Jack Osbourne is pushing back hard against critics after facing backlash for attending the recent UFC fight held at the White House.
The former reality star took to his YouTube channel to address what he called “completely insane” reactions to his appearance, saying some of the comments left him stunned.
Osbourne read examples of online criticism that included remarks like “So disappointed” and “This is kinda devastating not gonna lie,” before clarifying that his attendance had nothing to do with politics.
“I went to a sporting event. That’s it,” he stated firmly.
“I didn’t go and throw my hat in the ring for political office. I wasn’t there going to endorse a politician or some kind of, you know, foreign affairs issue. Nothing. I literally went to the White House to go see UFC.”
He shared that his interest in combat sports goes back to childhood, describing how he began taekwondo at six, trained in Muay Thai during his late teens and early twenties, and later practiced jiu-jitsu in his thirties.
“I have also attended UFC and PRIDE fights going back to the early 2000s,” Osbourne said, emphasizing that combat sports have long been a major part of his life.
The 40-year-old explained that when UFC President and CEO Dana White invited him, there was no reason to decline.
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“Of course I would go,” he said.
“Any person out there who would get an invite would have gone.”
He dismissed critics who framed the event as political, calling the outrage “ridiculous” and insisting, “It was not a political event, or in my eyes it was not. It was a f**king fight at the White House. Who gives a s---?”
Osbourne recalled telling his wife during the event that it would be great if the White House hosted more sporting occasions, noting that past presidents had also held similar gatherings on the grounds of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Some online users suggested that his late father, rock legend Ozzy Osbourne, would have disapproved of him attending, but Jack was quick to counter that assumption.
“You did not know my father. You did not know where he stood with things,” Osbourne said.
He acknowledged Ozzy’s anti-war message in his famous track but emphasized, “He wasn’t anti-UFC. He wasn’t anti-going to an event at the White House. He was anti-war.”
To reinforce his point, Jack reminded viewers that his father had attended a White House Correspondents' Dinner during the Bush administration, even showing footage of Ozzy excitedly reacting to a shoutout from the president at the time.
He further noted that Ozzy had participated in USO tours and visited wounded service members at Walter Reed Medical Center, demonstrating his long-standing support for the military community.
Osbourne concluded his response with a blunt dismissal of those dragging his father’s legacy into the debate.
“So, shut the f**k up, basically,” he said.
“To bring my father into this to say he would or wouldn’t’ve approve is completely insane.”
He ended his video message unapologetically, adding, “I simply attended a sporting event for a sport that I have a great amount of respect for and something that’s been a part of my life since I can remember. So, deal with it, and I’m sorry you weren’t invited.”
WATCH:
At the same event, which was called the UFC Freedom 250 and hosted by President Donald Trump, Osbourne was photographed with his wife, joining a crowd that mixed athletes and public figures for the first-of-its-kind fight night on the South Lawn of the White House.
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