Podcast host and UFC commentator Joe Rogan, who has repeatedly criticized the upcoming White House UFC fight despite being slated to attend, sounded the alarm over safety concerns on his podcast Friday, suggesting an hours-long outdoor event at the White House could pose safety risks.
Rogan has been a vocal critic of the White House UFC fight, despite being slated to attend. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
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Rogan, while discussing the White House UFC fight with comedian Harland Williams on Friday’s episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” remarked, “That seems like a good safe place to be, huh?”
“Everyone’s going to know where all the world leaders are going to be,” Rogan said, though it’s unclear exactly which political leaders will be in attendance.
Rogan said, “We’re all going to be stuck sitting in that spot for six hours calling fights,” quipping, “Super safe. I feel completely safe.”
Rogan, who is attending the White House fight, said he does not like the idea of the event, doubling down on prior comments he has made saying a UFC championship event should not be held outdoors.
Rogan said a UFC fight should be in a “controlled environment out of respect for the athletes,” and he has previously said factors like rain, heat or bugs could interfere with the athletes’ performances.
Rogan, though, said Trump’s willingness to put on a UFC fight at the White House is “awesome” and “one of the things I like about him. He’s like, ‘F— it. Let’s do it.’”
On his podcast earlier this week, Rogan called the event “odd” and said, “I don’t like the idea of fighting outside at all.” He suggested the weather could be too hot, noting the fight is scheduled for mid-June in Washington, D.C., and voiced concerns fighters could become dehydrated. He also questioned why the organizers would not build a roof, saying, “How are they going to f—ing do anything about the bugs?” Rogan, a frequent critic of the Iran war, said in a March podcast episode it is “weird to have a fight at the White House in the middle of a f—ing war.” In another episode of his podcast in March, Rogan said he will “be there, but I’m not thrilled about it,” calling the event “kind of a gimmick” and a potential “security nightmare.” UFC president Dana White echoed some of Rogan’s concerns about fighting outdoors in an interview with NPR last week, saying there are “so many different variables” that could impact the fight, like rain, lightning or heat. “There’s two things I hate. I hate stadiums, and even worse than a stadium is fighting outside,” White said.
Sean O'Malley, an American UFC fighter who is slated to compete at the White House event, said in an interview Thursday it would be “unfortunate” if weather conditions impact the fight, but said “none of us signed the contract thinking it was inside. We all know it’s outside, we all know what we’re getting into.” O’Malley said it would “suck” to lose for reasons “outside of your skill set,” but said “it’s at the White House, so you’ve got to deal with whatever you’ve got to deal with.” White has also defended the event against critics who have raised security concerns amid the Iran war, telling Rolling Stone the UFC “can’t just bend and break and roll over for every bad thing that happens in the world.”
The fight is slated to take place June 14, which is both Flag Day and Trump’s 80th birthday, to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Construction of a 4,000-seat arena is underway on the South Lawn, while about 80,000 attendees are expected to watch the fight from The Ellipse, a park near the White House. White has said he personally invited celebrities including Adam Sandler, Tom Brady, Jared Leto, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Mario Lopez, but representatives for Sandler and Lopez confirmed to Forbes they will not attend.
On Friday’s episode, Rogan segued from discussing the White House UFC fight to criticizing the war in Iran, which he has often condemned on his show. Rogan said Trump does “wild sh-t, I like that,” referring to the UFC fight. “I like that part. I don’t like the Iran war thing,” he said, adding, “I don’t necessarily know if there’s a clear way to get out of this.” Rogan has previously condemned the war as “unnecessary aggression by the United States government” and “exactly the opposite of what we were told leading into this administration,” voicing fears it would spark a World War III.
Rogan Criticizes White House UFC Fight Again: ‘I Don’t Like The Idea Of Fighting Outside’ (Forbes)
Dana White Defends White House UFC Fight Amid Iran War: ‘There’s Always Bad Things Going On’ (Forbes)
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