MIAMI — President Donald Trump entered to a standing ovation and cheers from a crowd of 1000’s attending a UFC occasion on Saturday night time, shaking palms with supporters in opposition to a backdrop of followers waving his trademark MAGA hats.
Simply as Trump entered, he greeted podcast host Joe Rogan, who sat to the precise of the president. On the opposite aspect of Trump sat Elon Musk, billionaire and chief of the Division of Authorities Effectivity. Trump, who accented his darkish go well with with a brilliant yellow tie, pumped his fist within the air, prompting cheers to strains of “Taking Care of Enterprise.”
He introduced alongside a number of members of his administration and White Home crew, together with Well being and Human Providers Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., FBI Director Kash Patel, Director of Nationwide Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and White Home communications aides Steven Cheung and Taylor Budowich. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, additionally joined Trump for UFC 314.
Trump entered the sector with UFC President Dana White, with whom he has been shut for many years. He was additionally accompanied by his granddaughter, Kai Trump, the daughter of Donald Trump Jr.
The Republican president is a longtime UFC fan and sports activities fanatic, who has often attended main fights. The blended martial arts combat at Miami’s Kaseya Middle was Trump’s first UFC go to since he took workplace in January, and it got here weeks after Trump attended the Saudi-sponsored LIV golf match at his golf membership in Miami.
In an extra nod to his sports activities enthusiasm, Trump has additionally attended the Super Bowl and Daytona 500 since taking workplace. He sat cageside at a UFC championship fight in New York City final November, shortly after he received the 2024 election.
Other than the president, the primary occasion for the UFC 314 combat is a championship bout between Australian former champion Alexander Volkanovski and Brazilian fighter Diego Lopes, who’re competing for the featherweight championship title. It is the fourth UFC occasion in Miami, in a county that supported the president by about 11 proportion factors within the November election.
The president arrived in West Palm Seashore on Friday for his tenth go to to South Florida since he turned president, spending the night in his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Seashore. He flew to Miami after taking part in golf at his membership in West Palm Seashore.
“ who’s going to win? Dana White. Dana White’s gonna win,” Trump informed reporters Saturday night time aboard Air Drive One.
His shut affiliation with UFC helped enhance his 2024 presidential marketing campaign amongst young male voters previous to the November election, the place he made promoting hypermasculine tones a signature of the marketing campaign.
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Superville reported from West Palm Seashore, Florida.
