Belal
Muhammad doesn’t think there will be any real MMA fans at the
UFC White House card.
The
UFC will host a one-of-a-kind event at the White House on
President Donald Trump’s birthday, June 14, on the South Lawn of
the White House. The card, billed as Freedom Fights 250, will be a
celebration of America’s 250th year of independence.
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Muhammad recently compared the event to “The Hunger Games,” the
dystopian series of movies based on the books written by Suzanne
Collins. The movies portray a survival competition where
participants must fight to the death until the last man stands.
Muhammad recalls a scene from the first movie where the protagonist
Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, goes for her
tryouts, while uninterested rich patrons go on with their
discussions. Muhammad believes the White House crowd will also not
be paying much attention to the action inside the Octagon, barring
the occasional highlight-reel knockout.
No Real Fans
“It’s not open to the public, not open to real fans,” Muhammad said
on YouTube. “When I picture people who gonna be
there watching, I picture ‘The Hunger Games.’ When Katniss was at
the tryout and the rich, snobby people at the top, not paying
attention to her… They’re just not gonna be paying attention to
what happens in the cage, if they see a little bit of a blood, they
don’t see a knockout. But they’re not a real fans, so who cares?
They get what they get.”
While Dana White said that there will be approximately 5,000
attendees at the White House, it’s unclear how they will be
selected. Of those, 1,000 seats will reportedly be reserved for
members of the military. Meanwhile, the UFC is giving away 85,000
free tickets for fans to watch the event on a screen at the
Ellipse, which stands south of the White House fence.