Topuria Shoves Gaethje Ahead of White House UFC Card
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- Ilia Topuria shoved Justin Gaethje at the Lincoln Memorial during the final pre-fight press conference for UFC Freedom 250, two days before the unification bout between the 29-year-old lightweight champion and the 37-year-old interim title holder.
- Justin Gaethje laughed off the shove, telling Topuria: "Look where we're at, look at this beautiful view and you want to act like an animal?" — while UFC president Dana White stepped between the pair with a wry smile.
- UFC Freedom 250 is the first professional live sporting event staged on White House grounds, taking place on President Donald Trump's 80th birthday as part of 250th American independence celebrations.
- The UFC has spent about $60m (£44.3m) on the outdoor event, which was cleared to go ahead Friday after Judge Amit P. Mehta rejected a federal lawsuit from the Public Integrity Project alleging the "profound misuse of sacred national monuments for private gain."
- Thunderstorms are forecast in Washington DC, but Dana White vowed "we are fighting on Sunday on the White House lawn, no matter what," after the press conference itself was delayed an hour by inclement weather.
- In the co-main event, Brazil's Alex Pereira meets France's Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title; a Pereira win would make him the first UFC fighter in history to hold belts in three weight divisions.
Why it matters: UFC Freedom 250 will be the first professional live sporting event ever held on White House grounds — a $60m outdoor spectacle on President Trump's 80th birthday tied to 250 years of American independence. A federal judge cleared it Friday by rejecting a lawsuit alleging misuse of national monuments, leaving forecasted thunderstorms in Washington DC as the only viable threat to the card.
