The White House will host a major Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event next year to mark Donald Trump’s 80th birthday, the president announced.
“On June 14 next year, we’re going to have a big UFC fight at the White House — right at the White House, on the grounds of the White House,” Trump told cheering Navy sailors at the Norfolk naval base in Virginia.
The event will be the first of its kind on White House grounds. Trump did not mention that June 14 is his birthday. He will be turning 80 that day.
In June this year, he marked his 79th birthday with a military parade honouring the US Army’s founding.
A UFC First in American Politics
UFC president Dana White earlier said the White House fight was scheduled for July 4, 2026, to coincide with America’s 250th Independence anniversary. He has now confirmed that plans have changed.
During a press conference on UFC’s official YouTube channel, White said, “Early next year we’ll start planning the White House card, which I will tell you right now will be the greatest fight card ever put together in the history of this company.”
The UFC is the largest mixed martial arts organisation in the world. It blends jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, boxing, and wrestling inside an eight-sided steel cage called “The Octagon.”
Fighters are allowed to use almost any move except eye-gouging or biting. Knockouts, chokeholds, and ground strikes are part of the show.
Politics Meets Combat Sport
Trump’s close friendship with Dana White is well known. He has appeared ringside at many UFC events, often welcomed like a celebrity.
The UFC’s audience — mostly young men — represents a key voting bloc ahead of the 2026 congressional bye-election. Many analysts say Trump’s involvement in the event could be another political strategy to appeal to that base.
Medical experts have long warned about the risk of brain injury in such high-contact sports. Yet the UFC’s popularity has surged, gaining acceptance even among mainstream sports fans.
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