White: Goodell should resign if he saw the ‘horrifying’ 2nd tape
“If Roger Goodell saw that video, knew that was what happened, knew that Ray Rice did that to his wife or his fiancée or whatever it is, he should just get up and leave.”
Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White recently appeared on FOX Sports Live, and was asked his opinion on how NFL commissioner Roger Goodell handled the Ray Rice situation. After reports surfaced that Rice had hit his then fiancee, he was suspended for two games by Goodell. When a video surfaced of Rice knocking her unconscious, the player was suspended indefinitely. Goodell claims he never saw the footage, but some reports suggest otherwise.
“First of all, the video is horrifying, absolutely horrifying,” began a somber White. “You’re talking about a guy who has been in the fight business since he was 19 years old… it is the most disturbing thing you will ever see. The thing that is just as bad as the punch, is that he shows no remorse after he does it.
“If you did something in anger, you go, ‘Oh my God, what did I do?’ There’s none of that with this guy. And I don’t know all the ins and outs of what Roger Goodell did, or knew, or how it was handled, but it’s definitely… it’s bad. I’ll tell you this, I wouldn’t want to be Roger Godell.”
White was then asked if Goodell should resign?
“The video is just so horrifying and so bad,” said White. “I don’t know. It’s a tough one. If Roger Goodell saw that video, knew that was what happened, knew that Ray Rice did that to his wife or his fiancée or whatever it is, he should just get up and leave on his own.”
White was also asked about bringing Thiago Silva back in the UFC, after the fighter was arrested for allegedly threatening his estranged wife with a hand gun.
“If you believe in the legal process, they came, they arrested him, and he wasn’t brought up on any charges,” said White. “Plus I know a lot more of the story and what went on. If you take his side of the story, her side of the story, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. But, he went through the process, and he wasn’t charged with anything. The guy should have the ability to make a living.
“And obviously, if some tape surfaced, like in this one… But the police have already investigated this entire thing, and they let the guy go.”
“When I said (e would never fight in the UFC again) there was a SWAT team outside his house, and he had allegedly done these things. It wasn’t looking good for him at the time. He went through the process, and he came away with no charges. So you gotta bring the guy back.”
White was then asked if the UFC was going to follow the NFL’s lead in strengthening their domestic violence policy.
“We’ve been that way since day one anyway,” began White. “Obviously when you’re dealing with human beings there’s going to be things where guys are going to test positive for all types of different drugs, guys are going to do stupid things, guys are going to say stupid things in social media. There’s going to be all these things that happen.
“We have a track record of getting rid of many people that have done bad things. And we’ve been human beings in letting other guys make up for what they’ve done, and come back.
“There’s one thing, that you never bounce back from. And that’s putting your hands on a woman. It’s been that way in the UFC since we started here. You don’t bounce back from putting your hands on a woman.”