‘Embarrassing beyond belief’ Fans Roast Dana White’s Power Slap Training Promo
Dana White, best known for building the UFC into a combat sports juggernaut, is now all-in on Power Slap, his latest venture that has fans and critics alike scratching their heads, and sometimes laughing out loud.
Fans Troll Dana White’s Power Slap
A recent social media push for “Muniz vs KO Chris,” promoted as “LIVE and FREE NEXT on YouTube powered by VeChain,” featured a video of a Power Slap athlete awkwardly warming up, arms flailing, which only added to the sport’s reputation for unintentional comedy.
The response from fans, as seen in the quote threads beneath White’s posts, has been anything but subtle. “This might be the dumbest shit I have ever seen,” one user wrote. Another quipped, “Imagine seeing this and thinking whoa his technique is sick.” The tone is consistent: slap fighting is being treated as a punchline, both literally and figuratively.
“Slap fighting is for people who watched UFC and said, ‘Yeah but what if we took out the skill, cardio, and dignity?’” reads another comment. “Has to be the dumbest voluntary competition on earth,” says a third.
Even the promotional overlap with boxing star Canelo Alvarez drew bemused reactions: “Promoting Canelo and this with equal enthusiasm is so fucking funny,” Jack Slack noted. “We got two of the greatest boxers of this generation, but we also have meth addicts with no real training, whatever you like”
Power Slap, which began airing in early 2023, has struggled to win over traditional sports audiences. Its initial run on TBS drew an average of about 250,000 viewers, far behind its lead-in wrestling show, AEW Dynamite, which regularly pulled in close to 800,000. The TBS partnership ended after the first season, with Power Slap moving to streaming platforms like Rumble and, more recently, YouTube. Despite the low TV ratings, Power Slap has found a surprising foothold on social media, where knockout clips routinely rack up millions of views. For example, a single knockout from the debut episode was viewed more than 180 million times on TikTok.
The league’s official social media accounts boast millions of followers, and Dana White has repeatedly touted its digital reach, even if his claims about surpassing major sports teams in followers were later corrected to “views.” This digital success, however, has not translated into mainstream acceptance. Many fans and fighters dismiss Power Slap as “sanctioned brain trauma,” pointing out that competitors cannot defend themselves and must take full-force slaps to the face without flinching.
Criticism from brain injury experts is widespread. Neuroscientists and doctors have warned that the sport is a “recipe for disaster,” with the potential for serious and even fatal brain injuries. Even some UFC fighters have distanced themselves from the sport, with boxer Ryan Garcia calling it a “horrible idea” and UFC’s Sean O’Malley refusing to watch due to concerns about brain damage.
Meanwhile, Dana White has defended Power Slap by comparing it to boxing, arguing that slap fighters take far fewer blows per event than boxers, though critics note that boxers are at least allowed to defend themselves.
