I found it easy to resist the early dispatches from “UFC Freedom 250,” the Ultimate Fighting Championship event held in June on the White House South Lawn. But Jon Ronson is the sort of writer I can’t help following into battle. Fresh off a new book about masculinity, Ronson brings a delightfully skewed perspective to the fights and the days that surrounded them. The result is a portrait of a planned media spectacle that can’t quite make sense of itself. The best battle here may be Ronson’s tussle with his own photographer, 79-year-old Bruce Gilden, who is a bit of a hugger.
“I’m pretty certain you hugged Stephen Miller first,” I say. “I don’t see Stephen Miller as initiating a hug.”
“You may be right,” he says. “I don’t remember. Look, I do things maybe other people aren’t comfortable doing, but I felt comfortable and I trust my instincts.”
He acknowledges that “nobody is immune to misreading a situation” and that because of him we were all forced back indoors, but he blames Miller’s entourage for not checking with their boss on whether he minded being hugged.
More on fighters, in and out of the ring
Name of the Father
“A wiseguy’s son steps out of his father’s shadow—and into the boxing ring. But the legacy of organized crime isn’t so easy to leave behind.”
This Texas Teenager Is One of the World’s Most Feared Fighters. Don’t Expect Her to Talk About It.
“Not yet twenty, Helena Crevar is one of the most feared fighters in martial arts. What’s her secret?”
Empire of Blood: How Dana White’s UFC Conquered America
“What was once a late-night cable TV sideshow has grown into a culture-shifting sport that counts President Trump as a fan. Inside White’s big, brash, competition-crushing company.”
