Fighter reveals ban himself in comment on promotional video; also wrote that Benjamin Netanyahu would face 'biggest public humiliation in history'

Sean Strickland speaks at a UFC press conference. [Getty Images]
Sean Strickland speaks at a UFC press conference. [Getty Images]

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland, 35, has been banned from a landmark event to be held at the White House in his home country.

Strickland revealed the ban himself — a consequence of the unfiltered remarks that have earned him a reputation as a one-man controversy machine.

UFC Freedom 250 is scheduled for June 14 on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C. — the first sporting event ever held at the presidential residence. The card features Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane.

In the comment section of a promotional video for the event, Strickland wrote that hosting UFC at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the crowd was "blatant Israel shilling." He added: "I'll be honest, the leaders of America have banned me. They get a little petty when you make fun of them. And by the leaders of America, I mean Israel."

Even as he disclosed his own ban, Strickland used the post to mock what he described as the U.S. government's pro-Israel stance — regardless of whether Netanyahu actually attends. Coming from an ordinary internet user, the comment might pass as a throwaway jab. But the author is the reigning champion of the world's largest mixed martial arts organization.

Strickland has long been known for inflammatory and hateful remarks that appear to bypass any internal filter, both inside and outside the octagon. His targets have ranged from opponents to specific genders and regions to foreign political leaders — a habit that simultaneously infuriates his detractors and energizes his fans.

He once mocked Australian Robert Whittaker, saying he liked Australia as a "white country" but that Whittaker had lost to people from Asian "jungles." He also taunted his recent title challenger Khamzat Chimaev, calling him a lackey of a Chechen warlord dictator.

On June 1, he posted on social media that he hoped Netanyahu would come to the White House UFC event, writing that it "would be the single biggest public humiliation in history."

In the same comment thread where Strickland announced his ban, a fan asked why he had been barred. "I just made fun of Israel and Epstein," he replied. Jeffrey Epstein was a billionaire sex offender who died in custody; his case files, known as the Epstein files, have roiled U.S. politics.

For UFC, Strickland's unrestrained outspokenness has generally been an asset — he reliably drives attention to events and matchups. But at this White House show, proposed personally by President Donald Trump, off-script controversy — particularly of a political nature — is a liability. His ban appears to reflect the organizers' determination to keep the event free of such distractions.


yjc@heraldcorp.com