Dana White has clarified why the UFC does not stage Pride Night events, saying the promotion prefers to stay away from overt social or political messaging despite acknowledging LGBTQ athletes on the roster.
White pointed to the UFC’s recent show at the White House, which featured patriotic themes, as an example of one of the few times the company leans into a specific message, alongside its annual Noche UFC events. He noted the promotion has sold Pride-themed merchandise, including a T-shirt and shorts, but said that is where it largely draws the line.
“I’m staring at my roster of top 15 fighters, I’m assuming we have some gay fighters,” White said. “I don’t know how many of them are openly. I know that we have gay female fighters.” He added, “I don’t give a shit. I don’t care what you are or who you are or what you do, we don’t talk about that or any of that stuff. We have a T-shirt that says ‘We Are All Fighters,’ and it’s got the gay flag colors on it, but I don’t know, everybody do your own thing. I’m just not into it.”
White also addressed recent fighter comments, including Josh Hokit’s insult toward Michelle Obama and past remarks from Sean Strickland about Raquel Pennington, framing them within his stance on free speech. “But I’m a believer of free speech, too. I let everybody be themselves, do their thing,” he said.
White added that the UFC and he personally donate to “lots of different charities” across various communities, but said, “We don’t do it for attention and we don’t do it for any other reason other than we should.”
