--- description: On June 14, Flag Day and Donald Trump's 80th birthday, UFC organized a seven-fight card, Freedom 250, on the South Lawn of the White Houston. title: The UFC Freedom 250 Fight at the White House in Photos image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc707d3fe57e7573f/6a301125bdaeb5478fe9d46c/UFC-White-House-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [UFC](/tag/ufc/) ## UFC Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The UFC Freedom 250 Fight at the White House in Photos ## Video: Dana White on Trump, the Manosphere, and UFC at the White House [Watch (HLS stream): Dana White on Trump, the Manosphere, and UFC at the White House](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xOhGVA3k.m3u8) (20:02)  _Published 2026-06-01. Inside Dana White's friendship with President Trump and his plans for UFC Freedom 250._ Jun 15, 2026 5:51 PM CUT  The South Lawn of the White House during the UFC Freedom 250 fight on June 14, 2026. The South Lawn of the White House during the UFC Freedom 250 fight on June 14, 2026.  by [Sean Gregory](/author/sean-gregory/)  ## Sean Gregory Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Photographs by [Robert LeBlanc](/author/robert-leblanc/)for TIME Jun 15, 2026 5:51 PM CUT Odds are, never again will a UFC fighter, or any athlete, walk out of the Oval Office, down the West Wing, and onto the Truman Balcony before entering [their competitive arena](https://time.com/article/2026/06/11/inside-the-enormous-ufc-structure-built-for-the-white-house-s-fight-night/ "undefined"). On June 14, weather did not fell the UFC’s highly anticipated, and debated, [event at the White House](https://time.com/7309114/ufc-fight-white-house/ "undefined"), despite forecasts earlier in the day of thunder and lightning and perhaps an army of mosquitoes. In fact, fighters complimented the breeze in the cage. With all the unique touches of UFC Freedom 250, a seven-fight card born out of longstanding bromance between Donald Trump and [UFC president and CEO Dana White](https://time.com/article/2026/05/26/dana-white-ufc-white-house-fight-interview/ "undefined"), the UFC declared victory. The bouts themselves were bloody–they all ended in knockouts or TKOs. First responders and military heroes accompanied the fighters to the cage. The United States Marine Band showed off its talent: White might want to call in a favor to Trump, and borrow these musicians at future fights. On the broadcast, the White House backdrop and the lighting and the fireworks all played well. Heavyweight [Josh Hokit’s insult of Michelle Obama](https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-hokit-obama/ "undefined"), aired worldwide and in front of the President, sitting cageside, after his victory was a low point. [White ](https://time.com/collection/time100-sports/2026/dana-white/ "undefined")condemned Hokit’s behavior later on. But in the main event, American Justin Gaethje upset Ilia Topuria, who represents Georgia, in a four-round classic, capping off the evening on a high note. In his last couple of years in office, Trump might be tempted to make this an annual thing. But the UFC, which constructed a temporary 4,300-seat fight facility on the President's lawn, is forecasting [a $30 million loss](https://time.com/article/2026/06/11/white-house-ufc-event-cost/ "undefined") on the event. White was adamant: this was it. A one-time night. Photographer Robert LeBlance was cageside to capture the scene.  Heavyweights Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane fight on the South Lawn of the White House during the UFC Freedom 250 event.  Spectators at the UFC Freedom 250 fight at the White House on June 14, 2026.  Justin Gaethje celebrates his victory with his team after defeating Illia Topuria in the main event.  Diego Lopes beats Steve Garcia in the second round of the featherweight fight.   A screen shows Donald Trump at the UFC Freedom 250 fight at the White House on June 14, 2026.  Bo Nickal dodges a punch from Kyle Daukaus during the middleweight fight.  The crowds waits for the UFC Freedom 250 event to begin on the South Lawn.  Donald Trump seen through the fence of the arena at the UFC Freedom 250 event.Robert LeBlanc for TIME  Donald Trump walks through crowds at the UFC Freedom 250 event.  Mauricio Ruffy defeats Michael Chandler in the first round by KO/TKO during the lightweight bout. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/"},"headline":"The UFC Freedom 250 Fight at the White House in Photos","datePublished":"2026-06-15T17:51:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-06-17T13:40:16.092Z","description":"The view from the South Lawn","url":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/","keywords":["UFC"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc707d3fe57e7573f/6a301125bdaeb5478fe9d46c/UFC-White-House-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sean Gregory","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/sean-gregory/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc707d3fe57e7573f/6a301125bdaeb5478fe9d46c/UFC-White-House-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"UFC-White-House-01.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"Robert LeBlanc for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/ufc/","name":"UFC"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/","name":"The UFC Freedom 250 Fight at the White House in Photos"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Dana White on Trump, the Manosphere, and UFC at the White House","description":"Inside Dana White's friendship with President Trump and his plans for UFC Freedom 250.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xOhGVA3k/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2026-06-01T13:18:08.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xOhGVA3k.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/","duration":"PT20M2S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-freedom-250-photos/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```