Crews have begun assembling an octagonal steel cage on the White House South Lawn for a Ultimate Fighting Championship event scheduled for June 14, the Associated Press reported. The fight night is designed to help celebrate the semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence and President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday, which falls two days earlier on June 12.
The construction of a temporary fight arena on the White House grounds is the latest in a series of ambitious projects Trump has pursued to reshape Washington’s monumental core as the country approaches its 250th anniversary.
Online renderings released by the White House depict the completed arena: a wire-mesh-fence-ringed octagon surrounded by a red, white and blue stage under a towering arch decorated with stars-and-stripes patterns and two large screens carrying the action live. The cage and stage will be enclosed by thousands of temporary seats, including ringside space for a full marching band that can set the scene to music, the AP reported.
Trump described the finished setup as “a 5,000-seat arena right outside the front door of the White House.” Additional large screens will be placed at the nearby Ellipse, and the UFC said it plans to issue as many as 85,000 free tickets to accommodate spectators at both locations.
“I have never seen anybody want anything so much as people want those tickets,” Trump said recently of demand to attend the fight, adding, “That’s gonna be something.”
The fight card has drawn criticism from fans online who have described it as underwhelming. It features two championship bouts. Brazil’s Alex Pereira will meet France’s Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC heavyweight title. Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria will face interim champ Justin Gaethje, one of just two Americans who currently hold even a share of the UFC’s 11 championship belts.
The octagon and surrounding structures are the latest project in the White House building boom Trump is leading. His other efforts to leave his mark on the executive mansion and surrounding grounds include tearing up part of the Rose Garden to make room for a patio reminiscent of his Mar-a-Lago estate, affixing partisan plaques along the colonnade for a Presidential Walk of Fame, renovating the bathroom attached to the Lincoln Bedroom and the Palm Room, installing new flag poles on the north and south lawns, and demolishing the entire East Wing to build a sprawling ballroom.
The president also wants to repaint the Eisenhower Executive Office Building beside the White House and build a 250-foot arch at the nearby Lincoln Memorial — the same monument where weigh-ins for the UFC fight are scheduled to take place, bout organizers said.
The UFC event is part of a broader series of celebrations marking the nation’s 250th birthday. Other planned functions include an IndyCar race that will pass by the White House and the Great American State Fair taking place on the National Mall. The semiquincentennial officially falls on July 4, 2026.