President Donald Trump agrees with Joe Rogan’s UFC White House ‘gimmick’ critique

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President Donald Trump agrees with Joe Rogan’s UFC White House ‘gimmick’ critique

Originally posted on Bloody Elbow | By Donagh Corby | Last updated May 26, 2026 9:05 PM ET

President Donald Trump has admitted that he now sees Joe Rogan’s point about the upcoming Freedom 250 event being a ‘gimmick’.

President Trump was initially displeased with Rogan’s take on the UFC White House show, but has come to embrace the tag. It is expected that the famed comedian and podcaster will be on the broadcast for the special event, even though it is not technically a numbered event.

Back in November of 2024, just days after winning back the presidency, Trump attended UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. There, he watched Jon Jones defend the heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic, and suggested the idea of an event on the South Lawn to Dana White.

President Donald Trump responds to Joe Rogan’s ‘gimmick’ comment

Generally, Joe Rogan and President Trump’s relationship has been good over the years. The podcaster is credited with playing a huge part in his successful election effort in 2024, and Trump regularly embraces him when they cross paths at cageside.

However, Rogan is not too impressed with the UFC Freedom 250 idea, saying on a recent episode of his podcast: “Yeah, I’m not thrilled about that… I’ll be there but I’m not thrilled about it, it doesn’t seem like a wise idea… It’s kind of a gimmick, you know, there’s that.

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“And people are criticizing the card but if it was any other card it’s a great card it’s just they’re criticizing it because they said it was gonna be the greatest card of all time and it’s also just gonna be a security nightmare.”

And in a cover story for TIME about Dana White, President Trump responded to Rogan’s comment, seemingly embracing the tag and agreeing with it. “At first I thought, ‘That’s not nice,’” he is quoted as saying.

“And then I realized, it is a gimmick. Life is a gimmick, if you think about it, right? But it’s a good gimmick. It’s something that will never happen again.

“Nobody will ever have the privilege of doing something like this in front of the White House. It’s going to be very unique. It’s going to be amazing. I think it’s great for America, frankly.”

This article first appeared on Bloody Elbow and was syndicated with permission.

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