Dana White expects UFC Freedom 250 to do 'Super Bowl-type numbers'

Dana White is expecting record-breaking numbers for UFC Freedom 250.

UFC Freedom 250 (Paramount+) takes place Sunday at the White House in Washington, and is headlined by a lightweight title-unification bout between Ilia Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) and Justin Gaethje (27-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC. In the co-headliner, Alex Pereira (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) takes on Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight belt.

White is aiming for NFL Super Bowl numbers, which is considered the most viewed sporting event in the United States.

“For UFC fans all over the world, this is a unique experience for everybody,” White told UFC on TNT Sports. “We’re expecting Super Bowl-type numbers for this fight.”

White is no stranger to one-off events. The UFC was first to run numerous events during the COVID-19 pandemic on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi. The UFC was also first to host a sporting event at the Sphere in Las Vegas, which won two Sports Emmy awards.

The UFC CEO is expecting the White House event to achieve even higher heights than the Sphere – or at least he hopes so.

“I said the Sphere should have won every award there is in production – it did not,” White said. “Which doesn’t surprise me: Very political. If we don’t win every production award for the White House fight, they should stop doing production awards because you’re full of sht. You’re full of sht.”