The news conference Friday night featured the fighters who are preparing to built outside the White House. But it was also a chance to see the UFC fans who have thronged to Washington and endured lightning, humidity and bugs for the spectacle.
Tracy Philbeck and his son Levi drove from Charlotte, North Carolina, with a group of friends to support their favorite fighter, American Justin Gaethje, in the upcoming lightweight title bout against Georgian Ilia Topuria.
“You will hear an eagle screaming when Justin Gaethje wins,鈥� the elder Philbeck chuckled.
David Halstead journeyed from Albany, in Western Australia, to watch the sport he has loved for a decade. Halstead said Trump, who regularly attends the fights, 鈥減ut UFC on the map.”
The UFC has said it on this weekend’s festivities, and Republican president has billed it as 鈥渢he greatest show on earth.鈥�
Not everyone agrees.
The Public Integrity Project described the event as a 鈥減rivate, commercial, corrupt use of our most sacred national monuments for private gain鈥� the watchdog group filed to try to stop it from happening on federal land. A federal judge that the White House was allowed to go ahead.
Only about 1 in 10 U.S. adults consider themselves mixed martial arts fans, according to Ipsos Sports polling conducted in February and March. That polling suggests MMA fans skew male and nonwhite. They are more likely to identify as Republicans than Democrats.
鈥淥ne misconception is that everyone who watches UFC is a Trump supporter, but that鈥檚 not the case,” said Ricardo Rodriguez, 24, explaining he loves the physicality of the sport. 鈥淧eople also expect a knock out every time,” he said.
Ellie Louizes, who practices Muay Thai, or Thai kickboxing, and jujitsu martial arts, drove from Daytona Beach, Florida, with her boyfriend, Jacob Purvis.
Female fans of MMA are the minority. But Louizes said she knows a lot of women who get into watching the sport through their male partners. She said 鈥渇emale fighters are often way more aggressive鈥� than the men.
Fans brushed off the criticism about White House as host
The fans at the Lincoln Memorial brushed off criticism about the bouts being held at the White House.
Tracy Philbeck said, “goes back to the days of Teddy Roosevelt.鈥�
Roosevelt regularly held sparring sessions at the White House, though they were not formal public prizefights. He was an enthusiastic amateur boxer who had boxed at Harvard and continued the sport throughout much of his life.
Boxing fans also make up a large part of the UFC’s fan base.
At a UFC-sponsored community event this week at the District of Columbia’s Midtown Youth Academy, the boxing gym’s executive director was helping out with a visit from UFC fighter Randy Brown, who sparred with more than dozen local teenagers and preteens.
Gloria Lee said meeting the fighter was a big deal for kids at her gym. 鈥淚t’s just been a thrilling week, and I was about to fall out when he came in the door!鈥� she said.
Asked about her personal UFC fandom, Lee said she had not watched it much. But by the end of Brown’s visit, she got into the ring with the professional fighter and threw some slugs of her own.
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Associated Press writer Linley Sanders contributed to this report.
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