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‘There’s No Leashes’: Post-Fight Press Asks 3x About Censoring Sean Strickland Until Dana White Finally Had Enough

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO Dana White fired back at reporters Saturday night after they asked him three times about censorship of past comments by UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland. He scolded one of the reporters for “freedom of speech.”

Following Strickland's bout with fellow mixed martial arts fighter Doricas du Plessis at UFC 297, White sat down for a post-fight press conference to discuss the event and the UFC's future plans. About nine minutes into the press conference, a reporter brought up Strickland's previous comments leading up to the game.

The reporter asked the UFC CEO if there had been any “discussions” with sponsors before the fight and claimed Strickland had made “nasty comments.” (Related: 'You're Infected': Sean Strickland Unmasks Media in Most Brutal Press Conference Ever)

“Sean Strickland — The story of this week, probably the last year or 14 months. There was a little scuffle earlier this week and some comments he made that caused a public backlash. You fighters. I understand that it is not your policy to police speech, but have you had any discussions with sponsors like UFC, ESPN, Bud Light, etc. about how to handle this situation?'' the reporter asked.

White quickly ended the question by saying there had been “zero” conversations on the topic, later pointing out that Strickland was a “star.” But it wasn't long before a second question emerged regarding Strickland and du Plessis' “dark” trash talk. Highlights what Strickland used to be warned Mr. du Plessis talks about the topic of child abuse.

“I know you answered this to some extent, but when the trash talk between Sean and Dorikas turned a little dark with the child abuse and subsequent brawl on 296, you went to those guys and , have you ever thought about saying, “Hey, this might be”? Do you only need to tone it down once? ” a second reporter asked.

“I don't tell anyone to do anything. I don't try to control other human beings in any way, shape or form. As I always say, we're in the fighting business, so there's no need to worry. “If you've had your feelings hurt that much, you probably shouldn't be asking those questions when you know the answer you're going to get from Strickland. Let's start there,” White said.

In an attempt to push White back, the reporter quickly tried to correct him by claiming he was discussing another comment, but White silenced the reporter while saying he understood the question was being asked. (Related article: 'Fuck you': Dana White's epic response to 'big sponsor' who asked him to take down Trump supporter's post)

I understand what you're saying. I know what you asked me, White continued. “That's the reality. He's a fighting businessman.”

The Strickland trash talk topic appeared to be over, but a third reporter jumped in almost a minute later, commenting on the “long lead” the UFC was giving the fighters who appeared to be cornering White. asked the CEO.

“Obviously you're giving a long lead on what a fighter can say when they're there with a microphone in the UFC, and you're veering into homophobic, transphobic territory. Are you – are you – ” a third reporter asked before being cut off. Written by White.

“I don't give the leash to anyone. Leash? Freedom of speech. [You’re going to] Do you control what people say? Are you going to tell people what to believe? ” White snapped. “I don't tell other humans what to say or what to think. And none of that is a lead. What's your question?”

The reporter then claimed he was asking questions that White didn't seem to like and quickly said White was willing to “move on.”

“Yeah, that's probably a good idea. It's stupid 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,” White said. Ta.

“There were two gay women who fought in the co-main event. They were sitting on stage with Sean Strickland. They were wondering what Sean Strickland was thinking and saying. , I couldn't care less what his beliefs were or what his opinions were. You know what I mean, right?”

White is known for championing free speech within the company, and previously spoke on a podcast with comedian Theo Fung about sponsoring social media posts featuring former President Donald Trump to be removed. He said he told his sponsors to “fuck off” after he was reportedly asked to do so.