Leading into the highly anticipated UFC Freedom 250 card at the White House, middleweight champion Sean Strickland drew some attention for his claims that he was banned from the event.
But on Sunday, Strickland was still in Washington, D.C. He filmed himself walking through a fan festival at the event, but was quickly removed by security.
Afterward, Strickland claimed that he may be facing charges.
Here’s what to know about Strickland’s removal from the grounds at UFC Freedom 250.
Was Sean Strickland arrested?
Strickland was not technically arrested, but was removed from the UFC fan fest happening at the White House on Sunday by security and escorted out.
It wasn’t Strickland’s first time attempting to sneak into a UFC White House event over the weekend. He was also mobbed by fans when he made his way into a pre-fight press conference on Friday.
Strickland shared a photo to social media that showed him being led off the grounds by security.
On Monday, TMZ reported that Strickland was taken away by security “for his own safety,” as officers “responded to the Ellipse around 7 PM after receiving a report of a disturbance as a result of Strickland just popping up out of the blue.”
Sean Strickland charges
It’s unknown whether Strickland will officially be charged, but in a video posted to social media, he said he may be facing a disorderly conduct charge. In Washington D.C., that could be punishable by up to 90 days in jail, up to a $500 fine or both.
“I may have been charged with disorderly conduct. I don’t know what that is but it sounds cool,” Strickland said in the video. “Anyways, I just want to thank you fans. I can’t thank you guys enough. After being banned, you guys riding, supporting me, it means a lot to me.”
TMZ reported that Strickland was neither cited nor arrested, but told not to return to the event.
Why Sean Strickland was kicked out of UFC White House event
While Dana White disputed the claims, Strickland drew attention leading up to the UFC White House event for saying he had been banned from attending due to his criticisms of Donald Trump and the war in Iran.
“He made it very clear he didn’t want to be a part of this event and now apparently he’s banned. Nobody is banned,” White said of Strickland’s claims, per MMA Fighting.
🚨 Dana White says Sean Strickland is NOT banned from the UFC White House event, but is not invited
“Sean Strickland is banned from humanity, we don’t want him near any human beings anywhere.
He made it very clear he didn’t want to be apart of this event, and now apparently… pic.twitter.com/0VTKfJGbQo
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) June 9, 2026
Whether Strickland was “banned” or not, the more likely reason he was kicked out of the UFC Fan Fest near the White House event was likely due to him running into a ring that was set up on the grass, with fans cheering him on.
TMZ reported Monday that Strickland was taken away for his own “safety,” as officers were concerned after “the crowd became disorderly, so they quickly escorted the middleweight champion back to his hotel.”
The next part of the video appeared to show Strickland sitting in the back of a police van.
SEAN STRICKLAND JUST PULLED UP TO THE UFC WHITE HOUSE FAN FEST AND GOT SWARMED BY FANS
He got kicked out and says he might be going to jail 😭 pic.twitter.com/UGZzaVPrOU
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) June 14, 2026
Here’s another angle of Strickland being guided off the ring by law enforcement:
UFC fighter Sean Strickland showed up to the UFC 250 Fan Fest today and was subsequently escorted out by U.S. Marshals and other law enforcement to chants of “USA, USA, USA.” Strickland, the UFC Middleweight Champion, was not invited to the event, amidst speculation that his… pic.twitter.com/iQsbGVrswY
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 15, 2026