Serena Williams’ husband Alexis Ohanian is defending his attendance at President DonaldTrump’s UFC Freedom 250 event.
The fight took place this Sunday at the White House to celebrate the upcoming 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
Ohanian received backlash for his presence at the event and released a statement on XWednesday night explaining himself.
He started the post by condemning UFC fighter JoshHokit’s comment about former first lady Michelle Obama.
“Lot of people asking me to comment: Yes, that fighter’s slur about former First Lady Michelle Obama was vile and inappropriate,” he wrote.
The Reddit co-founder added “I was already on my way home when those comments were made and was glad to see Dana condemn them,” referencing UFC CEO DanaWhite.
Ohanian was one of many notable figures who watched the match; others include Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, New York Knicks owner JamesDolan, comedian NateBargatze, and the brother of Pope Leo XIV, Louis Prevost.
He went on to explain, “I attended the UFC event via invitation from TKO/IMG leadership (I own 5 pro sports teams + a league).”
Ending the post with, “For context: I resigned in protest from Reddit (the company I co-founded and built for over a decade) specifically to push it to curb communities for hate and violence on the site.”
Lot of people asking me to comment: Yes, that fighter's slur about former First Lady Michelle Obama was vile and inappropriate.
I attended the UFC event via invitation from TKO/IMG leadership (I own 5 pro sports teams + a league). I was already on my way home when those comments…
— Alexis Ohanian 🗽 (@alexisohanian) June 18, 2026
The replies to his post were not very forgiving.
“You could have declined that invite, despite your relation to the sports world. Not a great look,” one user wrote.
Another responded to his post with “You shouldn’t have been there. You’re an epic disappointment. With a dynamic and conscious Black wife and Black children being harmed by this administration, you put your cronies over your family AND this country. Shame on you.”
Ohanian and Williams married in 2017 and share two children.