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WASHINGTON 鈥� President Donald Trump emerged from the Oval Office first, then fighters from around the globe 鈥� several with New Mexico ties 鈥� followed straight into the , in part for the president鈥檚 80th birthday celebration and to bring a sport long on the fringe of mainstream acceptance into a main event on the White House South Lawn.

For a president who revels in winners, Trump had to enjoy crowning two champions on a big fight night staged closer to the Rose Garden than Madison Square Garden in the co-main event of UFC Freedom 250.

American lightweight Justin Gaethje capped his unification championship victory in the main event over with a backflip off the top of the cage. He crouched near Trump for a celebratory chat and the betting underdog draped the American flag over one shoulder 鈥� and the 155-pound title belt over another. Trump later stepped into the cage to congratulate Gaethje.

鈥淗ey, I'm from America, 250 years ago we were way more than 6-1 underdogs,鈥� Gaethje said. 鈥淚 know that was absolutely legendary because I can not even believe it.鈥�

Topuria and Gaethje made their walkouts from the Oval Office as fireworks exploded overhead during Michael Buffer鈥檚 introductions. Gaethje 鈥� who appeared to skim the copy of the Declaration of Independence on his way out 鈥� mustered some scattered 鈥淯SA!鈥� chants against the Spanish-Georgian Topuria, though not even the main event could stop the trend of mostly quiet fights.

It took the gory sight of a bloodied Topuria 鈥� his back to Trump in a white 鈥淯SA鈥� hat as he peered through the wire-mesh cage 鈥� nearly having the fight waved off to get a 鈥渓et them fight!鈥� chant going. The fight continued, and the 37-year-old Gaethje won eventually via corner stoppage in the fourth round.

鈥淗ard work, baby,鈥� Gaethje said. 鈥淚 am made for these moments. This sport is made for me.鈥�

Earlier, Ciryl Gane hammered Alex Pereira with a series of elbows and fists to the head and won via TKO in 1:27 of the second round to claim the interim heavyweight belt for a second time and set up a rematch with heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall.

Like the bulk of the fighters who had their hands raised in victory, Gane thanked Trump.

The White House was a most improbable all-American setting for a fight promotion that long ago shed the 鈥渉uman cockfighting鈥� tag and decades later became entwined with the emboldened right-wing 鈥� 鈥� that soaks up UFC fights and threw its support behind Trump in two elections.

Trump and UFC boss Dana White, the tempestuous tag-team that rallied the fight company to the nation's capital, walked from the Oval Office to the Blue Room Balcony to chants of 鈥淯SA! USA!鈥� to kick off the fight card jacked up by a dose of high-octane patriotism on a blustery night for cage fighting.

This was no .

The Marine Band jazzed up the festivities and played fighter entrance music in front of the White House and Zac Brown sang the national anthem 鈥� never performed before normal UFC fight cards because of the mix of nationalities fighting inside the Octagon. The Navy鈥檚 Blue Angels and Air Force Thunderbirds zipped overhead as part of a flyover to celebrate Trump鈥檚 and the of the Declaration of Independence鈥檚 signing.

The 4,000-plus fans 鈥� Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison among them 鈥� on the South Lawn who sat under the claw, the flying saucer-like, open-air structure that housed the cage, mostly sat on their hands until the fighters used theirs to deliver punishing blows and a true fighting spirit that got everyone on their feet.

Bo Nickal delivered the red, white and boom when the three-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion at Penn State earned the TKO win over middleweight Kyle Daukaus and immediately bolted the Octagon for a cage-side chat with Trump. Nickal met Trump in 2019 during a ceremony at the White House for collegiate national champions.

Nickal, who won a team state wrestling championship as an eighth-grader at Rio Rancho High in 2010 and placed second in the 103-pound individual bracket that year, thanked Trump after the easy night of work for bringing UFC to the White House.

鈥淔irst and foremost, I have to thank President Trump for making this happen,鈥� Nickal said inside the cage. 鈥淭his is unbelievable.鈥�

Diego Lopes walked out to the Mexican song 鈥淟a Chona" and Steve Garcia, an sa国际传媒官网网页入口 native who trains at Jackson-Wink MMA in the city, walked out of the White House draped in an American flag and accompanied by two police officers to start the show that was delayed briefly by inclement weather. The looming threats of rain never materialized over at least the first three fights.

Fans were as quiet for the start of the main card Sunday as they might be for the preliminary fights held hours before a pay-per-view event in a normal fight arena, such as Madison Square Garden. Closer to the Rose Garden, fans did come alive when Lopes landed a flurry of punches to knock out Garcia in the second round.

The first blight of the night for Trump came when American heavyweight Derrick Lewis lost his fight after he got a personal invitation from the president. Trump proclaimed himself a fan of Lewis and his unconventional celebrations and asked White to add him to the card. Josh Hokit, who also trains at Jackson-Wink MMA, instead improved to 10-0 when he flattened Lewis by TKO.

Sean O'Malley celebrated his walk-off KO win with a salute. Mauricio Ruffy won his fight earlier in the night.

鈥淭hat was sexy,鈥� O'Malley said to cheers. 鈥淚 felt the energy in here. I truly felt the energy in here.鈥�

More than $60 million and tens of thousands of hours of labor were poured into building the arena, according to a court filing from the National Park Service, which oversees the South Lawn, and the looming threat of rain that threw White into a tizzy each time a miserable forecast was raised never materialized over the early portions of the card.

Fight night came only hours after the United States and Iran reached an agreement to end and open the , offering relief to the global economy more than three months after the war began.

The rare UFC outdoors event marked the pinnacle of the relationship between that has yielded personal, political and financial dividends for both parties. White's first card as UFC president came in 2001 at an event held at Trump Taj Mahal.

Trump has attended four UFC cards as sitting president, walking to the cage amid rock music and patriotic chants from fans. White introduced Trump at two Republican National Conventions.

Trump got a home game for this one, making the short walk from the Oval Office to the Octagon, much like the fighters who made the walk down West Wing halls covered with presidential portraits and were flanked by first responders and medal of honor recipients, among other individuals who served.