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UFC Freedom 250 will proceed after a federal judge denies a legal challenge to the event on Friday.
Ilia Topuria shoved Justin Gaethje in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, as tensions spiked in the final news conference before their headlining bout at the UFC’s White House event this weekend.
Topuria, the unbeaten Georgian-Spanish lightweight belt holder, is coming back from a nearly yearlong hiatus following his highly publicised divorce.
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Gaethje is the interim champion and a beloved American brawler who upset the highly touted Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 in January to earn the belt amid Topuria’s absence.
UFC boss Dana White separated the fighters after Topuria shoved Gaethje during the face-off at Friday’s news conference. Gaethje laughed after the incident and said to his opponent: “Look where we’re at, look at this beautiful view and you want to act like an animal?”
Earlier, Topuria, 29, said he was going to knock Gaethje out in the first round of their fight on Sunday night.
“I know I’m best in the world, in two days we’re going to share the same place. I know I’m the best, just prove me wrong if you can,” said Topuria.
Gaethje, 37, dismissed Topuria’s threats by saying that his experience would be the decisive factor.
“I have so much experience in the cage that I am going to use that experience to be great. All I have to do is go in there and be great … I am going to go in there and put it on the line. That’s all I can do,” he said.
Topuria and Gaethje face off at the Lincoln Memorial [Al Drago/Getty Images via AFP]Before Topuria’s departure, he was in the midst of a three-fight run among the most iconic in the history of the sport. Within the span of 16 months, Topuria needed just six total rounds to dispose of future Hall of Famers Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira, each by devastating knockout.
He’s widely expected to do the same to another future Hall of Famer in Gaethje on Sunday night, though Gaethje’s fearlessness should make for an entertaining bout.
The co-main event is headlined by superstar Alex “Poatan” Pereira’s move up to heavyweight, where he’s seeking to become the first three-division champion in UFC history in an interim title bout against Ciryl Gane.
American fan favourite “Suga” Shawn O’Malley is also set to compete, as he will be tested by 38-year-old Canadian Aiemann Zahabi.
The event – named UFC Freedom 250 – is scheduled to take place on President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday as part of the Republican president’s plans to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
The event features mixed martial arts bouts contested in an octagonal cage situated inside a 28m (92 feet) high claw-like structure erected in recent weeks on the White House’s South Lawn.
Court rules against lawsuit seeking to halt event
Earlier on Friday, a federal judge declined to block Trump from hosting the event on the White House grounds.
US District Judge Amit Mehta ruled against two Washington-area residents who argued in a lawsuit that Trump’s administration exceeded its authority in staging the event, dubbed “UFC Freedom 250,” by, among other things, failing to obtain congressional authorisation.
The plaintiffs had sought a judicial order to block the event. Mehta said the two challengers “fall short of showing they are ‘directly affected’ by defendants’ actions” and had unreasonably delayed bringing their lawsuit. A White House spokesperson in a statement said the judge “rightly rejected an untimely and frivolous” effort.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs said they were disappointed but respected the ruling.
“This isn’t a case about a sporting event, it’s about corruption, as a handful of people and companies stand to profit from our public monuments,” they said in a statement.
The UFC’s parent company is publicly traded TKO Group Holdings. TKO is also the parent company of the professional wrestling organisation WWE. Longtime former WWE executive Linda McMahon serves as Trump’s education secretary.
