Key Takeaways
- Dana White flatly rejected a viral conspiracy theory that the U.S. government used secret weather-control tech to divert a storm and save the outdoor UFC Freedom 250 card at the White House, saying, "I can promise you that did not happen."
- White said he, Donald Trump, and military meteorologists all genuinely believed a major storm was going to slam the event before it unexpectedly split and moved away, which he acknowledged helped fuel online speculation.
- He added that even a close friend he called Skip, whom he described as a huge conspiracy theorist, believes the weather was manipulated, but insisted there was "absolutely no military" operation behind the last-minute good weather for the historic Freedom 250 show on the South Lawn.
Dana White had shut down a conspiracy theory claiming the U.S. government manipulated the weather to keep UFC Freedom 250 from getting washed out.
The UFC CEO addressed speculation that began circulating online after a major storm appeared to be headed toward Washington, D.C., ahead of the historic event, only for it to split before reaching the White House.
The convenient timing prompted theories on Reddit and elsewhere that secret government or military weather-modification technology had been used to protect the outdoor fights. White said that definitely wasn't the case.
"I can promise you that did not happen," White said during a recent interview with TMZ Sports.
In fact, White said UFC officials and Donald Trump were preparing for the possibility that the storm would hit the event. They weren't relying solely on a local forecast either, as military meteorologists were reportedly tracking the weather.
"We thought it was hitting us. The president thought it was hitting us," White explained. "We weren't using like the Channel 4 weather guy, right? We had military meteorologists all over this thing, and this [meteorologist] was telling us we're going to get hit."
The storm ultimately changed course, allowing Freedom 250 to proceed without the severe weather that organizers had anticipated. The sudden shift, however, provided enough fuel for some people online to question whether there was more behind it.
White said he's familiar with the theory and has even heard it from a close friend named Skip, whom he described as one of the biggest conspiracy theorists he knows. Still, White insisted there wasn't any secret operation responsible for keeping the event dry.
"I get how these things happen and how they start, right?" he said. "There was absolutely no military, you know, right? We thought we were getting hit."
Freedom 250 was held at the White House in June as part of celebrations surrounding the United States' 250th anniversary, turning the South Lawn into the setting for one of the most unusual events in UFC history.
