Construction is beginning for the UFC event at the White House on June 14. And arguably the most influential voice representing the event in Joe Rogan is voicing his concern.
Rogan has been with the UFC for years as a color analyst and interviewer. And in case you somehow aren’t aware, he is also one of the world’s biggest podcasters and was hugely influential with his interview and endorsement of Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
But Joe Rogan isn’t necessarily a monolith in his viewpoints on politics or the UFC. He has spoken out in criticism of both Trump and UFC boss Dana White. And on his podcast this week, The Joe Rogan Experience, the UFC analyst shared his concern that the outdoor event on the south lawn of the White House in the middle of June will not be good for the fighters.
“The White House thing is odd. I don’t like it. I don’t like the idea of fighting outside at all. It’s June and it’s D.C. and we looked it up, the last time, like last year, same day, was 100 degrees. That’s hot as f—. You add the lights. How about dehydration,” Rogan asked.
It’s not just the heat that Joe Rogan is concerned about, it’s the bugs too.
“The bugs are a big one,” Rogan said. “How are they going to f—ing do anything about the bugs because I know that Dana was talking about that recently, they were talking about maybe using fans. Is that enough? Got bug strips everywhere? What are you going to do? How are you going to stop the bugs, there’s a lot of bugs. ”
“I just don’t think that you should compete in a world championship fight in a non-controlled environment. I think it should be inside an air conditioned arena. It should be a controlled environment. You wouldn’t ask them to play a world championship basketball game outside in the sun. That would be crazy. You play in a f—ing air conditioned arena. That’s how it should be,” Rogan argued. “Build a f—ing roof. Build a roof. You’ve got all the money in the world.”
Hopefully as long as Joba Chamberlain isn’t there, bugs won’t be an issue for the athletes competing at the UFC White House event.
While fans may bristle at the notion that heat could have that much of an effect on athletes, all you have to do is look at what happened to Jannik Sinner at the French Open in his historic upset.
It’s admirable that Joe Rogan is speaking up for the welfare of the athletes who will compete. But even these concerns shared by the closest thing the UFC has to an MMA lifer isn’t going to slow down the show. Dana White, Donald Trump, David Ellison, and everyone involved have far too much at stake to pivot now. This is a show of their power and influence as conservative politics, sports, and media unite as one under the guise of celebrating America’s 250th birthday.
It’s obvious what the answer to Rogan’s dilemma is – a $400 million ballroom at the White House to host UFC events. That would solve literally everything, right?
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