White House Set To Host Historic UFC Combat

Combat sports will be brought to a standstill when two highly rated popular figures in the Lightweight division Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira and Ilia Topuria are set to go head to head on Monday at the White House lawn in what will be a historic UFC fight.

The UFC Freedom 250 card will be the first ever sporting spectacle hosted at the White House, while it will also mark the 250th anniversary of the United States.

Topuria who is coming into the match as an unbeaten double weight class champion, is known as one of the most feared fighters in the world having gotten the better of names such as Paddy Pimblett, Dustin Poirier and Tony Ferguson.

Topuria, known as ‘El Matador’, recorded high-profile knockout wins over Charles Oliveira, Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski in his last three fights amid title success in both the Featherweight and Lightweight classes.

In the co-main event, Pereira is aiming to become the first UFC fighter to claim belts in three weight divisions when he takes on Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title.

As a former middleweight and light heavyweight champion, Pereira (13-3-0) powered his way to five knockout victories in his last six fights. Gane (13-2-0, 1NC) is unbeaten in his last two fights, while his last fight with heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall at UFC321 was rendered a no contest owing to an eye poke in the first round.

With legendary status in view, Poatan expressed that he is already focused on fights beyond UFC Freedom 250, given that he could well be approaching the latter stage of his career.

The main card will also feature the colourful Sean O’Malley, who will once again hope to become a top contender in the bantamweight division when he takes on Aiemann Zahabi before the co-main event.

In a separate Heavyweight clash, fan favourite Derrick Lewis will face the undefeated Josh Hokit, who saw off Denzel Freeman and Curtis Blaydes in his last two fights. Much like that of O’Malley and Lewis, Hokit is known for his outspoken demeanour as a favourite to US President Donald Trump.