaquille O’Neal’s debut in the UFC
Shaquille O’Neal is 7 feet tall and weighs over 320 pounds. The top division in the UFC promotion is the heavyweight, which has a 280 lb cut-off. For Shaq to part take in a regulated contest under the UFC banner, the 52-year-old will have to shed lots of weight. But White revealed that under the perfect conditions, and if O’Neal was a little younger, he could have tried. White even thought Shaq was hungry enough to compete, as he told the show host Adam Lefkoe that,
“This maniac used to call me all the time,” Dana said about O’Neal. He even imitated how O’Neal would call him to convince him for a shot. Saying “I [Shaquille O’Neal] am telling you, Dana, I am going to fight. I am going to fight in the UFC. I am training.”
Irrespective of whether Shaq ever makes weight for the UFC, at 7 feet tall, it is very unlikely that any fighter would risk their record and their reputation enough to step in the ring with the Big Aristotle. Meanwhile, the Laker legend proposed to have a power slap competition with his TNT colleague Charles Barkley. Shaq even called Barkley out, with White promising to arrange the contest if both participants signed on the dotted line.
