Dana White knows violence and chaos all too well. He sees it unfold inside the Octagon every week. However, he had never experienced anything like what happened during the 2026 White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner on Saturday, April 25, 2026, at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C.
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According to reports, the evening turned chaotic when loud bangs—widely reported as gunshots—were heard near the main screening area or in the lobby of the hotel. Dana White, who was attending the event, later recalled the entire ordeal while speaking to a reporter from USA Today, as they appeared to evacuate the area.
“Inside, they started up, [and] all of a sudden, it just started getting noisy, tables getting flipped over, guys running in with guns, and they were screaming, ‘Get down.’ I didn’t get down,” Dana White remembered. “It was f—ing awesome. I literally took every minute of it in, and it was a pretty crazy, unique experience.”
It’s worth noting that attendees confirmed hearing 5–8 shots, with some smelling gunpowder. People ducked under tables and took cover. President Donald Trump, who attended the event for the first time as the President with the First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and other senior officials, was escorted out by Secret Service agents.
The Secret Service and the Metropolitan Police Department confirmed they were investigating a shooting incident. What’s more, a shooter was reported to have opened fire, and law enforcement quickly apprehended a suspect. Meanwhile, when the reporter pressed Dana White about what he was doing when everything began, the UFC CEO remembered chaos at Trump’s table.
“I was sitting, we were sitting right in front of the table,” Dana White added. “Right in front of where the president was… Nobody got tackled, but guys came in looking for shooters, and they came toward our table. I thought the shooter was over by us or something.”
Trump even reportedly tripped when he was escorted out of the hotel, but doesn’t appear to have sustained any injuries. In the meantime, the President has broken his silence on the shooting.
Donald Trump claims the shooter is from California
Since the incident, he addressed the nation from the White House briefing room. Trump claimed the suspect behind the Dinner shooting is believed to be from California. During the briefing, he also shared what he described as the first images of the suspect and showed video from the scene.
“A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons,” Trump said.
According to reports, a law enforcement officer was shot at very close range with a powerful weapon. Trump shared an update regarding the officer as well.
“I just spoke to the officer,” Trump said. “… He’s in great shape.”
Furthermore, the shooter appears to have been identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen from Torrance, California.
“The man has been captured. They’ve gone to his apartment. I guess he lives in California, and he’s a sick person, a very sick person.”
That being said, it appears Dana White wasn’t traumatized by the incident. Instead, he found the incident to be “f—ing awesome.” But what did you think of it?
