The ambitious UFC White House event will be one of a kind for a variety of reasons — including the natural elements of the outdoor environment in Washington, D.C.
The event — officially known as UFC Freedom 250 — takes place on the South Lawn of the U.S. White House this Sunday night in celebration of America’s 250th birthday next month. As there’s no usable venue directly around the White House’s Executive Mansion to host a fight, the UFC had to build a makeshift setup outside.
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For some fighters competing this weekend, it’ll be their first time fighting outdoors. But not featherweight contender Steve Garcia.
Garcia, who’s set to open the historic event alongside opponent Diego Lopes, shared his previous experiences of fighting outdoors on Monday’s edition of “The Ariel Helwani Show,” letting his peers know what to expect.
“I’ve fought outdoors twice. The first one was at night, so I dealt with the bugs and all that,” Garcia told Uncrowned. “All the lights in the back had to get shifted forward to the [cage], and we had no light in the back to warm up. So we were blind. Everybody was with their phones, wrapping their hands and hitting pads with the lights from our phones, then we walked to the cage. People didn’t think about that. That was one instance. There are bugs and stuff, and it was at night, so it wasn’t terrible — maybe 75 degrees.
“The second time was definitely hotter, maybe 85 degrees. … They had to continue to throw ice on the canvas. That’s probably the only thing I was nervous about [for Sunday’s event] — how well the Octagon is covered — because it got so hot that everybody was burning their feet on the canvas. They would just continue to throw tubs and tubs of ice all over the canvas, and have to sweep it up so nobody would slip and fall. It was a little bit of a craziness, if you will. Obviously, being in guard or on your back, you’re burning your back. Definitely not a fun way to fight.”
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Garcia, 34, has been on an absolute tear in the UFC, winning his past seven fights and ending six of those wins in knockouts. Although Garcia is long removed from his days on the sport’s amateur circuit, where he twice battled outdoors in a cage without a roof, those similar concerns are not exactly something that have kept him up at night.
Realistically, Garcia views absurdities like what’s in store Sunday as all a part of the job.
“We’re fighters. This is what we do,” he said. “If we were in the street and we were like, ‘Bro, it’s a little hot, maybe we should do this tomorrow,’ we don’t get that luxury. So we’re going to go out there and give it the best performance and shows we can give you guys, regardless of the circumstances.”
Even after securing a main event slot in his previous fight in November at UFC Vegas 110 — and ending it with an impressive first-round knockout of David Onama — Garcia still feels he’s not getting the recognition he deserves.
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Garcia (19-5) has been a consummate entertainer and finisher over his seven-year UFC career, and the matchup with Lopes — a two-time title challenger — would’ve been the biggest of his run even if it weren’t happening at the White House. Should Garcia pull off the betting upset, he’ll land on the short list for potential title challengers to reigning UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.
“I do still feel disrespected,” Garcia said. “I do feel like people don’t count me seriously, but I finally get a platform where I can go out there and continue to prove otherwise.
“I have eight fights in the UFC, seven knockouts in the UFC. Eight wins, nine if you include the Contender Series. I’ve knocked out several guys, and, bro, I don’t even have a Topps card. How crazy? Everybody on the White House card pretty much has Topps cards. Everybody I’ve knocked out has a Topps card. I don’t get no love.
“Let’s put it this way, I’ve got a big chip on my shoulder for everybody doubting me, I’ll tell you that much.”
