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UFC Freedom 250 is fast approaching after nearly a year of planning, and President Donald Trump gave fans a first look at renderings of what the octagon will look like on the South Lawn.
Trump had the fighters for the co-main events behind him in the Oval Office on Wednesday. Alex Pereira will fight Ciryl Gane, while Justin Gaethje will go up against Ilia Topuria.
While hosting the fighters, Trump showed pictures of what the event will look like, with the White House smack-dab in the background and 4,000 up-close seats surrounding the octagon.
There will also be a makeshift arch covering the fighters that will be lit up.
“I’m a big sports fan. There are no people tougher in sports than the people behind me. These are the toughest. I know them all,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
Trump said the “big fight” will be the “greatest show on earth.” He also said upward of 100,000 people will be able to watch the fights in Washington, D.C. with eight large screens near the White House.
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“What an unbelievable honor. … To have a president that’s willing to go against an upstream and against the norms is truly special. That’s why you got my vote. And it’s why we’re such a great nation right now compared to where we were,” Gaethje said.
Gaethje also credited Trump for UFC’s popularity today, saying it would be “10 years behind” if it wasn’t for Trump’s support in the early ’90s while UFC was struggling to be a mainstay due to its violent nature.
Trump announced the event on July 3 last year, and UFC CEO Dana White confirmed the event the following month. It was announced in October the event would take place June 14, Trump’s 80th birthday as well as Flag Day.
The event is part of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and an IndyCar race will also take place this summer as part of the America250 celebration.
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Michael Chandler will fight Mauricio Ruffy, and other fighters on the card include Bo Nickal and Sean O’Malley.
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