UFC Freedom 250 will be unlike any card the promotion has staged before, with the White House set to host the event outdoors.
The card will take place on a Sunday, with only seven fights and a crowd made up of invitees.
That setting creates obvious security and production challenges, but Dana White has now raised a more unexpected concern.
Dana White admits UFC has gnat problem at White House
The UFC boss told Rich Kleiman on Boardroom Talks that a recent dinner at the Rose Garden made him notice the issue.
“President Trump just opened the Rose Garden two nights ago and he invited me to dinner there. The amount of gnats that were flying around, I’m like, ‘Holy s—!’” White began by saying (via Home of Fight).
“As soon as I got on the plane, I called my head production and said, ‘Yeah, let me tell you about the gnat situation tonight.’”
White said the concern is not only comfort. It is about what happens when fighters are under powerful lights outside.
He said: “So when you’re a fighter, think about that lighting grid, the amount of power in the lights, moths, gnats, and God knows what else.
“I was telling Craig, my head of production, ‘Maybe we put fans in…’ These are all the little details that we have to think about. That’s why I don’t like fighting outside.”
For a normal arena card, this would not be an issue. For UFC Freedom 250, it has become another reminder of how difficult the White House event will be.
