Overview:
Justin Gaethje stunned the MMA world with a dramatic upset victory over previously undefeated Ilia Topuria to capture the UFC lightweight championship at the historic UFC Freedom 250 event held on the White House South Lawn. With U.S. President Donald Trump watching cageside, the unprecedented event delivered knockouts, controversy and one of the biggest surprises in recent UFC history.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-15/ufc-freedom-250-live-white-house-donald-trump/106797824
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(ABC-Australia) Justin Gaethje has finished off the UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House with a massive upset to win the lightweight title on a somewhat surreal night on the South Lawn.
US President Donald Trump watched ring-side for the entire night, which featured seven fights and ended in emphatic fashion, including veteran Gaethje’s shock win over Ilia Topuria.
“That’s one of the biggest upsets I’ve ever seen,” former two-division champion Daniel Cormier said in commentary.
Gaethje was already the interim lightweight champion, but the 37-year-old had never held the undisputed title in his 15-year mixed martial arts career, the past nine of which have been spent in the UFC.
He was a rank outsider coming into the fight against the undefeated Topuria, who had beaten Australian Alexander Volkanovski to claim the featherweight belt in February 2024 and defended it against another all-time great, Max Holloway, later that year.
In his last fight he moved up to the lightweight division, immediately taking down UFC legend Charles Oliveira to move to 17-0 and add the lightweight title to his cabinet.
But Gaethje showed off some devastating striking from the opening bell, opening a cut on Topuria’s right eyebrow in the first round.
The pair were likely split on the judges’ cards through two, before Gaethje upped the ante in the third, with Topuria struggling to see after the round.
The doctor almost stopped the fight before Topuria’s protests appeared to work, with referee Mark Goddard urging Topuria to show him something.
The Georgian did show some spirit in the round, but it ended with him on the ground copping a vicious knee to the ribs from Gaethje.
Despite both his eyes being swollen shut heading into the last of the five rounds, Topuria’s brother Aleksandre appeared to insist the fight continue before someone in the corner called it off.
Like most of the fighters, Gaethje made sure to quickly rush to thank Trump in his octagon-side seat, where he sat all night flanked by wife Melania and UFC president Dana White.
Perhaps the biggest cheer of the opening fight came when someone shouted “Happy birthday, President Trump” — it was his 80th — and there was plenty of the sort of jingoism you would expect from the United States’s 250th birthday celebrations, which have been going for weeks.
Initial concerns of chaotic weather and severe thunderstorm warnings never eventuated, as Diego Lopes, Bo Nickal, Josh Hokit, Sean O’Malley, Ciryl Gane and Mauricio Ruffy, who proposed to his girlfriend in the octagon, all scored wins by knockout.
Heavyweight Hokit, who beat 41-year-old Derrick Lewis via second-round knockout, praised Trump while sporting an American flag bandana and spewed a transphobic conspiracy theory into the microphone after his fight.
On the sidelines, heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury revealed he is planning to fight long-time rival Anthony Joshua in August.