Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O’Malley has shared his thoughts on Joe Rogan’s recent concerns regarding the upcoming UFC event at the White House. Rogan, a long-time UFC commentator, has expressed his preference for an indoor, air-conditioned venue instead of an outdoor fight on the South Lawn of the White House.
On his podcast, Rogan highlighted the potential for extreme heat on June 14th, which could lead to dehydration among fighters on the UFC Freedom 250 card. He also raised concerns about insects, though UFC President Dana White has indicated that measures will be taken to address this issue, including the use of fans.
Rogan emphasized that championship bouts, like the main and co-main events scheduled for the White House card, should ideally take place in a controlled environment.
During a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Sean O’Malley, who is scheduled to fight Aiemann Zahabi on June 14th, commented on Rogan’s concerns. O’Malley acknowledged that extreme heat could impact fight outcomes. However, he pointed out that all fighters, including his Canadian opponent who is less accustomed to hot weather, were aware of the potential challenges of an outdoor event when they signed their contracts. “It is what it is,” O’Malley stated.
Speaking to Mike Bohn, O’Malley said, “It’s at the White House, so you gotta deal with whatever you gotta deal with. That would suck to lose because of a reason outside of your skill set.” He added, “May the best man win and if something plays a role because it’s outside and it affects the fight somehow, that would suck, it is unfortunate. But none of us signed the contract thinking it was inside, you know what I mean? We all know it’s outside. We all know what we’re getting into. Maybe not to an extent; we don’t know what all is gonna happen, but we all know it’s gonna be outside and we’re gonna have to possibly deal with stuff. We all signed it… We are gonna have to adapt to it if it is messed up weather.”
