5 min readJun 15, 2026 09:58 PM IST
First published on: Jun 15, 2026 at 09:58 PM IST
By Kartikeya Bhattacharyya
The unprecedented UFC White House event, named Freedom 250 to celebrate 250 years of American independence, had an ending straight out of a movie. Despite nearly getting finished in round two, gritty American underdog Justin Gaethje rallied and Spaniard Ilia Topuria’s corner said “no mas” as they decided to call off the fight in the penultimate round of the five-round contest.
When Gaethje won, despite the betting odds being stacked against him 6 to 1, he gave a speech akin to that in Rocky IV. The 37-year-old said that the USA had overcome even greater odds than when they gained their independence 250 years ago.
The card, which took place on the South Lawn, was marked by surreal moments throughout. Brazilian fighter Mauricio Ruffy had his girlfriend accept his marriage proposal at the White House. Fighters walked out of the Oval Office while senior American politicians looked on like the Romans did the gladiators of yore.
And the event took place after president Donald Trump announced a peace deal to seemingly wrap up the over-100-day Iran war just hours prior, before leaving for the G7 summit.
Adding to the extraordinary atmosphere was a guest list that blended athletes, entertainers, political figures and business leaders, from JD Vance and the Trump family to Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, as well as military veterans and 80,000 enthusiastic fans in the Ellipse arena.
Ilia Toupruia (L) fights Justin Gaethje during UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House. (AP)
Patriotic songs, military tributes and celebrations of American history were woven throughout the broadcast, reinforcing the event’s positioning as both a sporting contest and a national commemoration. Nationalistic films focused on landmark events in American history, from the American Revolution and the construction of the White House to the moon landing, the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack and the civil rights movement.
The day was marked by tension over the weather potentially disrupting the event, with worries about lightning strikes and storms, yet everything went perfectly for the UFC. Every fight ended with a finish and the main event between Topuria and Gaethje was a barn-burning clash.
Antics galore
The event generated controversy before, during and afterwards, though. The main event nearly got called off due to a doctor’s stoppage, only for him to seemingly recant and inadvertently help Topuria gain a minute to recover after taking the worst beating of his superlative career.
Meanwhile, Josh Hokit, known for his contentious antics, repeated the disparaging accusation that Michelle Obama was a man after defeating Derrick Lewis in a heavyweight contest.
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Among the most prominent challenges was a defeated lawsuit filed by the watchdog group Public Integrity Project, which sought an emergency temporary restraining order to halt the event. The group alleged a “profound misuse of sacred national monuments for private gain” and argued that the Trump administration had unlawfully organised a private sporting event on federal property in violation of National Park Service regulations.
The optics of the promotion drew criticism. A pre-fight press conference held near the Lincoln Memorial featured fighters exchanging profanities and personal insults, prompting questions about the appropriateness of such behaviour against the backdrop of one of America’s most revered national landmarks.
Questions were also raised about the use of public resources. Personnel from seven federal agencies were involved in facilitating the event, with critics raising questions over taxpayer-funded resources being deployed to support what was effectively a privately promoted sporting event.
Beyond questions of taste and propriety, critics focused on potential conflicts of interest. The South Lawn was transformed into a commercial sports arena complete with a 90-foot “Claw” structure, a UFC octagon and sponsor branding from companies including Bud Light, Crypto.com and Polymarket.
At the same time, Trump had disclosed owning tens of thousands of dollars worth of stock in TKO Group Holdings, the parent company of the UFC. The fight card also promoted a line of “Trump x UFC Freedom 250” commemorative medallions priced between $250 and $12,000.
Yet, for all the controversy that surrounded Freedom 250, the event — which took place on Trump’s 80th birthday — may have been one of the president’s greatest gifts yet. Not only were all seven fights exciting throughout the broadcast, but he was as much a feature as the fighters themselves.
Many of the fighters heaped praise on him for taking the decision to stage the event at the White House, wished him a happy birthday and, as has become customary, made their way over to shake his hand after their victories. In Hokit’s case, he presented Trump with a medallion before raining insults and leaving the cage.
Perhaps the biggest win for the Head of State, however, was that Freedom 250 ultimately delivered on the promise he had made when announcing it: it truly was a sporting event unlike any other.
UFC Freedom 250 at the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. (AP) 
Ilia Toupruia (L) fights Justin Gaethje during UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House. (AP)
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