NEWYou can now listen to Pakinomist articles!
President Donald Trump confirmed in a sit-down interview with boxer Jake Paul this week that he will attend the historic UFC event in Washington, DC, scheduled for the president’s 80th birthday as part of the America 250 celebration.
Trump, a longtime supporter of the UFC, spoke about the highly anticipated event scheduled to take place on the South Lawn of the White House on June 14, which will feature two championship bouts.
President-elect Donald Trump looks on during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York on November 16, 2024. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
“I will,” Trump responded when Paul was asked if he will be at the event, which has been dubbed UFC Freedom 250. “It’s going to be great at the White House. And Dana [White] is a great guy. He’s a big fan of yours, you know. Dana is a good guy. The best. I mean, there’s nobody like him.”
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Pakinomist
Trump also talked about the card, which was released days earlier and includes Ilia Topuria taking on Justin Gaethje for the UFC World Lightweight Championship and Alex Pereira taking on Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship.
“[White] had the idea to stage it right at the front door of the White House. We are standing right in front of the front door of the White House. And he has a great card. I don’t even know if it’s filled out, but I just saw it and it looks like it’s all going to be top people. They all want to fight in the White House. So it will be in honor of the 250th year. It’s going to be amazing.”
People hold a flag as President Donald Trump arrives at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The card also contains Sean O’Malley takes on Aiemann Zahabi, Michael Chandler fights Mauricio Ruffy, Kyle Daukaus fights Bo Nickal and Steve Garcia takes on Diego Lopes.
DANA WHITE REJECTS COMMENTS WHITE HOUSE UFC EVENT WILL BE ‘TOO POLITICAL’: ‘IT’S A HISTORY-MAKING EVENT’
White said Thursday that the UFC plans to offer 85,000 free tickets to the outdoor viewing area at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. Tickets for the South Lawn will not be sold, but instead will be paid out to members of the military, ESPN reported.
Despite Trump’s location and presence, White has dismissed the idea that the event will be “too political.”
“I mean, I don’t know how it would be too political other than it’s in the White House,” he said in January during an interview with Bloomberg. “Listen, if you look back through history, I think [former President] George Bush was a big baseball fan, [former President Barack] Obama was an NBA fan and Trump is a UFC fan. I don’t think any of the guys who are fans made any sport too political.”
UFC President Dana White and former United States President Donald Trump attend the UFC 296 event at T-Mobile Arena on December 16, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE Pakinomist APP
The UFC event is just one of the many events Trump has planned to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. Last month it was announced that an IndyCar race will take place in August and will be free for fans to come and watch.
