Dana White denies notion that UFC is a pro-Republican promotion: “I’d treat Joe Biden the same way!”

UFC CEO Dana White doesn’t believe his promotion favors former U.S. President Donald Trump and other Republicans over others with different political beliefs.

White is longtime friends with Trump, who is running in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election. Trump, a Republican, has attended many marquee UFC events, including UFC 299 in March.

Trump has gotten loud ovations when attending UFC fights. While he has the support of the majority of UFC fans, some critics have questioned whether or not the pageantry and highlighting of his attendance is necessary on UFC broadcasts.

Dana White: “I don’t play b******t games with politics”

During a recent interview with Yahoo Sports‘s Ben Fowlkes, White addressed critics who believe U.S. politics are directly intertwined with the UFC brand.

“You see how the crowd reacts to [Donald Trump attending fights]? Off the charts,” White said. “If [Joe] Biden came to a UFC event, I would treat Biden the same way! If Biden was there, we would cover the fact that the President of the United States… or if [Barack] Obama, [George] Bush, any of those guys ever came to an event, we would treat them with the same respect. If a former or standing president of the United States shows up to your event, you show them the respect…

“It’s just like the thing that happened with Trump with the assassination attempt. If someone attempted to assassinate Biden, or any former president of the United States, I would be f***ing disgusted by it. Just like I was with the attempt on Trump’s life. I’m an American, and whoever is the president of the United States, is my president…Biden’s granddaughter was [at UFC 295], I went to try to meet her.. but when Trump was coming, she left, which sucks. I would’ve liked to have met her. I don’t judge people by their politics, and I don’t play any of those b*****t games that people play with politics.”

White is expected to be in attendance this weekend at UFC 305, headlined by Dricus du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya in Perth, Australia. He spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention and delivered a passionate speech in support of Trump’s campaign.