Ahead of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Freedom 250 event on the White House South Lawn on Sunday (Jun 14), US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the company’s bold vision, comparing the founding of the UFC to America’s 1969 Moon landing. Speaking at an event on Thursday (Jun 11), Rubio hailed the upcoming fight card as a ‘historic’ moment that reflects the nation’s audacious spirit.
“When President Kennedy announced that we were going to put a man on the moon and return him safely to the earth, no one thought that was possible, and we did it,” said Rubio.
“We are a nation founded on doing what no one else dared to do, and no one else aspired to do. And at some level, that’s what this whole company, what UFC has been,” he added.
Rubio also referred to the UFC as the “United Nations of Fighting,” and praised the Dana White-led company for bringing athletes from different countries.
“If you’ve been to UFC fights, and I’ve been to many, and you look into the crowd, the crowd is as diverse as you can imagine,” said Rubio.
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White House UFC Event
The mixed-martial-arts fights, billed as UFC Freedom 250, will be held in an octagon-shaped cage that is currently being erected on the South Lawn. The UFC fight is part of a series of events that Trump has planned for America’s 250th-birthday celebration that also coincides with his 80th birthday.
The cage and stage will themselves be surrounded by thousands of temporary seats, including ringside space for a full marching band that can set the entire scene to blaring music.
White, UFC’s chief executive, said the event will cost his company $30 million to stage and defended it as an act of patriotism.
“You can make anything political if you want to,” White said. “I love this country like anybody on the left loves this country. I love this country like anybody on the right loves this country. This is basically me spending a s***load of money to celebrate the 250th birthday of America, with America and the rest of the world.”
Additional large screens broadcasting the fights will be set up in a park at the nearby Ellipse, and the UFC has said it plans to issue as many as 85,000 free tickets to accommodate spectators at both locations.
