UFC Freedom 250 Octagon Girls' Patriotic Outfits Are Drawing Backlash-Here's the Flag Code Rule Critics Say They Break
President Donald Trump's birthday UFC fight on the White House South Lawn has already drawn criticism, faced backlash after backlash, and even inspired a lawsuit. And now UFC Freedom 250 is causing another uproar. But this time it has to do with racy red, white, and blue Octagon Girls' outfits.
The Octagon Girls are popular for a reason. They look like centerfolds and are dressed in…well, almost nothing. While their typical fight-day ensembles are basically bikinis, the ‘Girls' are getting a patriotic makeover for Sunday's event.
Maximfirst debuted the looks (on UFC Octagon Girls Red Dela Cruz and Chrissy Blair), showing off the satin and sequin stars and stripes…um, dresses? Costume designer Marina Toybina shared her inspo for the ensembles with Maxim, revealing, "The inspiration was born from the intersection of sport, spectacle, and celebration."
Toybina continued, "Working closely with UFC, we wanted to create looks that honored both the energy of the brand and the significance of the 250th anniversary celebration. The goal was to blend strength, athleticism, glamour, and American heritage into a wardrobe language that felt sophisticated, powerful, and unmistakably iconic."
The designer described the outfits, saying, "From streamlined silhouettes to dramatic statement pieces, each look played a role in an evolving red, white, and blue narrative. Rich textiles, custom embroidery, crystal embellishment, and patriotic motifs brought texture, movement, and a fresh interpretation of American glamour."
Earlier this week, Turning Point Action shared a pic of the outfits on X. Cue another UFC-related backlash. Some commenters pointed out that the red, white, and blue ‘costumes' could breach American flag guidelines, with criticisms like, "Don't flag regs say you can't wear the flag as an item of clothing?" and, "The US Flag Code, which outlines guidelines for how the American flag should be treated. The code explicitly says the flag, ‘should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding or drapery,' and adds that no part of it ‘should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform'."
UFC dropped the outfits the Octagon Girls will be wearing at the White House this weekend 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/nr4ODcD5JE
— Turning Point Action (@TPAction) June 10, 2026
Others posted their takes on the red, white, and blue outfits, saying, "Nothing conservative or patriotic about turning our flag into a mini skirt to cheer on men rage beating each other to a pulp" and, "Tacky and def a flag code violation."
So, are the Octagon Girls' UFC Freedom 250 dresses really flag violations? While X users' criticisms did get the U.S. Flag Code right, the ‘Code' is considered etiquette, not law. That means, while (again, as some X users said) the outfits could be considered ‘tacky,' they aren't illegal.
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This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 4:35 PM.