Bryce Mitchell backed Sean Strickland on Wednesday and used the moment to blast the planned White House UFC fight, saying the government is “desecrating its role in society by entertaining sports” and should “never” host sporting events.
Mitchell’s comments landed as criticism around the June 14 event keeps building. The UFC is scheduled to stage fights at the White House on the same day as President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday and Flag Day, with the card tied to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
What made Mitchell’s remarks stand out was the force of his attack on the premise itself. He said the government’s job is to “protect us, not entertain us,” a line that cut directly against a project that has already moved into construction on the South Lawn. A 4,000-seat arena is being built there, and the UFC is expected to spend $60 million on the event even as Dana White says the organization will likely lose $30 million.
The pushback also widens the political edge of the fight card. Mitchell was backing Strickland after the former middleweight champion claimed in a video on X that unnamed UFC higher-ups told him he cannot attend the White House event. Strickland said he was told he was not “Israeli enough,” and added that he had already bought a plane ticket and planned to show up with a bullhorn for what he called a “peaceful protest.”
That threat is part of a longer-running dispute for Strickland, who said in December that he would not want to go to “hang out with the f—ing Epstein list.” Whether he is actually barred from the event, and who made that call, remains unresolved. For now, the next fixed date in the fight is June 14, when the UFC plans to bring its spectacle to the White House anyway.
