WASHINGTON (dpa): US President Donald Trump plans to celebrate his 80th birthday next year with a martial arts cage fight on the White House lawn.
The event, which was announced months ago and will feature the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), will take place on June 14, Trump said in a speech in the state of Virginia on Sunday.
When he initially floated the idea three months ago, Trump linked it to the 250th anniversary of US independence in July 2026.
Speaking before soldiers at Norfolk Naval Base, however, he did not explain why his own birthday had now been chosen as the occasion.
The UFC is the largest professional league for mixed martial arts (MMA), a full-contact combat sport that blends techniques from boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and other martial arts.
Unlike professional wrestling, UFC fights are not choreographed. On the contrary, it is not uncommon for blood to be drawn or for a fighter to be beaten unconscious.
Trump has long been an admirer of the UFC and has appeared ringside at several events. Before last year's election victory, he even mused about formats in which professional fighters would take on immigrants in violent brawls.
UFC President Dana White, a staunch Trump loyalist, campaigned openly for him and remains a key supporter.
In September, the White House released mock-ups previewing the June event: a classic UFC-style octagon set up on the South Lawn, surrounded by spectator stands and framed by a massive floodlit arch.
White said the UFC would spend about $700,000 to restore the lawn after the event.
The fighters' weigh-in, traditionally staged as a dramatic face-off, is planned for the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall located about 2 kilometres from the White House.
Built more than a century ago, the memorial will serve as a grand backdrop for the opening salvo of Trump's birthday brawl.
