The FBI got a UFC-style makeover as Washington prepared to host one of the most unique sporting events ever staged on White House grounds.
In a video released on Wednesday, FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau had partnered with the UFC, putting roughly 300 federal agents through hand-to-hand combat training ahead of UFC Freedom 250.
“Thanks to the great partnership with @ufc we’ve seen about 300 agents come through and learn amazing tactics so they can safeguard American lives,” Patel wrote on X while sharing footage from the training sessions.
FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL SEEKS RELATIONSHIP WITH UFC: REPORT
Justin Gaethje looks on during UFC 300 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. (Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
FBI Director Kash Patel touted the agency’s facilitation of foreign transfers of custody for two high-profile targets, one from Iraq and one from Colombia. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
The FBI’s Rapid Response team appeared equally enthusiastic about the partnership, sharing video of the training sessions and stating: “Greatest fighters in the world meet greatest cops in the world!”
It was also the kind of collaboration that’s only possible when the FBI director has UFC chief Dana White on speed dial.
UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje also made an appearance in the footage. Earlier this year, Gaethje helped train FBI agents and academy personnel at the bureau’s Special Agent Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
More recently, footage released Wednesday showed Gaethje using the FBI Headquarters as part of his preparation for his lightweight title fight against Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250.
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President Donald Trump met with UFC fighters Ilia Topuria, Justin Gaethje and Ciryl Gane in the Oval Office of the White House on May 6, 2026, to discuss the UFC Freedom 250 match scheduled for June 14 outside the White House. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Fighters were expected to use the Eisenhower Executive Office Building as locker rooms before making the walk toward “The Claw,” the massive Octagon structure erected on the South Lawn.
Adding to the festivities, adrenaline junkie Travis Pastrana is preparing a surprise stunt to open the main card broadcast. A video shared by White on Tuesday indicated the stunt could involve back-flipping his dirt bike over the South Lawn.
Federal agents training alongside UFC fighters, a title contender working out inside FBI headquarters and a UFC event on White House grounds would have sounded like satire just a few years ago.
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