The confluence of mixed martial arts and the group of people behind the upcoming UFC Freedom 250, which includes the UFC brass and President Donald Trump, has divided political pundits and fight fans alike in the weeks leading up to the White House event on June 14. And one of the loudest voices, Joe Rogan, has entered the conversation again, but this time he’s defending Donald Trump over the spectacle.

While the UFC commentator has spent weeks criticizing the practicalities and safety concerns of the historic outdoor card scheduled for Sunday on the South Lawn of the White House, the JRE host completely shut down critics of the event by drawing a sharp cultural parallel to the previous administration.

“Apparently Trump doesn’t want to take the octagon down,” Joe Rogan told author and bowhunter Cameron Hanes on his podcast. “He wants to leave it up. I think it’d be great to have guys come in and train at the White House for a couple weeks. That’d be the next gimmick.

“F— it. The whole thing’s chaos anyway. I mean, what, Biden could have a giant LBGT flag in front of the White House and have trans people pulling their br–sts out, remember that? Like, they had a big pride day. They had a big pride flag in front of the White House.”

Joe Rogan’s parallel brings up some very real historical context about how the White House is often used for political and cultural messaging. Back in June 2023, during a Pride Month celebration, former President Joe Biden’s administration faced significant conservative backlash for displaying a Progress Pride flag flanked by two American flags, right from the Truman Balcony, marking the first time a flag for a specific social cause took center stage over the American flag at the White House.

That same event went completely off the rails when influencer Rose Montoya shared a video of herself going topless on the lawn. By bringing that up again, the JRE host effectively argued that the bar for wild White House spectacles was set long before anyone even tried setting up a cage on the South Lawn. While nothing like the UFC Freedom 250 has ever happened before in the history of the White House, the claim from both Dana White and Donald Trump is that having it close to the US’ 250th anniversary makes the nature of the celebration itself historic.

While Joe Rogan has previously defended the event, the weight of his critique has been more noticeable than his support for it. What makes this whole situation hilarious is the internal friction happening within the UFC itself. You have the company’s two most powerful figures at odds over the event’s integrity. Finally reacting to Joe Rogan’s constant criticisms of the event and how it is nothing but a ‘gimmick,’ Dana White responded by emphasizing his position.

“Joe Rogan is a grown a– man who has his own opinions on different things—and yes, we are really good friends,” the UFC CEO told Forbes. “I don’t call him and say, ‘What are you doing? What are you talking about bugs?’ I’m talking about bugs, too. Whatever Joe Rogan’s opinions are—he said something crazy, like, ‘It seems like a gimmick.’ I mean, what does a gimmick mean?

“When you talk about a gimmick, there’s absolutely nothing gimmicky about this event. We’re celebrating 250 years of America; we’re gonna have all the representatives of the military there. Every fight on that card means something with who wins or loses that night, and you know, like the most historical sporting event in American history. Far from a gimmick.”

But that did not stop Joe Rogan from doubling down on the event on his latest podcast episode despite the attempt to protect Donald Trump from some controversy. Looking at the spectacle solely from a fighter’s standpoint, the JRE host responded to Cameron Hanes’ criticism of the government’s entry into the entertainment industry by pointing out the humid D.C. weather and forecast thunderstorms.

“I don’t like it because I think they should be fighting indoors, always,” he said. “I think world championship fights should be fought in a controlled environment. I would have never wanted to do it; I would have said we can’t do it. They have to be in a controlled environment. We can’t have somebody win or lose because they’re outside and it’s muggy.”

According to the UFC commentator, the massive outdoor structure, dubbed ‘The Claw,’ will turn the grappling matches into a slippery, sweaty mess given the humid weather in DC. However, the political act over UFC Freedom 250 goes way beyond a little rain.

Joe Rogan believes Donald Trump should just stick to the UFC after NBA disaster

UFC Freedom 250 completely bars the general public, instead catering to a highly exclusive, 4,300-seat audience of military officers, diplomats, and handpicked celebrities—even though A-listers like Jared Leto and Dwayne Johnson have reportedly turned down their invitations.

According to Joe Rogan, limiting the crowd to pro-Trump fans is a brilliant business decision to avoid the angry reactions the president has been receiving in other sports. We recently saw a perfect example of that when Donald Trump became the first sitting president to attend the NBA Finals this Tuesday.

While the headlines should have been about the New York Knicks losing to the San Antonio Spurs at Madison Square Garden in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the biggest talking point was the loud boos during the national anthem and angry sports fans complaining about the brutal security lockdowns that paralyzed Manhattan traffic.

For Joe Rogan, that basketball disaster is proof enough of where Trump needs to stay.

“He should stick to the UFC,” he said on his podcast. “They are gonna boo him everywhere else. I heard some people cheered. I heard it was like cheers and boos. But the problem is, if there are cheers and any boos, if it’s like 50/50, don’t go to that spot. Go to the UFC.

“People say he got booed at the UFC. I have seen him at the UFC six times or something like that… never got booed. He has never gotten booed. They f—— cheer. The people that say they are booing him, you’re distorting reality.”

So, as Donald Trump prepares to celebrate his 80th birthday this weekend, walking into Dana White’s closely guarded, loving VIP bubble on the South Lawn seems to be more about finding a safe haven to host a birthday party that will be watched by fans worldwide.