Fans of the former president Donald Trump got to see him—along with the fights—at a UFC event on Saturday night.
Tens of thousands of spectators applauded Trump when he made a surprise cameo at UFC 290 with the league’s CEO, Dana White.
“The 45th president of the United States was his usual social self, interacting with fans by shaking hands and talking for a few moments as he made his way toward the octagon,” Fox News reported.
“It was a total shock to everyone in the building, including the broadcasters of the event as they reacted with surprise when Trump was shown on the big screen. However, Trump is a big UFC fan and a good friend of White, who spoke for him at the 2020 Republican National Convention,” the report added.
President Donald Trump, accompanied by @danawhite, entering the arena at UFC 290 for International Fight Week. #UFC290 pic.twitter.com/HCpVC67ODk
— KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) July 9, 2023
Trump had a great view of the proceedings from his coveted seat close to the octagon. He was observed talking to and taking pictures with a lot of individuals nearby throughout the bouts. In addition, Joe Rogan made a point of reaching out to Trump while he was taking a vacation from his programming duties.
One of the competitors briefly climbed the octagon fence and approached Trump and White to shake their hands.
True fighters love Trump.
America loves Trump! https://t.co/DcQO72iqb5
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) July 9, 2023
“There was even a UFC fighter, South Africa’s Dricus Du Plessis, who jumped over the cage after winning his bout with Robert Whittaker in the middleweight division to shake Trump’s hand as well as White’s,” Fox News said, reporting the incident.
Whittaker was defeated by Du Plessis through knockout in the second round.
“This isn’t the first UFC event Trump has attended, as he’s been spotted at multiple events, including UFC 244 while he was president,” Fox reported, adding: “Trump has also been spotted at UFC 287 next to Kid Rock and former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson.”
In the meantime, Trump is reportedly leading the early primary contest like no other candidate in recent history. He also continues to be a powerful force within the Republican Party.
The Daily Caller interviewed polling experts who said that Trump’s advantage in the majority of polls is so significant that it must be demoralizing for the rest of the GOP field.
The source added the following:
This Republican primary cycle is like none other as the frontrunner is a former president, has a massive lead in the polls, his former vice president is running against him and Trump has two federal indictments under his belt. Polling analysts stressed to the DCNF the stark difference between this GOP primary season and previous cycles, arguing that it’s difficult to draw comparisons in modern history.
“This GOP primary is truly unprecedented because Trump is not technically an incumbent, but Republican voters seem to be treating him as at least a quasi-incumbent,” Kyle Kondik, a polling analyst and managing editor for the nonpartisan Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, told the outlet.
“This really is a unique cycle, at least since we’ve used primaries and caucuses as the primary vehicle to nominate our presidential candidates. In that time, we haven’t had an incumbent president lose a reelection and run again, much less lead in the polls,” Jon McHenry, a vice president at North Star Opinion Research and a GOP polling analyst, added.
“Is there a comparable election? Nope. And that’s fine,” Nathan Klein, pollster for OnMessage Inc., told the outlet. “The one thing Americans, and especially the GOP primary electorate, don’t want is to do things the way they have been done.”
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