Donald Trump heads to UFC 309, expected to receive raucous cheers after election win

Donald Trump headed back to Madison Square Garden with top lieutenants Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Vivek Ramaswamy to take in another UFC fight night, but this time as the president-elect. 

Margo Martin, Trump's deputy director of communications, shot video of Trump boarding his plane to New York, where he will attend UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Trump traveled with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who he named earlier this week as his pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy, who began the 2024 campaign as a Democratic candidate, suspended his bid and joined forces with Trump in August, becoming a powerful surrogate and a close confidante in the final months of the race.

There were rumors Trump would attend more fights in the octagon after attending numerous UFC events in the past. 

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Vivek Ramaswamy, an early 2024 Republican presidential candidate who dropped out of the race and threw his support behind Trump, tweeted out a picture of him with Kid Rock at the Madison Square Garden fight. It was not clear if they flew with Trump or traveled separately.

Trump and UFC President Dana White are longtime friends, the latter making several appearances during Trump’s campaign leading up to the election. 

White, who said Trump is a "big fan" of mixed martial arts, was asked to confirm rumors Trump was heading to the Garden during an interview with TMZ Sports. 

"I think that anything is possible," White said with a smile. "Who knows? He could pop in."

White added that a majority of his organization’s fan base has shown love to Trump over the years. 

"When you think about fighter walkouts, whenever a fighter walks out to the [octagon], I mean, the two biggest that actually shake the arena are President Trump and Conor McGregor," White said. "If he comes [Saturday] night, it will definitely be fun."   

Trump showed up at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, for UFC 302 in June, where a thunderous applause rained down from the crowd. 

Now that Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, the reaction when Trump is spotted at the "World’s Most Famous Arena" is expected to be deafening. 

Former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler, who is back in the octagon after more than two years since his last fight, is a noted Trump supporter and believed he would be in attendance. 

"I did see Trump, and he said, "I’ll either be there on Nov. 16 because we won the election, or, if I lost, I’ll be depressed, and I won’t show up.’ Obviously, he won the election, so it sounds like he’s going to be there," Chandler said. 

Chandler added that winning his fight in front of Trump would be an "honor."

Chandler is a part of the co-main event for UFC 309 and will fight Charles Oliveira. Jon "Bones" Jones also enters the octagon after a long hiatus and will be an overwhelming favorite over Stipe Miocic. 

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