Outrage as Dana White warmly greets Andrew and Tristan Tate at Power Slap event: ‘This must be stopped’

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: UFC President Dana White sparked a social media storm after he greeted controversial influencer and former kickboxer, Andrew Tate, at a Power Slap event in Las Vegas on March 7, Friday.

Tate, accompanied by his brother Tristan, showed up at the 12th instalment of White’s slap-fighting league and made sure to exchange pleasantries with the MMA mogul.

"Pleasure to meet you," Tristan can be heard saying in one of the viral videos making the rounds on social media.

Of course, this wasn’t just a casual handshake. It was a meeting of two of the most polarizing figures in sports and socio-political discourse, and critics had a lot to say.

Tate brothers face backlash after arriving in the US 

Fresh off their exit from Romania—where they’re facing charges including trafficking, organized crime, and money laundering—Andrew and Tristan Tate landed in Florida last week. But their welcome party didn’t exactly go as planned, per DailyMail.

Attorney General James Uthmeier wasted no time launching an investigation into the lingering allegations against them, prompting Andrew to slam the move as “absolute communism".

The Tates bolted to Nevada, where they were warmly greeted by none other than Dana White on Friday night.

It’s no secret that both the Tates and White are big Trump supporters. Andrew has even boasted about being “very close” with the Trump family—including 18-year-old Barron Trump.

But Friday night’s meet-up sent left-wing critics on social media into a frenzy.

Dana White slammed for hugging Andrew and Tristan Tate

Dana White has been slammed for warmly greeting Andrew and Tristan Tate at the Power Slap event. The brothers landed in the US last week after Romanian authorities lifted a travel ban, and not many are happy about it.

"Well they are probably talking about their mutual love of beating women," one posted on X.

"Did they literally exchange notes on how to beat up women and keep them quiet?… This must be stopped!" another fumed.

"Not sure why people are impressed by 2 sleazeball dirtbags," a third chimed in.

"They comparing lawsuits lol," someone else quipped.

"Would have had FAR more respect for @danawhite if he'd laid the two of them out on the floor and told them to leave the building," read a comment.

"Not everything that owns the libs is worth doing," another offered.

"Ew @danawhite this won't age well," said one user.

Did the US government help Andrew and Tristan Tate get back?

The Tates, who hold dual US-UK citizenship, weren’t exactly supposed to leave Romania while their criminal case was still pending.

Their US-based attorney, Joseph McBride, is keeping his lips sealed about whether the State Department or White House played a role in getting them home. Meanwhile, the Trump camp is also dodging questions like a UFC flyweight in the octagon.

Even President Trump himself claimed he was unaware of the situation before saying that he’d “look into it".

But insiders told the Financial Times that US officials did discuss the Tates’ case with Romanian government officials over the phone back in February. On top of that, Trump’s special envoy Richard Grenell reportedly brought up the case with Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu at the Munich Security Conference.

A request was allegedly made to have the Tates’ passports returned and to allow them back in the US while awaiting their trafficking trial. But Hurezeanu insists there was zero pressure.

"I did not perceive this statement as pressure, just a repeat of a known stance," he told Euronews. "I don't know what pressures of another nature were made before or after, but what I discussed with Mr Grenell was cordial, informal, brief, non-binding, and I certainly did not detect any form of pressure," he added.

Now that they’re back on US soil, the Tates seem more than comfortable. McBride made that clear in a statement: "The Tates feel secure in America for several reasons, the primary one being that Donald Trump is the President."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.