Was San Antonio Shooter A UFC Fighter? White ‘Hopes It’s Not True’

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

A man claiming to be a ‘UFC fighter from California’ opened fire on crowd outside a club in Texas on Friday, injuring 8. UFC president Dana White responds to the story.

Things have gotten so chaotic in the United States that word of another mass shooting in San Antonio barely causes a ripple in the national news cycle. But fans of the sport and those with ‘UFC’ in their Google Alerts certainly perked up after learning the unidentified shooter claimed to be a UFC fighter shortly before opening fire on a bar.

Here’s what we know: a group of people were turned away from the Rebar club in San Antonio on Friday night for being too intoxicated. One of the members tried to fight the admission refusal by telling bouncers “Don’t you know who I am? I’m a UFC fighter from California.”

When that didn’t work, he went back to his car and pulled out a ‘long gun,’ opening fire on people in the parking lot. Eight people were wounded, with officials currently saying those currently in hospital from the incident are in stable condition.

When asked about the incident following Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 10 card, White shook his head.

“How f**king crazy is that s**t?” he said. “This world is just f**king bananas right now … If you don’t think that I heard about that one at 7 a.m. this morning, you know what I mean? I hope it’s not true.”

California is an MMA hot spot with multiple top tier fight camps. We’d be shocked if there were less than a hundred current UFC fighters that call California their home. So we’re not surprised White hasn’t been able to rule out his roster’s involvement with 100% certainty. And if I had a nickel for every time someone has claimed to be a UFC fighter or that they ‘train UFC’, I’d have free ESPN+ and UFC PPVs for life.

That’s what White is banking on here.

“I hear that s**t all the time,” White said. “You know how many bald guys in this town walk around and say they’re me? It’s mind boggling. If I told you some of these stories, you wouldn’t believe it. It’s crazy. So I’m hoping that is the case.”

Police are still searching for suspects in the case.