{"id":436,"date":"2026-06-13T12:34:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T12:34:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=436"},"modified":"2026-06-13T12:34:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T12:34:38","slug":"judge-allows-ufc-cage-matches-to-go-ahead-on-white-house-lawn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=436","title":{"rendered":"Judge allows UFC cage matches to go ahead on White House lawn"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>The Ultimate Fighting Championship cage matches set to take place on the White House South Lawn on Sunday will go on as scheduled, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=434\">Judge blocks Trump\u2019s \u2018anti-weaponization\u2019 fund until government agrees it\u2019s been dissolved<\/a><\/p>\n<p>U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta denied an emergency petition from two Virginia plaintiffs to stop the fight until the court litigates allegations that the Trump administration illegally allowed the Las Vegas-based sports promotion company to build its towering structure, called \u201cThe Claw,\u201d on the White House grounds, and use the Ellipse and Lincoln Memorial for related events.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>UFC began constructing the 92-foot-tall, 154-foot-wide steel staging area on May 26, and corporate organizers were placing the final touches on the temporary 4,300-seat structure\u00a0this week.<\/p>\n<p>According to government court filings, organizers expect up to 120,000 guests to watch the fights on large screens on the Ellipse in addition to the guests under \u201cThe Claw.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Corporate logos abound on White House grounds in prep for fights by Trump-allied UFC<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"0q7Nbbh6yn\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"282\" marginheight=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" scrolling=\"no\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/ncnewsline.com\/2026\/06\/11\/repub\/corporate-logos-abound-on-white-house-grounds-in-prep-for-fights-by-trump-allied-ufc\/embed\/#?secret=Q5KrerhhnY#?secret=0q7Nbbh6yn\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cCorporate logos abound on White House grounds in prep for fights by Trump-allied UFC\u201d \u2014 NC Newsline\" width=\"500\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In all, organizers have spent $60 million on preparation for the event, which is part of the Donald Trump administration-organized \u201cFreedom 250\u201d celebration \u2014 separate and apart from the bipartisan \u201cAmerica250\u201d governed by a congressional commission \u2014 to mark the country\u2019s 250th anniversary.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In a 15-page\u00a0order, Mehta wrote that the plaintiffs\u2019 \u201cunreasonable delay in filing suit, though not dispositive, undercuts their claims of irreparable harm.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=432\">Republicans axe NC State student center as an early voting site<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe public has known that the White House would be hosting a UFC fight event since President Trump first announced it in July 2025. Equipment and materials for the event began arriving at the White House around May 20, 2026, \u2026 and construction of the Claw began six days later. Plaintiffs, however, waited until June 7, 2026 \u2014 more than two weeks after visible preparations commenced at the White House \u2014 to seek emergency relief,\u201d according to the order.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, Mehta wrote that the plaintiffs\u2019 claims of harm \u2014 aesthetic and First Amendment \u2014 are not irreparable because they are \u201cdecidedly temporary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>White House spokesperson Davis Ingle praised the ruling.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe court rightly rejected an untimely and frivolous effort to halt the historic UFC event hosted to honor the 250th anniversary of our Nation. The White House is thankful for this correct decision and looks forward to hosting this once-in-a-lifetime celebration on the South Lawn,\u201d Ingle said in a written statement to States Newsroom.<\/p>\n<p>Brendan Ballou, founder of the Public Integrity Project, an anti-corruption legal advocacy organization that represented the plaintiffs, said the decision wasn\u2019t the one they wanted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis isn\u2019t a case about a sporting event, it\u2019s about corruption, as a handful of people and companies stand to profit from our public monuments. While we\u2019re disappointed in this decision, we of course respect it, and we\u2019ll keep bringing cases to raise the cost of corruption in America,\u201d Ballou said in a written statement to States Newsroom.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=430\">As ICE presence at World Cup looms, fans and local leaders prepare<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>UFC began constructing the 92-foot-tall, 154-foot-wide steel staging area on May 26, and corporate organizers were placing the final touches on the temporary 4,300-seat structure this week.According to government court filings, organizers expect up to 120,000 guests to watch the fights on large screens on the Ellipse in addition to the guests under \u201cThe Claw.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":435,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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