Arkansas featherweight Bryce Mitchell is targeted on the UFC’s greatest present of 2026. In a brand new rant main as much as the June occasion on the South Garden, the fighter often called “Thug” acknowledged that he nonetheless thinks the UFC is the very best sport, however accused Dana White’s promotion of bending the game round Donald Trump’s political agenda.
Bryce Mitchell slams UFC White Home card over relationship with Donald Trump
Mitchell expressed his views in a candid assertion that has been circulating on MMA social media.
“I actually suppose the UFC is the very best sport on the planet, however I feel this White Home card is a horrible use of political favor to make individuals worship Donald Trump. They’re making an attempt to make the preferred sport and use it to profit Trump’s marketing campaign whereas Trump destroys this nation… How clear will it’s that this man goes to overcome the world? However don’t fret, the battle shall be nice!”
He added within the caption, “I too suppose Trump is the antichrist of the apocalypse.”
This quote carries extra weight relying on who’s saying it. Mitchell informed reporters in December 2024 that he would “take a bullet and die” for Trump, phrases he repeated on the UFC 310 battle week press convention after defeating Kron Gracie.
Lower than a 12 months later, he modified his tune, posting an Instagram video in October 2025 telling his 600,000 followers that he not supported the president, calling him a “corrupt chief” who “cheated” on the Epstein scandal, overseas assist to Israel and Ukraine, and beef costs. In the identical clip, he pointed viewers to Revelation 13:3 and recommended that Trump might be the beast described there.
The cardboard Mitchell is describing is UFC Freedom 250, which shall be held on June 14, 2026, on the South Garden of the White Home. At the present time is Flag Day, which marks the 250th anniversary of American independence, and in addition marks President Trump’s eightieth birthday. The newest updates on the UFC White Home battle card embrace Ilia Topuria scheduled to headline a light-weight title battle in opposition to Justin Gaethje on June 14th, and Alex Pereira set to face Cyril Gane within the co-main for the interim heavyweight belt.
Trump and Dana White have been associates for the reason that early 2000s, when Trump hosted UFC occasions on the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic Metropolis, at a time when most venues refused to the touch the UFC. White spoke on the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Republican Nationwide Conventions, and shared the stage with Trump on election evening in 2024.
A 2024 New York Instances profile described White as President Trump’s “conduit to trendy martial arts followers” and labeled the UFC because the MAGA motion’s “semi-official sport.” President Trump attended UFC 309 at Madison Sq. Backyard days after his election victory, accompanied by Elon Musk, Mike Johnson, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and was ringside once more at UFC 327 in Miami earlier this 12 months, the place he reportedly urged Derrick Lewis to be added to future playing cards.
Bryce Mitchell’s controversial historical past
Mitchell is used to creating headlines away from the cage. In January 2025, he used the primary episode of his podcast, ArkanSanity, to name Adolf Hitler a “good man,” deny the Holocaust, and unfold homophobic remarks that led Dana White to say they have been essentially the most “egregious” feedback he had ever heard in his profession. The UFC refused to self-discipline him, citing free speech. Mitchell additionally claimed the Earth is flat, blamed Israel for 9/11 and recommended Brazilian fighter Jean Silva was “possessed by the satan.” He misplaced to Silva at UFC 314 in April 2025, however this loss got here earlier than he publicly broke up with President Trump.
Taken collectively, the brand new citations go on document as MAGA-affiliated fighters on the UFC roster calling the promotion’s marquee occasion a marketing campaign prop. This framework highlights that the backlash in opposition to the White Home card is coming from political commentators moderately than card fighters.
