On Saturday, the UFC made a major announcement on the UFC 326 broadcast regarding the upcoming White House event. The event takes place on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C. on Jun. 14. It will be headlined by a lightweight title clash between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje.
The main event will be a title unification bout after Gaethje defeated Paddy Pimblett to win the interim lightweight championship. That materialized after Topuria took a brief hiatus to handle some personal matters. Now, he returns and will aim to continue his dominance at 155 pounds.
The co-main event will see Alex Pereira attempt to make history. He faces Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC heavyweight championship. That fight was booked due to reigning heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall still being sidelined as he recovers.
Pereira will have a chance to become the first-ever three-division UFC champion if he can defeat Gane.
Speculation about the headliner was spread across social media after White and President Donald Trump announced plans for the event. Since the announcement last year, many within the MMA community created their own mock cards.
Given the significance of the event to America’s 250th anniversary, American fighters would likely receive priority. However, White stressed that the card would feature the best fights possible and would not require an American fighter in every bout.
Dana White Announces Full UFC White House Card
Dana White also announced the remaining fight that will complete the UFC White House card. Every fight features a notable name and fan favorite, so there will certainly be no shortage of fan interest.
In bantamweight action, former champion Sean O’Malley aims to extend his winning streak when he faces Aiemann Zahabi. ‘Suga’ rebounded from back-to-back title losses to Merab Dvalishvili by earning a unanimous decison win over Song Yadong.
Zahabi, meanwhile, aims to continue his push toward a bantamweight title shot. The Canadian has defied the odds despite his age and made a strong ascension up the rankings at 135 pounds.
Full UFC White House Card:
Main Event –
Ilia Topuria (c) vs. Justin Gaethje (ic) – UFC Lightweight Championship
Co-Main Event –
Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane – Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship
Sean O’Malley vs. Aiemann Zahabi – Bantamweight
Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler – Lightweight
Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus – Middleweight
Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia – Featherweight
Stay tuned for more!
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