Sean Strickland says he was not approved to attend UFC Freedom 250, which caused the promotion’s middleweight champion to sound off on the current presidential administration.
Strickland has been vocal in the past about not wanting any part of the June 14 event at the White House because he didn’t want to “hang out with the f*cking Epstein list.” Wednesday, the always-unfiltered UFC champ said in the replies of a UFC Instagram post promoting Ciryl Gane vs. Alex Pereira that he was “banned” from the event.
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“UFC at the white house with BB in the audience. Straight (Israel flag emoji) slop,” Strickland wrote in one reply.
“To be fair they did ban me… But when you make fun of the leaders of America they tend to be a little petty lol by leaders i mean Israel,” Strickland wrote in another.
After his replies picked up steam, Strickland decided to continue venting by posting a video addressing the situation, in which he disparaged US president Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Israel in a sarcastic tone.
“Well, you guys, I’m not surprised, but I got the call,” Strickland started in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter). “I got the call. UFC higher-ups called me, big names. They said, ‘Sean, I got to apologize, but you’re not Israeli enough to go to UFC 250: Israel edition. The White House didn’t clear you.’ I’m not really surprised. So, I think moving forward, I would like to just apologize to Israel. I’d like to say I’m sorry, you know?
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“I’d like to apologize to Trump. I just want to prove that I’m Israeli enough for you guys. For instance, whenever the list disappeared and Trump goes out there and says to everybody that he can’t really go into it because people that, by association, would get prosecuted, and like their names would be tarnished – I want to apologize, because I don’t want them to be prosecuted. Or when Trump goes and bombs the f*ck out of Iran, that no Americans agree with, that costs Americans $5-15,000 to go fight Israel’s war – I want to apologize. Sorry, I’ve been a critic of that, you know?”
Strickland contined:
“My allegiance was apparently in the wrong place, and I just want to apologize. Or when Trump goes out there and says, ‘Hey Trump, your approval ratings the lower its ever been across all demographics,’ and Trump says, ‘Well, you know what? I have a 99 percent approval rating in Israel.’ I want to apologize, and I want to repent.”
Strickland’s words caught the attention of former Georgia Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has recently flipped from being a die-hard Trump supporter due to the handling of the Epstein files.
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“God bless UFC CHAMP Sean Strickland!!” Greene wrote on X. “He’s a great American and has now been persecuted by the Trump admin for his 1st amendment free speech!! Unreal. Here it is. It’s true. They banned him but invited Bibi. Good luck with Gen Z idiots and the younger generations idiots. Choosing the Israeli genocidal regime over Americans that voted for you to stop funding and fighting foreign wars and just help Americans afford life is going to be your downfall. I hope protecting the Epstein pedo elites is worth it.”
While Strickland may not be welcomed on the South Lawn for the event on June 14, he says he may show up anyway in protest to voice his displeasure with the Trump administration.
“Apparently, I’m not American enough to go to Freedom 250, but I still got my ticket,” Strickland said. “So, maybe we’ll just go, I’ll bring the belt, and we’ll just stand outside the gate and we’ll just let ’em know what we really think about Trump and Israel, you know?”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC champ rejected from White House event sounds off on Trump, Israel
