The Ultimate Fighting Championship has currently lifted its ban on fighters bringing flags into the octagon, according to Dana White, the CEO. This decision came after Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 229 event. The ban on displaying flags was imposed in the midst of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
It garnered attention when Joe Pyfer displayed the United States flag following his second-round submission victory over Abdul Razak Alhassan at the UFC fight Apex.
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During the post-fight press conference, Dana addressed the situation and explained that the recent UFC event marked a turning point for him, prompting him to change the policy.
He said, “Flags are back,” and went on to share that the ban had bothered him, especially during his vacation on Mexican Independence Day. He said, “I was on vacation during the Mexican Independence Day, and the no flag thing drove me crazy. So I was like, ‘Yeah, f*ck that. We’re bringing flags back.’ It drove me crazy.”
Dana did not initially view the flag ban as a major issue and did not strongly oppose it. However, over time, he grew dissatisfied with the situation, leading to the decision to allow fighters to represent their respective countries once again.
Dana acknowledged that in a company like the UFC, not everything can be micromanaged. Sometimes decisions are made with good intentions, but he emphasized that his decision on many things is essentially “I don’t care.”
He said, “Everybody’s too soft, everybody’s too sensitive about everything. When the decision was made to do this, I was just like, ‘Eh, what’s the big deal if they don’t have flags?’ Mexican Independence Day flipped the switch and I was like, ‘That’s enough of the no flags thing.’ Flags are back. If any flags hurt your feelings, too f*cking bad.”
