Eric Trump is claiming social media direct messages between him and former UFC star Daniel Cormier in which he purportedly asks Cormier whether any of the White House UFC Freedom 250 fights were rigged were artificial intelligence-generated.
“This is completely fake,” Trump wrote on X on Sunday. “I have never reached out to Daniel. In fact, this is scary.”
In a since-deleted post, Cormier, a UFC Hall of Famer and color commentator, shared screenshots of the messages, adding that he was refusing “to stay silent” because “UFC is a sport that [he is] deeply passionate about.”
“I will not tolerate this type of insider behavior,” he wrote. “Shame on anyone trying to ruin this beautiful event.”
In the messages, Trump is seen to have written, “I’ll just cut to the chase. Are any of the fights tomorrow rigged? I’ve been eyeing the Lopes fight and I think an upset wouldn’t be too unrealistic. $$”
After deleting his original post, Cormier, who has not directly commented on his initial missive, cryptically wrote, “Are people really this dumb?”
Diego Lopes was the Brazilian featherweight fighter who knocked out American Steve Garcia in Sunday night’s opening bout.
The UFC fights at the White House are to mark America’s 250th birthday, with Sunday’s event also coinciding with President Donald Trump‘s 80th birthday.
