As you may already know, UFC CEO Dana White runs a lucrative slap-fighting promotion called Power Slap, which, according to him, is estimated to be worth around $750 million. Despite this, Shaun Donnelly, the CEO of Lingerie Fighting Championships (LFC), is refusing to back down and has decided to answer the promotion’s legal threat with a surprising Supreme Court vow.

The dispute began on October 11, when LFC held the official live debut of its own Power Spank tournament during a women’s wrestling event at the OCC Road House and Museum in Clearwater, Florida. The concept was a rather cheeky take on Dana White’s slap-fighting promotion. Instead of competitors taking turns slapping each other across the face, scantily clad women went head-to-head by striking each other on the buttocks.

And the parody wasn’t exactly subtle.

According to Donnelly, the idea for Power Spank took shape after one of his company’s fighters was hospitalized with injuries sustained while competing in a Power Slap event. LFC then turned the concept into a comedic response to White’s promotion. Power Slap, however, wasn’t amused.

In late October, attorneys representing Schiaffo LLC, the parent company operating as Power Slap, sent LFC a formal cease-and-desist letter demanding that it stop using the name “Power Spank.” The letter accused LFC of a blatant trademark violation, arguing that the name was designed to imitate Power Slap’s brand identity, naming convention, and presentation.

The legal warning has now drawn a public response.

As a publicly traded company based in Las Vegas, LFC had to provide corporate documentation and subsequently disclosed details of the cease-and-desist letter to MMA Junkie on Monday. A day later, the promotion made its position clear: it has no intention of backing down.

“Power Spank is LFC’s creation, and it is a parody. Satire and parody have a long, protected place in American expression, and that applies to combat sports entertainment as much as anything else,” CEO Shaun Donnelly said via a press release. “We respect Power Slap and its founders, but we will not be bullied into abandoning protected speech. We will defend our right, and the right of every American, to free speech, and if that takes us to the Supreme Court, we are prepared to go.”

Donnelly’s message leaves little room for interpretation. LFC believes its use of the name falls under protected speech and is prepared to defend that position in court rather than simply rebrand the tournament. The company also doubled down on that argument in its official statement.

“LFC’s position is that Power Spank is a clear parody, and parody is protected speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution,” the release noted. “Parody works by evoking its target so that audiences recognize the joke, and no reasonable viewer would believe Power Spank is made, sponsored, or endorsed by Power Slap.

“LFC’s own announcement presented Power Spank as a playful, tongue-in-cheek response to Power Slap, and the cease & desist letter’s own quotations show that framing.”

For their part, as of the time of writing, Power Slap has offered no public counterpunch, and the UFC kept Dana White out of reach.

Lenee Breckenridge, the UFC’s senior vice president of communications, explained to MMA Junkie that White is traveling for the next few days and added, “I don’t have him available, unfortunately.”

That silence is notable considering White is no stranger to legal battles. He has faced class action lawsuits over allegations of suppressed fighter pay, as well as a lawsuit challenging ESPN’s pay-per-view pricing. However, this is the first major legal dispute tied to Power Slap. The promotion’s valuation, according to White, has also climbed from $450 million in 2024 to a reported $750 million.

LFC, meanwhile, has its own business interests to protect. The Las Vegas-based company claims to have generated more than one billion social video views over the past 12 months, and Power Spank now opens every one of its women’s lingerie wrestling events in the United States. Giving up the name would mean abandoning a concept that has already become part of its programming.

Where the Power Spank feud goes after Dana White’s legal threat

Neither side has taken the dispute into court yet, but the cease-and-desist letter has put the next move firmly in Power Slap’s hands. Its legal team can choose to let the matter rest or take the fight further with a trademark lawsuit. Donnelly, for his part, appears more than willing to keep the exchange going.

“This isn’t a gimmick to us – it’s a statement,” Donnelly told MMA Junkie. “Combat sports can be bold and outrageous without being reckless. Power Spank proves you can still pack a house without packing an ambulance.”

He then delivered a parting jab: “And let’s be honest, a spank is a lot more fun to watch than a slap.”

The two Las Vegas promotions also share more than just a zip code.

Sheena Bathory, the Power Slap star nicknamed the Hungarian Hurricane, previously faced Madisyn inside LFC. That overlap means the two promotions’ worlds had already crossed long before the cease-and-desist letter turned the rivalry into a legal dispute.

For now, LFC is banking on its argument that audiences understand the joke and recognize Power Spank as parody. Whether that defense holds up if the dispute reaches court remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: Donnelly has no intention of throwing in the towel just yet.