Warning: Video contains coarse language
UFC president Dana White won a $1-million hand of baccarat at Park MGM earlier this week after agreeing to wager alongside social media personality SteveWillDoIt.
- White made the wager after receiving a call from social media personality and friend SteveWillDoIt.
- Park MGM said White had to risk $1 million if SteveWillDoIt wanted to make the wager.
- The casino also prevented the pair from wagering on the same hand.
When White isn’t sitting ringside at a UFC fight or promoting his Power Slap league, he’s often found matching wits with casino dealers.
White said he was “minding (his) own business” when he got a call from YouTuber SteveWillDoIt, whose real name is Stephen Deleonardis. Deleonardis asked for White’s help finding a casino that would let him gamble $1 million in one hand. White obliged and got on the phone with Park MGM, which told him it would allow Steve’s wager if White also put up $1 million.
The casino - located on the central part of the Vegas Strip - told the pair they were allowed only one attempt at the million-dollar hand. They wouldn't be allowed to make another wager if they lost or double down if they won.
“My first time that I (wagered $1 million) at the Bellagio … the dealer got a seven, and I got a one,” White said. “An eight or a nine are like a blackjack - game’s over, you win. A seven is f*****g impossible to beat, especially if you have a one. I got the eight off the one to beat him, 9-7.
“Then the second time we just did it (at Park MGM), the dealer got an eight, and I got a nine. Two impossible f*****g hands at a million bucks.”
Dana White confirms he won $1 MILLION HAND of baccarat in Las Vegas earlier this week 💰 💰 💰 pic.twitter.com/S6P4rYKmuI
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) September 30, 2026
A video recorded at the casino also showed soaring UFC star Tommy McMillen standing alongside White and Deleonardis.
Million-dollar baccarat
White is known for his high-stakes gambling. He’s been banned from various casinos after winning large sums from them, something Deleonardis has witnessed firsthand.
“If I lose Dana money, he could get it back within a few hands or he could sit here for hours and just keep moving meetings with Abu Dhabi to play Baccarat,” Deleonardis said. “I’ve played with Dana all the way through the night till the morning and seen him go right into a meeting with Abu Dhabi.”
One of Park MGM’s stipulations for White and Deleonardis was that they could not wager on the same hand.
“They call me and go, ‘Here’s the deal, you can both bet $1 million but you can’t bet the same hand.’ So if Steve bets player and I bet banker, someone’s gonna win and someone’s gonna lose,” White said. “It’s the goofiest s**t of all time. That’s their way of telling me they don’t want me to play a place.”
Deleonardis lost his $1 million bet before White won his hand. Deleonardis eventually pulled himself back to be $800,000 ahead before White convinced him to cash out and walk away.
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White's gambling history
While White claimed this was only the second time he’d risked $1 million on one hand of baccarat, he walked away from the Fontainebleau with $1.2 million in winnings last summer.
But for all of his wins, he’s also had significant losses. A source told casino.org last year that he owed $25.2 million in gambling debt to Red Rock Resorts, a story he later called “clickbait bulls***.”
White has also called for changes to the country’s gambling tax laws. President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act limited loss deductions to only 90%. White and other Nevada residents and gambling industry stakeholders have called for the provision to be restored to the previous 100% deduction.
