UFC Vegas 61 is set to take place this Saturday, October 1st. In the main event, 5th-ranked women’s strawweight fighter Mackenzie Dern will go up against Yan Xiaonan, who is ranked 6th. However, reports came out recently that Dana White has decided to ban media and fans from the event. Rumours circulated that former US President Donald Trump was set to attend the event.
However, Mackenzie Dern has shared the real reason why the arena will be empty during the event. According to Dern, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg will be at the event and he has rented out the entire place for him and his family to enjoy. Recently, videos surfaced of Mark Zuckerberg training in MMA and it came out that he is a big fan of the sport. Hence, it is possible that he has decided to witness the fighters in person.
“I mean I know Mark Zuckerberg like rented out the whole event you know. So I know he will be there. But I don’t know if it’s just like literally him and his wife or if he’s gonna have friends, or if it’s just like a, it’ll be like a small party, I don’t know you know. But from who wanted like a main event with a crowd, going to like very very private you know, I’m definitely like ‘okay, we’re gonna be back like a sparring.'” (h/t via MMA Junkie)
Dana White denies Mackenzie Dern’s claims of Mark Zuckerberg renting out UFC Vegas 61
A celebrity renting out an entire arena to attend a UFC event is pretty unheard of. Although the UFC Apex facility has a relatively small capacity compared to proper arenas like T-Mobile Arena, it is hard to imagine that the company will clear out an arena to accommodate a celebrity. Hence, it is not surprising that Dana White has denied the rumours about Mark Zuckerberg renting out the place.
Mark Zuckerberg did NOT rent out the UFC Apex. That’s total bullshit. https://t.co/VbdFATcltd
— danawhite (@danawhite) September 29, 2022
At UFC 244 and UFC 264, former President Donald Trump was in attendance. If there is any person in the world, for whom Dana would clear out the entire place, it would be the US President. Even Trump had to enjoy the fights amongst the regular fans. So it is completely believable when the 52-year-old denies what Mackenzie Dern had to say.
However, if Mark has indeed rented out the place and has requested an empty arena for him to enjoy, he obviously wanted some privacy. That also could be one of the reasons why Dana has come out to deny Dern’s claim publicly. When he was asked about why he does not want media to attend the event this Saturday, he joked and said he wanted media to take a night off.
What do you think the real reason is behind the media’s banishment from the event? Do you think Mackenzie Dern leaked something that she was not supposed to? Let us know in the comments down below!
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