With the UFC White Card now in the books, Daniel Cormier finally found time to clear up a matter that has followed him for the last few days – the one surrounding Eric Trump‘s alleged messages. The lead-up to the much-discussed event that unfolded on the White House South Lawn on June 14 saw social media erupt with reports showing Cormier receiving private messages from President Trump’s son.

What made matters worse was that those now-deleted messages included questions about UFC bouts and references that some interpreted as relating to gambling and possible knowledge of fight results. Speaking about those issues, Daniel Cormier addressed fans on his YouTube channel, explaining his stance on the controversy that grabbed headlines.

“So, let me walk you through the events of last weekend at the UFC because now I’m getting messages from massive news outlets, national channels, and stations asking me for comments on things that I have no right to be speaking about, like peace treaties,” Cormier said. “And I’m like, ‘I’m not, I’m not a politician.’ “I’m an idiot fighter who loves sports and loves his country.”

“I get to the UFC on Sunday. Two of the UFC social media people are telling me, “We were just talking about you.” And I said, “Well, what?” They said, “You and Eric Trump.” And I was like, “What about me and Eric Trump?” “Guys, this is at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday night. I go to the event, and they’re telling me; they’re talking to me about something that I have no idea is going on.”

With just hours remaining before the start of the year’s biggest UFC event, images briefly appeared on Daniel Cormier’s social media that seemed to show a private exchange involving Eric Trump. The alleged conversation included questions about the bouts and fighters at the White House event.

Eric Trump strongly rejected the authenticity of the images, stating that no such communication ever took place. Cormier, likewise, distanced himself from the posts. He stated the material was not legitimate and later suggested that unauthorized access to his account may have been responsible for its appearance.

Addressing those claims, Cormier said he spent days trying to regain access to his account.

“I’m still like just barely getting into my Twitter account,” Cormier added. “This morning, for the last two and a half days, I have been trying to work with Twitter to get me back into my account because during the show, they told me, “Hey, change the account.”

“Guys, I’m trying to broadcast this. I’m trying to broadcast this historic event, and in the middle of it all, I’m trying to change the password to my Twitter account to try to make sure that people aren’t doing and posting crazy things from the account as I’m trying to broadcast. One of the biggest broadcasting moments of my entire career. So, it’s like you get distracted, and that sucks, right? Because you want to give the fighters all of your attention.”

Cormier concluded by saying, “So, all you news outlets, leave me alone. There was nothing to it. My Twitter got hacked. Someone got into my account and started posting stuff.

As Daniel Cormier battled a social media storm, UFC White House faced scrutiny on multiple fronts

While Twitter (now X) has not officially confirmed that Cormier’s account was hacked, after the initial screenshots were deleted, Cormier’s account started posting strange content, including a link to a suspicious cryptocurrency outlet. Shortly afterward, the account posted, “Are people really this dumb?” which caused considerable confusion, since fans could not tell whether he had regained control of his account and was dismissing the screenshots as fake or whether the alleged hacker was continuing to post messages and mock those who believed the story.

Beyond denying that he intentionally shared the posts, Cormier also rejected the idea that he had any meaningful communication with Trump in the first place. Cormier explained that he barely knows Eric Trump and does not have any direct connection with the 42-year-old businessman and son of the president.

There have been past instances where the accounts of prominent UFC fighters were compromised. Last year, reports indicated a hacker posted messages claiming Alex Pereira was considering retirement and was unhappy with the UFC. Much earlier, the account of former champion Kamaru Usman was also said to have been hacked by a group that posted offensive comments.

The controversy involving Cormier emerged while the White House event was already facing challenges of its own, including a federal lawsuit that sought to halt the historic event that was intended to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.

While a court rejected the lawsuit, controversies continued to surround the event even after the show got underway, particularly when heavyweight contender Josh Hokit made unsavory remarks about former first lady Michelle Obama.

The event also found itself facing another controversy after former champion Alex Pereira, who lost the co-main event to Ciryl Gane, publicly criticized referee Herb Dean for not addressing the way Gane allegedly resorted to illegal shots.