Dana White says UFC Freedom 250 delivered 'monstrous' Paramount+ ratings

Dana White said UFC Freedom 250 on the White House lawn delivered ratings that exceeded expectations and prompted a rare phone call from a pleased billionaire.

The UFC CEO told reporters at the post-fight press conference that Paramount CEO David Ellison reached out immediately after the event wrapped to share early viewership data. "I just got off the phone with David Ellison, he's going crazy," White said, per MMA Mania. "I mean, out of the gates from the first fight, the fights exceeded all their expectations. I'll let Paramount make their own announcement, but it was monstrous tonight. Yeah. Monstrous. Like, he's, you know … you don't get calls from billionaires flipping out too often."

Weather concerns disappeared as UFC Freedom 250 unfolded

White spent fight week sweating a forecast that threatened to derail the outdoor card. A brief rain delay pushed the start back 45 minutes, but conditions turned ideal once the action began. "The storm literally split and went around the White House," White said. "And the breeze was perfect. I mean, just everything, you couldn't have had a better night." He added that nearly 200,000 fans passed through the Ellipse park over two days and merchandise sales broke records.

Despite the smooth execution, White made clear he has no appetite for more outdoor shows unless they take place in climates as predictable as Abu Dhabi. "I don't ever wanna be outside ever again," he said. "There's just too much leading up to the fight. You just have to sweat."

White confirmed he and President Trump discussed staging a Fight for the Troops card next year. The UFC previously ran multiple editions of that military-themed series but paused production. "He wanted to do it this year, and I said, 'Sir, I need a year to recover financially from the White House fight. So give me a year,'" White said.

The UFC returns to a traditional arena setting at UFC 328 on July 12 in Las Vegas.

Original reporting:

• mmamania.com — White: UFC Freedom 250 ‘delivered,’ did ‘monstrous’ numbers on Paramount+ | MMA Mania