Bryce Mitchell has long been a household name in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). From his outspoken belief that the Earth is flat to his recent success in the octagon — which earned him the #13 rank in the featherweight division — Mitchell is widely recognized by fight fans. It was his recent comments on his podcast that placed him in a far greater spotlight. In the very first episode, he made several comments sympathetic to Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime. He labeled Hitler as a righteous leader campaigning to save his country while making several antisemitic and homophobic comments. The video clip quickly made its rounds on social media, with fans and journalists calling for Mitchell’s release from the company. Hours after the incident, UFC President Dana White held a press conference after an event in which he was asked about Mitchell’s statements. While White heavily criticized Mitchell’s rhetoric, he did not enforce any punishment on him due to his policy on free speech. The following week, White made an appearance on Piers Morgan’s podcast and further discussed the situation. When Morgan questioned if White’s free speech rules have any limit, White replied, “I think the most important free speech to protect is hate speech. When a government or a certain person can determine what is hate speech it’s a very slippery slope and it’s dangerous.”
Pro sports leagues often brand themselves as family products; this means regulations on athletes’ speech during interviews, radio shows, podcasts, etc. Given that the nature of mixed martial-arts isn’t family-friendly, the UFC operates very differently from other leagues. If an NFL or MLB athlete were to swear in an interview, the video would be taken down and the athlete would be fined and suspended for compromising the league’s image. Suspensions are a rare occurrence in the UFC and are typically only handed out when a fighter is caught using performance-enhancing drugs. The more attitude a fighter shows, the more they are marketed by the UFC. Fighters with big egos and provocative personalities can captivate the fans and thus are placed on bigger events. White has created a unique dynamic in which his fighters are unfiltered and face no consequences for their actions. The positive side of this free environment is that the UFC is home to some of the most authentic athletes in all of sports. The downside of this is that if a time does come when a fighter should be disciplined, the UFC doesn’t set that example for the rest of the roster. Some of the company’s biggest stars, such as Conor McGregor and Jon Jones, have frequently been arrested and face no punishment within the UFC. This sends a message from the top down that fighters are not only free to express themselves, but can also be careless in their actions.
Recent years have been some of the most successful and expansive in UFC history as the company merged into one stock with the WWE labeled “TKO.” Just last year, White signed a new agreement to host several events with Saudi Arabia. Despite the rise in prominence, the UFC maintains its laissez-faire style. As mentioned earlier, the lack of filtering in the UFC runs down from the very top — White. He is an avid supporter of President Donald Trump, speaking at several rallies and being present at the inauguration alongside a handful of his fighters. This stems from White’s long-running friendship with Trump, who was an early investor in the UFC. To this day, Trump still makes the occasional appearance for the most high-profile events.
