Donald Trump expected to attend UFC 264

Donald Trump’s friendship with Dana White may have its roots back in 2001 when the then real estate magnate hosted the first two events of the newly Zuffa acquired Ultimate Fighting Championships at his Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City. But, however close that relationship may have been, there’s no denying that it became much more public during Trump’s rise to victory during the 2016 presidential election and the four years that followed.

Trump was cageside for UFC 244, the promotion’s 500th event, back in 2019—where Jorge Masvidal defeated Nate Diaz for the newly minted ‘BMF’ belt. And by the time the 2020 Republican National Convention rolled around, Dana White had a prominent speaking position at the event, having been one of the major US sports commissioners that Trump turned to during the COVID-19 pandemic to push for the re-start of sporting events.

So perhaps it’s not terribly surprising that Trump will apparently be one of the notable guests in attendance for this week’s UFC 264 PPV event, featuring the lightweight trilogy bout between former double-champ Conor McGregor and former interim champ Dustin Poirier. That news was announced by White in an interview with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, who posted a more complete lineup of celebrities expected in attendance for the fight card on Twitter.

Alongside McGregor vs. Poirier 3, UFC 264 is expected to feature a welterweight top contender bout between recent title challenger Gilbert Burns and former two-time contender Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson. Former interim welterweight champ Carlos Condit is set to face off against Max Griffin in the ‘featured prelim’ slot on ESPN.