Dana White debunks shocking footage staging a Volkanovski announcement at the White House

Photo by Mat Hayward/Getty Images

Dana White debunks shocking footage staging a Volkanovski announcement at the White House

Originally posted on HITC | By Kyle Dimond | Last updated May 23, 2026 8:41 PM ET

When a video started making the rounds on social media, White quickly spotted the clip and took notice of how much it sounded like him.

Back in January, Volkanovski faced Diego Lopes for a second time. It was a rematch many felt wasn’t really needed after their initial bout the year before.

Lopes was given another shot at the title, but Volkanovski didn’t think he made enough adjustments to capitalise on that opportunity.

The recent fake announcement seemed designed to stir up more reaction by suggesting a trilogy fight between Volkanovski and Lopes could be next.

Dana White responds to fake clip about Volkanovski vs Lopes 3 fight at the White House

Joe Rogan has said he wants Alexander Volkanovski to fight Movsar Evloev, one of the top featherweight contenders, at the event hosted by the White House.

An AI-generated clip claiming that ‘The Great’ would be fighting on June 14th, but that he’d be taking Steve Garcia’s place in a trilogy against Diego Lopes, started to make rounds on social media.

While that post might have been intended for fans, it also reached Dana White. The UFC boss responded with a GIF featuring a man smelling a cloth and text underneath as seen via a repost on X.

White has been clear about adding more fights to the card only if Donald Trump asks for them. This is how Derrick Lewis vs Josh Hokit was added earlier in the process.

In later interviews after announcing the event, White spoke about filling out the card with fighters he knows he can depend on. While every fighter set to compete will want to keep their place, injuries and cancellations are always a risk in MMA.

Lopes vs Garcia has all the makings of an exciting matchup, no matter where it takes place. Fans will just be hoping this fake video doesn’t end up causing any disruptions along the way.

This article first appeared on HITC and was syndicated with permission.

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