A bombshell lawsuit has threatened to derail Donald Trump’s plans to host a UFC event at the White House – just one week out from the ambitious fight night.
The historic event, named UFC Freedom 250 and scheduled for June 14 to coincide with Trump’s 80th birthday, has been met with plenty of criticism in recent weeks.
From fighters claiming they’ve been banned from attending to questions over the fight night logistics – such as the open-air environment – critics have been vocal.
However, organizers have now been presented with their biggest hurdle yet after a political activist and a Vietnam veteran filed a federal lawsuit against the event.
The case, which was filed just over a week out from UFC Freedom 250, argued that the transformation of the White House grounds was never authorized by Congress and that no environmental review was conducted before construction of the arena.
Brendan Ballou, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said: ‘This is fundamentally a private, commercial, corrupt use of our most sacred national monuments for private gain.
A bombshell lawsuit has threatened to derail Donald Trump’s UFC White House plans
The historic event, named UFC Freedom 250 and scheduled for June 14 to coincide with Trump’s 80th birthday, has been met with plenty of criticism in recent weeks
‘And that is what is motivating this lawsuit.’
The White House quickly hit back at the ‘baseless’ lawsuit on Sunday afternoon.
In a statement emailed to ESPN, they said: ‘This is an obstructionist, baseless, and dilatory lawsuit brought simply to prevent President Trump from hosting what will undoubtedly go down as one of the most historic sporting events in our Nation’s history during our semiquincentennial celebration.
‘This iconic event is no different than the various other White House-hosted events on the South Lawn and properly permitted events on the Ellipse and National Mall throughout the year.’
Namely, the construction of the UFC’s ‘claw stadium’ on the South Lawn caused serious concern among those opposed to the ambitious mixed martial arts event.
The lawsuit ripped into the fact that an environmental review was not taken ‘before undertaking ‘major federal action’ significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.’
Ballou added: ‘Ultimately, we want to stop this fight, this weigh-in and the permanent installation of the quote-unquote claw. And I want to be clear, this is not an attack on MMA in the slightest. This is an attack on the corruption that is facilitating this event.’
Though the event has been promoted as 250th anniversary celebrations, many have noted that the event has been scheduled for Trump’s 80th birthday.
The lawsuit alleged that Trump has given UFC chief Dana White ‘unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event’
A view of the ongoing construction at the South Lawn ahead of UFC Freedom 250 next Sunday
‘The event is neither ‘for the celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence’ nor, crucially, being ‘planned, organized and executed’ by the federal government,’ according to the suit.
It later adds: ‘Rather, UFC Freedom 250 is being held for the financial benefit of the UFC, Paramount, and their advertisers, and to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Donald Trump’s birth.’
The suit also took issue with the fact that the Lincoln Memorial will be used as part of the build-up to the event. Though the suit claimed that fighter weigh-ins will be held there, in actuality, it will be a news conference that will take place at the landmark.
‘The president is giving [UFC chief Dana] White and his company what none have enjoyed before: unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event, with all the promotional and branding opportunities that accompany such access,’ the lawsuit says.
The filing was made on Saturday by the Public Integrity Project on behalf of two Virginia residents; Susan Douglas, a retiree and political organizer, and Paul Romano, a Vietnam War veteran.
Around 4,000 guests will pack around an octagon on the South Lawn, with ringside seats reportedly going to those who have stumped up over $1 million in sponsorship.
Trump controls 1,000 tickets personally, with White and Ari Emanuel holding 200 each. Chief of staff Susie Wiles has been helping the president hand-pick attendees.
TKO Group Holdings president Mark Shapiro put the total cost of the event at around $60 million, with UFC said to be shouldering most of the bill.
Additional big screens will be set up on the Ellipse. The UFC previously announced plans to issue as many as 85,000 free tickets for fans who want to attend.
