One of the more tenured figures within the UFC fold thinks the highly discussed White House UFC card next year is something that exists beyond the political binary in America. This was expressed during a recent interview with TMZ Sports that they conducted with prolific UFC announcer Bruce Buffer.
With names like Jon Jones and Conor McGregor already publicly indicating interest in competing on the American presidential grounds for a card that US President Donald Trump says he wants to host in 2026, it seems like White House UFC is becoming more and more of a real thing by the day.
That being said, with the political tensions in America being at a fever pitch, there are some who think that participating in an event like this could indicate some sort of defined political affiliation. When getting into that piece of the White house UFC card being mapped out for next July that some might see as a big historic card while some might view it through a pro MAGA lens, Buffer said,
“No matter what your political views, the White House and everybody in it is what runs this country. So if you’re a proud American, a patriotic American, you got to support what’s going on. It’s an honor to represent your country in the land where the country is headquartered and represented.”
“Politics is politics. Business is business. I know there’s been teams that have said they don’t want to go to the White House. But I think if they get the call from Dana and the matchmakers and say, ‘Hey, we want you on the White House card…’ it’s going to cut a lot of political ties. They’re going to want to fight on the show no matter what their political views.”
Jon Jones disappointed by recent comments on his possible White House UFC participation
The White House UFC card is something that Jon Jones wants to be a part of, despite his recent disappointments regarding comments Dana White has made about the potential participation of ‘Bones’ on a card like that. Relatively recently retiring from MMA and vacating his UFC heavyweight title, Jones has also relatively recently inserted himself into the promotion’s drug testing pool and has expressed interest in fighting at the White House card for next year.
Dana White has expressed hesitancy with putting Jones on such a card, and while at UFC 318 post-fight press conference, White stated [via Sports Net],
“It’s not even about him winning the belt. You know how I felt about him. I just can’t risk putting him in big positions in a big spot and have something go wrong, especially the White House card.”
The former two-division UFC titleholder responded to the comments from the UFC figurehead regarding his White House UFC involvement on his personal X platform, as Jones quipped,
“I heard the comments made at last night’s press conference. While I was a little disappointed, I’m still in the UFC’s drug testing pool, staying sharp, and continuing to train like a professional. I’ll be ready for whatever comes next. In a recent interview, I shared that the opportunity to fight at the White House gave me something deeper to fight for, a ‘why’ that goes beyond paychecks or belts. Fighting for my country gives me a greater purpose!”
