Donald Trump will head to France for what will likely be contentious discussions with world leaders this week, but first he celebrated his 80th birthday by watching a sport that's more brutal and bloody than politics.
Trump brought TKO Group Holdings Inc.'s Ultimate Fighting Championship to the South Lawn of the White House Sunday evening.
The event helps jumpstart Trump's celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, complete with a commemorative gold coin bearing his likeness, a huge fair on the National Mall and, in August, an IndyCar race through the streets of Washington, DC.
The fights kicked off just before 8:30pm in Washington, with Trump and UFC President Dana White walking through the White House to the arena.
The event was delayed slightly due to worries over inclement weather, with lightning strikes and thunder in the nation's capital.
Meta Platforms Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Paramount Skydance Corp. CEO David Ellison, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and members of Trump's family were present at the event.
Joe Rogan, a podcast host popular with young men who supported Trump during the 2024 election, provided commentary throughout the matches.
Military servicemembers were also in the audience at the White House, while the coverage also cut to shots of watch parties at various military bases, including in Okinawa, Japan.
Medal of Honor recipients and first responders escorted fighters into the arena on the South Lawn. Audience members sang Happy Birthday to Trump during the proceedings.
The event, framed by a nearly 100-foot-tall "Claw" arena built to hold its seven cage matches, has drawn plenty of criticism.
A lawsuit filed by the Public Integrity Project called it a "volcano of corruption."
The spectacle was Trump's idea, according to White, a longtime ally of the president, who has long enjoyed the league's fights.
The UFC's young, male fan base was a key demographic backing Trump's 2024 election victory. His administration has embraced the company, with the State Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation signing partnership deals.
The White House said UFC is covering the entire cost of the event and has handled all the sponsorship discussions.
Still, 51% of Americans surveyed in a YouGov poll released June 5 said they disapproved of the White House fight, while only 27% approved.
UFC spent over US$60mil to stage Sunday's fight, and more than seven federal agencies "have allocated significant resources and manpower" to putting it on, according to filings in the court case, which sought unsuccessfully to stop the event.
While White has said it will be a money-loser for UFC, another executive told Time magazine it would be "the greatest earned marketing tool of all time."
In addition to the caged "Octagon" where the fights will take place, the Claw holds 4,300 seats. As many as 120,000 more spectators are expected at the Ellipse nearby, where free tickets were distributed by lottery.
Sponsors listed on the UFC Freedom 250 website include Crypto.com and Dodge's Ram truck brand.
During a news conference on Friday, White announced that the Trump-family venture World Liberty Financial was also providing an additional US$250,000 bonus to the top two fighters at the event.
The pregame events were held in some of Washington's most revered and historic sites.
White and the fighters held the news conference at the Lincoln Memorial, where fighters insulted each other and predicted their own victories.
Other participants focused on the weight of fighting in front of the White House, like Michael Chandler, who said people "will see the best version of" him "on the White House lawn for America's 250th birthday."
Locker rooms will be set up on the White House grounds, including in the Indian Treaty Room, usually reserved for official events.
The White House's South Lawn typically hosts more staid events like the Easter Egg Roll and the Congressional Picnic.
Former President Joe Biden erected a temporary ice rink there but the scale of the Claw - taller than the White House itself - dwarfs what previous presidents have done.
Comparing it to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Trump suggested he might leave the Claw in place permanently.
"We're building something in front of the White House that's quite attractive to a lot of people," he said in a June 2 TikTok video. "Maybe we'll never ever take it down."
Trump later said he was joking. In court filings, the administration has said it will be disassembled starting at 10am Monday.
By that time, Trump will be headed to France for a meeting of Group of Seven leaders, already in possession of his UFC championship belt, according to the company. – Bloomberg
