President Donald Trump marked his 80th birthday Sunday night with the UFC Freedom 250 spectacle on the South Lawn of the White House. The president made a fighter-style walkout alongside UFC CEO Dana White, greeting an estimated 4,300 attendees, including roughly 1,200 active-duty service members.
The evening began with the Marine Band's national anthem performed by Zac Brown and concluded with a flyover by the Navy's Blue Angels and Air Force Thunderbirds. Trump called the event "beyond anything that anybody's ever seen in sports."
The $60 million event featured 14 fighters and consistent chants of "U-S-A!" from the crowd, particularly during American Justin Gaethje's main-card victory over the previously undefeated Ilia Topuria. Many victors approached the president ringside after their bouts.
The fight card wrapped after 1 a.m. Ciryl Gane of France earned the interim heavyweight title over Brazil's Alex Pereira, while Justin Gaethje defeated Ilia Topuria in four rounds.