U.S. President Donald Trump has announced plans to celebrate his 80th birthday with a martial arts cage fight on the White House lawn next year.
Speaking in Virginia on Sunday, Trump said the event, featuring the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), would take place on June 14.
The UFC, the world’s largest professional league for mixed martial arts (MMA), showcases full-contact combat that combines boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, and other martial arts disciplines.
Unlike professional wrestling, UFC bouts are not choreographed, often resulting in visible injuries or knockouts.
UFC President Dana White, a long-time Trump supporter, is expected to play a key role in organising the event. Trump, who has attended several UFC matches, described the celebration as part of the build-up to America’s 250th Independence anniversary in July.
In September, the White House released mock-ups showing an octagon-style cage set up on the South Lawn, surrounded by spectator stands and illuminated by floodlights.
White revealed that the UFC would spend about 700,000 dollars to restore the lawn after the event.
The fighters’ weigh-in is scheduled to take place at the Lincoln Memorial, about two kilometres from the White House, providing a dramatic opening to what has been dubbed “Trump’s Birthday Brawl.”
(NAN)