UFC star absolutely torches idea of "Hunger Games" fight at The White House

Plenty of UFC fighters have expressed interest in being a part of the planned UFC White House card, but don’t include Brandon Royval’s name on that list.

One of the major storylines in the MMA world over the last few months has revolved around a potential UFC card at The White House next summer. Conceived as a way to help commemorate the 250th birthday of The United States, both President Donald Trump and UFC CEO Dana White have been vocal about wanting to make the idea reality.

There’s still nothing set in stone regarding the event, and former UFC title challenger Royval dismissed the whole concept when asked about it during an interview on In The Arena MMA.

Brandon Royval Shuts Down Idea Of Fighting At The White House

While a number of major names such as Alex Pereira, Jon Jones, and Conor McGregor have all publically declared that they intend to fight on the UFC Fight House card, Royval questioned the logistics of the entire event and indicated he’s much happier fighting in arenas packed with fans.

“I don’t give a s*** about fighting at The f***ing White House,” Royval explained. “I wanna fight in front of big crowds, bro. It’s like, how big can The White House even like, have of a stadium? Is that s*** outside too?”

Brandon Royval (red gloves) reacts after fighting Matheus Nicolau (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at T-Mobile Center. | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

White has indicated that booking fights for the UFC White House event will likely start in February at the earliest, but as of yet there have been few concrete details regarding how the promotion and the U.S government actual intend to organize a show on The South Lawn.

"Don't Give A F*** About Any Of Our Political Figures"

Given that attendance for the card would presumably be quite limited, Royval went on to say that he’d much rather fight in front of hardcore MMA fans instead of politicians and wealthy figures that may not even have any actual interest in the sport.

CEO of the UFC Dana White and the President of the United States Donald Trump before a bantamweight title fight. — CEO of the UFC Dana White and the President of the United States Donald Trump before a bantamweight title fight during UFC 316 at Prudential Center. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

“I don’t give a f*** about any of our political figures right now. To fight in front of them just seems like some f***ing Hunger Games-type of f***ing s***. I don’t give a f*** to fight in front of a bunch of f***ing billionaires and rich people that f***ing could give a s*** less about me…F*** you guys. I wanna fight in front of people that are ‘Raw Dawg’ fans, are fans of MMA, and that can relate to me.”

Currently the UFC’s #3-ranked flyweight contender, Royval is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Joshua Van that took home “Fight of the Night” honors at UFC 317 and is considered by many fans to be a frontrunner for 2025’s “Fight of the Year”.

Brandon Royval (red gloves) fights Joshua Van (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

“Raw Dawg” came up short in a flyweight title bid against Alexandre Pantoja in 2023, and he’ll try to vault right back into title contention next month when he and Manel Kape square off in the final UFC fight of ESPN era.

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