President Donald Trump has said he is thinking of hosting an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event at the White House to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence next year.
Trump said the event would be a “full fight” with about 20,000 to 25,000 people in attendance.
“So every one of our national parks, battlefields and historic sites are going to have special events in honor of America 250. And I even think we’re going to have a UFC fight,” the president said during a speech at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines on Thursday.
Newsweek contacted the White House and UFC for comment by email outside regular working hours.
Alex Brandon/AP
Why It Matters
Trump, an enthusiast for the sport, has attended multiple mixed martial arts matches in recent months and is a friend of Dana White, the UFC’s president.
The unprecedented White House event forms part of Trump’s broader effort to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday, which is also expected to feature national ceremonies, military flyovers and special programs at national parks.
Trump has also described plans for the “Great American State Fair,” a nationwide series of events culminating on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Each state would have a pavilion to showcase its culture and contributions.
What To Know
Speaking in Iowa on Thursday, Trump said: “We’re going to have a UFC fight, think of this, on the grounds of the White House. We have a lot of land there.”
“Dana is going to do it,” he continued, adding, “We are going to have a UFC fight—championship fight, full fight, like 20-25,000 people—and we are going to do that as part of 250 also.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed after the speech that Trump was “dead serious” about hosting the event.
Trump has regularly attended UFC fights, most recently last month in Newark, New Jersey. He also attended a fight in Miami in April.
Trump’s friendship with White goes back to at least 2001, when he allowed the UFC to hold a fight at his Trump Taj Mahal hotel in Atlantic City.
White also introduced Trump at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last July.
What People Are Saying
A UFC official told CNN: “We are in discussions with the White House about hosting a UFC event on site.”
President Donald Trump said during his Memorial Day address in May: “We’re gonna have a big, big celebration, as you know, 250 years. … In some ways, I’m glad I missed that second term where it was because I wouldn’t be your president for that.”
Monica Crowley, the chief of protocol of the U.S., said: “We’ve had so much division and so much polarization over the last many decades, but certainly over the last few years, that to be able to bring the country together to celebrate America’s 250th birthday through patriotism, shared values and a renewed sense of civic pride, to be able to do that in the center of the country, is incredibly important.”
What Happens Next
Officials have not yet confirmed a date for the proposed UFC fight or provided logistic details.
