06/14/26 09:24:00
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06/14 09:23 CDT Donald Trump turns 80 and celebrates with UFC cage fighting on
the White House lawn
Donald Trump turns 80 and celebrates with UFC cage fighting on the White House
lawn
By DAN GELSTON
AP Sports Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) --- President Donald Trump turned 80 on Sunday and was set to
celebrate with one of the more surreal spectacles both in sports and even in
the nation's capital: cage fighting on the White House lawn.
Against the backdrop of a 3-month-old war with Iran that's been broadly
unpopular with Americans and has rattled global oil markets and with inflation
spiked to the highest level since April 2023, the White House --- long known as
the people's house and a symbol of American democracy --- opened its backyard
Sunday night to stage a bruising UFC card on the South Lawn.
More than $60 million and tens of thousands of hours of labor have been poured
into building the arena, according to a court filing from the National Park
Service, which oversees the South Lawn.
UFC is staging seven fights with all male fighters under the Freedom 250 banner
to celebrate Trump's 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration
of Independence's signing.
The fight card headlined by two title fights on Paramount+ is scheduled to
start at 8 p.m. Eastern.
It's the pinnacle of the relationship between UFC CEO Dana White and Trump that
has yielded personal, political and financial dividends for both parties in a
relationship that goes back 25 years. White's first card as UFC president came
in 2001 at an event held at Trump Taj Mahal.
Trump has attended four UFC cards as sitting president, walking to the cage
amid rock music and patriotic chants from fans much like the fighters
themselves. White introduced Trump at two Republican National Conventions.
White also attended the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in April
that was cut short by a shooting.
In a card that has been panned by fans online as underwhelming, Alex Pereira of
Brazil will meet Ciryl Gane of France for the interim UFC heavyweight title.
Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria then takes on interim champ
Justin Gaethje, one of just two Americans who currently hold even a share of
the UFC's 11 championship belts.
There are five other fights on the main card that include former title-fight
participants Michael Chandler and Derrick Lewis and former 135-pound champion
Sean O'Malley.
White said the show will go on rain or shine. Strong thunderstorms and heavy
lightning disrupted Friday's Lincoln Memorial promotional event, and the
forecast for Sunday evening also looks threatening.
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AP MMA: https://apnews.com/hub/mixed-martial-arts
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