The UFC is coming to The White Home.
President Trump, talking at an occasion in Iowa Friday night time, stated that he hoped to host an occasion from the blended martial arts promotion on the grounds of the White Home, as a part of the plans to rejoice America’s 250th anniversary.
A spokesperson for the UFC confirmed the plan to The Hollywood Reporter, with UFC CEO Dana White anticipated to disclose extra on the occasion quickly.
“All of our nationwide park battlefields and historic websites are going to have particular occasions in honor of America 250 and I even suppose we’re going to have a UFC battle,” Trump advised the gang. “Does anyone watch UFC the nice Dana White? We’re going to have a UFC battle, consider this, on the grounds of the White Home. We have now lots of land there.”
He added that will probably be “a championship battle, full battle, like 20, 25,000 folks.”
It isn’t clear the place on the grounds the battle will happen, or what sort of construction will probably be constructed to host it. The UFC has held a number of occasions in Washington D.C. on the Capitol One Enviornment prior to now.
Trump, after all, is near White, who was a vocal and early supporter. The President has additionally been a frequent visitor at UFC fights, together with after taking workplace this yr. UFC is a part of TKO Group Holdings, which is led by Ari Emanuel and Mark Shapiro, and managed by Endeavor, the corporate that additionally owns the (now-private) expertise company WME.
White can be no stranger to spectacle, turning his fights into cultural occasions the place the placement is as a lot part of the story because the bouts. Throughout the hight of the COVID pandemic the UFC created what it known as “Battle Island” in Abu Dhabi the place it might safely maintain occasions, and final yr it took over the Sphere in Las Vegas, with White telling THR on the time that the corporate spent north of $20 million to supply the occasion.
“For those who take what U2 did and multiply it by 1,000,000, that’s the place we’re,” he stated.
Nonetheless, the grounds of the White Home would mark set a brand new bar for an occasion location, one that’s unlikely to be replicated by another sporting enterprise anytime quickly.
White additionally not too long ago joined the board of administrators of Meta, invited by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has turn into a fan of MMA.
Trump additionally introduced one other occasion as a part of the America 250 celebration, a “nationally televised” competitors known as the “Patriot Video games” that may pit youth athletes from all 50 states in opposition to one another. Trump stated that Well being and Human Providers Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will lead the Patriot Video games, although he didn’t reveal any extra particulars, together with which platforms the video games will air.