Dana White strongly defended free speech on Saturday night after a Canadian reporter raised the issue of UFC fighters being free to express their opinions in public.
After UFC 297 concluded at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, one Canadian journalist said that earlier in the week, then-UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland had bombarded another Canadian reporter with “gotcha” questions. I remember when I accused another Canadian reporter of trying to do that.
The reporter opened the question by saying that Coach White gives his fighters a “long chain” to say what they want to say. But before the reporter could go any further, Mr. White jumped in.
“First of all, I don't give anyone a leash. No leash? Free speech,” White said. “To control what people say and tell people what to believe, I don't tell other fucking humans what to say or think. There are no restrictions on them. there is no.”
Dana White introduces Canadian journalists to the concept of free speech.
The poor man's brain melted. He is used to being a dog on a leash and thinks others should be too. pic.twitter.com/CJdxBmA4ol
— Billboard Chris 🇺🇸 (@BillboardChris) January 21, 2024
“It's ridiculous to say you're going to give someone the lead. It's freedom of speech, brother. People can say whatever they want to say and believe what they want to believe.”
The issue came up earlier this week when a Canadian reporter brought up Sean Strickland's comments in 2021, saying that if he had a gay son, he would have failed as a man for creating such vulnerability. It happened because I tried to lure him in by saying something that I thought he would think.
“This city (Toronto) has a pretty supportive gay and lesbian community,” the reporter began. He then brought up Strickland's theory that he had a gay son, but the story went no further and Strickland cut him off.
Strickland, wearing a T-shirt that read, “There's a woman in every kitchen, a gun in every hand,” walked away.
“Oh, look!” Strickland yelled, “Swamp!”
I don't know who this guy is, and I don't care, but you're not a man…but you'll take it as a compliment… pic.twitter.com/PMR1h4Yp7K
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) January 17, 2024
You elected Justin Trudeau… you’re just pathetic,” Strickland continued. “The fact that you have no fucking backbone, and he shut down your fucking country and seized your bank accounts, and you ask me all that shit? Fuck you. Stop it. Hey, you fucking coward.”
Strickland lost his middleweight title to South Africa's Doricus du Plessis by referee's decision.
