While Ari Emanuel would likely rather us resurface his attendance at Game 3 of the NBA Finals where he sat courtside at Madison Square Garden last week, Page Six Hollywood finds his appearance at UFC Freedom 250 noteworthy!
After all, Emanuel was seen shaking hands with his former client, President Trump, at the surreal scene, which featured champ Josh Hokit blurting out during a post-fight interview inside the ring at the White House UFC event: “Michelle Obama is a man! Am I right America?”
Ari Emanuel with his wife, fashion designer Sarah Staudinger, at the UFC Freedom 250 event on Sunday. Zuffa LLC
Fans react during the UFC Freedom 250 Fan Fest at The Ellipse on June 14, 2026 in Washington, DC. Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Adding to the insanity, Sean Strickland, another champ who was disinvited to UFC Freedom 250, crashed the Ellipse Fan Fest event on Sunday evening, barefoot with what appeared to be a beer in his hand before getting tossed by Secret Service agents, The Post reported.
“I just want to prove that I’m Israeli enough for you guys,” Strickland later posted on social media. (He has been critical of Israel and the war in Iran.)
Emanuel, who is the CEO of UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings, was with a contingent of family and colleagues.
Jacquelyn Martin/POOL AP via AP
UFC CEO Dana White told TMZ pre-bout: “There’s a lot of people hitting me up for tickets, but we did invites. The president has 1,000. I have 200. Ari Emanuel has 200, and the rest are all going to the military.”
Also on hand at the White House South Lawn spectacle was Paramount Skydance boss David Ellison and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg.