Dana White and his fellow TKO executives are no strangers to putting on a spectacle, but it’s hard to argue against the fact that the UFC’s Freedom 250 card at the White House on Saturday is the company’s most ambitious undertaking yet.
The fight card, which is set to occur in a makeshift venue being referred to as “The Claw” located on the South Lawn, features two title fights (one interim) and is the product of nearly a year of speculation and reported negotiations that seemingly involved all of the UFC’s biggest names.
The main event is highlighted by the return of lightweight belt holder and UFC’s No. 1 ranked pound-for-pound fighter Ilia Topuria, who is coming back from a nearly year-long hiatus following his highly publicized divorce. Topuria is set to take on interim champion and beloved American brawler Justin Gaethje, who upset the highly touted Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 in January to earn the belt amidst Topuria’s absence.
Before Topuria’s departure, he was in the midst of a three-fight run that is 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 Saturday night, though Gaethje’s fearlessness should make for an entertaining bout. Even if it’s short.
“Listen, if he’s gonna try to move forward we all know what’s going to happen,” Topuria said. “I’m going to put him to sleep in the first two minutes. But I don’t know how much of what he’s saying is the truth, but whatever. He’s going to have to deal with my strategy, I’m not going to have to deal with his.”
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. Pereira regained the light heavyweight title by avenging his loss to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 with a knockout just 1:12 into their rematch at UFC 320, but decided to vacate the belt 11 days later before pursuing a move up.
Still, even with all of the added attention of the White House spectacle, Pereira sees it the same as he always does.
“I see it as another fight,” Pereira said. “I know the responsibilities. We see here that it’s a huge event. Even the number of people here, reporters, we see the difference. But none of this, to me, is pressure. The pressure I have is the pressure of the fight. We’re there, we’re going to fight, we know the risks. So that, to me, is the pressure. And it’s a controlled pressure, I see it as another fight.”
Gane’s involvement in the fight is the product of an unfortunate scenario he’s largely responsible for. Heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall suffered severe eye injuries after brutal eye pokes from Gane during their title fight at UFC 321, but Gane’s status as the top contender in the division makes him the only real feasible option to take on Pereira.
American fan favorite “Suga” Shawn O’Malley is also set to compete, as he will be tested by 38-year-old Canadian Aiemann Zahabi. O’Malley will certainly be the toughest test of the veteran Zahabi’s career thus far, but he does enter on a seven-fight win streak that features four wins by unanimous decision, one by split decision and two by knockout.
–Field Level Media
