Was Dana White a former MMA fighter?

Was UFC president Dana White ever a professional fighter?

Dana White is arguably the most famous man in MMA, and he isn't even a fighter. White is the UFC president and the face of the organization. And while we know that he isn't currently fighting, some fans wonder if White ever stepped into the cage he helped make famous.

White never professionally fought though its likely he got into his fair share of squabbles when he served as a bouncer at an Irish bar in his early years.

According to Bleacher Report, White began boxing at age 17 after he met and became friends with former champion Peter Welch.

"Peter Welch and I go back 25 years to when I was boxing at the Somerville Boxing Club," White told the outlet in 2014. "He's a legend not just in boxing, but fighting in general in the Boston area. I actually sought him out because I was looking for this guy everywhere. I chased him around nonstop and finally connected with him because I wanted him to train me. He was my trainer for a long time, and then we actually started a business together in boxing where we were working with inner-city kids. We also worked with businessmen and women and anyone who wanted to learn how to box, which was unheard of at the time. We were involved in every aspect of boxing except promoting, which Peter eventually did."

White had thought he might want to box someday but eventually settled on being a boxercise coach instead.

Dana White was run out of Las Vegas by mobster Whitey Bulger

Eventually White says he was forced out of Boston by a Whitey Bulger, a mobster who said he owed him money. That's how he ended up in Las Vegas.

According to FOX Sports, White said, "... one day I was at my place and I got a call and they said, 'You owe us the money tomorrow by 1 o'clock'. I literally hung up the phone, picked up the phone and called Delta and bought a ticket to Vegas."

From there White began training in BJJ and met the Fertitta brothers, an the rest is history.

So, no, White has never fought in the cage or the ring and is still considered one of the most respected faces in the fight game.