While Vice President J.D. Vance was deeply involved in peace negotiations with Iranian representatives in Pakistan, President Trump made an appearance at UFC 327 in Miami. Accompanying him were his daughters Tiffany and Ivanka, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and UFC promoter Dana White.

The audience’s response seemed predominantly positive, as observed from the Paramount+ broadcast. During the event, Trump took a moment to chat with UFC commentators Jon Anik and Joe Rogan, the latter having voiced criticism regarding the ongoing conflict with Iran.

“Great to have you in the building tonight, Mr. President,” Anik remarked as the evening’s main fight card was about to commence.

Trump is not the first U.S. President to attend a sporting event amidst military tensions.

George W. Bush notably delivered the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium following the 9/11 attacks. In contrast, during the Gulf War with Iraq in 1990, George H.W. Bush opted out of this role, instead allowing his wife, Barbara, to take the pitch.

Nonetheless, Trump has faced criticism over his attendance at UFC 327.

Donald Trump walks in to the Kaseya Center in Miami followed by Dana White and Ivanka 

President Donald Trump chats with UFC CEO and president Dana White before UFC 327

Marco Rubio is pictured talking to Dana White with Tiffany Trump standing nearby 

Tiffany Trump arrives at UFC 327, where here older half-sister Ivanka was also on hand 

‘Does he know he started a war?’ one critic asked on X. ‘Time for UFC I guess?’

‘I mean the world is on fire,’ another added. ‘But hey let’s use some tax money to attend a UFC fight.’

Several critics kept it more succinct: ‘Hard at work for the American people.’ 

White previously teased Trump’s attendance at UFC 327 in Miami during the week’s pre-fight promotions.

‘It’s good to be back in Miami,’ White told podcaster Adin Ross. ‘Yeah, I’m pumped. We got the big guy coming on Saturday, too. He’s coming,’

Of course, there had been some skepticism about Trump’s attendance, given the three-party talks between the U.S., Iran and Pakistan entered on Saturday amid a fragile two-week ceasefire in a war that has rocked oil and financial markets around the world.

Prior to flying to Miami on Saturday, Trump was asked about China’s reported threats to send air defense systems to Iran.

‘If China does that, China is gonna have big problems,’ he said prior to leaving for Joint Base Andrews. 

But Trump has always enjoyed the UFC and its CEO, White, so Saturday’s appearance in Miami didn’t come as a complete surprise.   

George W. Bush threw out the first pitch before Game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. However, his father, George H.W. Bush, took a pass on first-pitch duties in 1990, instead allowing wife Barbara to do the honors amid the Gulf War

Since launching his political career in 2015, Trump has tapped White to speak for him at the last three Republican National Conventions, leading many to wonder if the MMA promoter could serve a greater role in the White House.

‘His base is Trump’s base,’ Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s former White House counselor, previously told The New York Times of White. ‘And Trump’s base is his base.’

White, however, has downplayed any potential Trump appointment.

‘Donald Trump is one of my very good friends,’ White told Sports Business Journal through a spokesperson in 2024. ‘He did a great job in his last term as president, and I know he will do an even better job the next four years. I have no personal political aspirations.’

(From left) Dana White, Donald Trump, Kid Rock and Elon musk pose at UFC 309 at MSG back in November of 2024. Trump had recently been elected to a second White House term 

Besides, White could provide a greater service to Trump through what The New York Times has called ‘cage-match politics.’ Trump now makes regular cage-side appearances at UFC events, where fight fans — and the fighters themselves — have showered the former President with his highly sought-after adulation.

And on June 14, Trump will welcome White and the UFC to the White House’s south lawn for an event aimed at celebrating the country’s 250th anniversary on the President’s birthday.

Headlined by a lightweight title bout between Georgia’s Ilia Topuria and American fan-favorite Justin Gaethje, the six-fight card will be seen by only 5,000 lucky invitees. Meanwhile, another 80,000 tickets will be given away for fans to watch from a nearby park on a giant scoreboard-sized screen.

While the event has been teased as a major fight card by both the UFC and the White House, many fanatics have remained critical of the matchups and other logistical issues.

The event will be held on the south lawn of the White House, with extra seating on The Ellipse

UFC announcer Joe Rogan will be in attendance, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy about the event, or the President, himself.

‘Yeah, I’m not thrilled about that,’ Rogan told comedian Mark Normand during a recent episode of his popular podcast. ‘Yeah, I’ll be there but I’m not thrilled about it, it doesn’t seem like a wise idea.’

There had been some question about Rogan’s presence at the White House fight card, given his increasingly complicated relationship with Trump.

Rogan’s podcast has been a pivotal platform for candidate Trump, who had a three-hour interview on the show and secured the host’s endorsement in the days before his 2024 electoral victory. But in recent weeks, Rogan has criticized Trump’s war with Iran, calling it ‘crazy,’ while also taking aim at the President’s immigration tactics and his Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein files.

He’s also dismissed the event, dubbed UFC Freedom 250, as a ‘gimmick.’

Tatiana Suarez talks to Rogan after winning in Miami. Rogan is skeptical about UFC Freedom 250, the MMA fight card scheduled to be held on the White House lawn on Trump’s birthday

‘People are criticizing the card, but if it was any other card, it’s a great card it’s just they’re criticizing it because they said it was gonna be the ‘greatest card of all time’ and it’s also just gonna be a security nightmare,’ Rogan said.

‘Also they’re fighting outside,’ he continued. ‘What if it rains? What if it’s hot? You’re in the middle of June, June in D.C. can get pretty warm, that affects fighters.’

White has long resisted outdoor bouts due to potential issues with weather and other factors.

‘We only did one outside fight that I was part of and that was in Abu Dhabi and it was a nightmare,’ Rogan said. ‘It was really hot and there were bugs flying around the size of f***ing birds, it was crazy.’

Rogan will not be the only big name on hand.

Trump confirmed his attendance at UFC Freedom 250 in an interview with Jake Paul earlier this month.

‘It’s going to be amazing at the White House,’ he said. ‘And Dana [White] is a great guy. He’s a good fan of yours, you know. Dana is a good guy. The best. I mean, there’s nobody like him.’

A North Carolina man was apprehended on Friday, accused of fatally stabbing a U.S. Marine in a chaotic street brawl that was captured on video and has since placed local police under intense scrutiny, officials reported.

Davy Spencer, aged 47, faces charges of second-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to kill, following the tragic stabbing of 21-year-old Daniel Montano. The incident unfolded amid a large-scale fight in downtown Wilmington around 2 a.m. last Sunday, as per the Wilmington Police Department.

Montano, a lance corporal based at Camp Lejeune, located approximately 70 miles from the scene, was one of two individuals who were stabbed during the altercation.

The police department faced criticism over its handling of the violent incident after alarming footage circulated online. The video showed the Marine, mortally wounded, slumped over in a pool of his own blood, while officers attempted to disperse the fighting crowd.

The widely shared clip depicted several men engaged in a street fight as Wilmington officers arrived and deployed pepper spray. Moments later, the video shifts to the sidewalk, revealing Montano in his final moments, pointing to his neck while officers hurried to provide assistance.

As cops fumbled to find a way to help him, a bystander rushed in, tore off his shirt, wrapped it around the victim’s neck, and applied pressure in a frantic attempt to stop the bleeding.

Montano, along with the other stabbing victim, was rushed to a local hospital, but he later succumbed to his injuries.

The service member, a California native, was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines Regiment at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, according to his devastated sister Evelyn.

“He was not only dedicated to his country, but also deeply loved by his family,” she wrote on a fundraiser page set up to help their family cover funeral and memorial costs.

“To us, he was more than a Marine – he was a son, a brother, and someone who brought so much light into our lives.”

Meanwhile, police defended their actions during the brawl, telling Star News Online they acted appropriately given the circumstances. However, the officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave as the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation takes over the case.

Spencer, of Wilmington, is reportedly being held without bond.

Dax Shepard recently opened up about his initial animosity towards the late actor Eric Dane, whom he later came to regard as a close friend.

Recalling their early encounters, the 51-year-old podcast host shared that their relationship was rocky at first, with tensions running high during shared Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, almost leading to a physical confrontation with the Euphoria star.

Their friendship eventually blossomed, with Shepard expressing deep affection for Dane, who passed away in February at the age of 53 after a courageous battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

‘Eric Dane, I can now say I met in recovery and we hated each other,’ he recalled in an interview with CNN‘s Anderson Cooper at the New Orleans Book Festival on Thursday, April 2. ‘I hated him!’

Reflecting on his early perceptions, Shepard admitted that he initially viewed Dane as somewhat of a bully, but the two men found common ground in their shared experiences of growing up without their fathers.

Shepard recounted a pivotal moment in their friendship, describing a heated encounter where Dane had threatened a younger group member, prompting Shepard to challenge him outside, marking the start of their eventual bond.

Dax Shepard revealed he initially ‘hated’ Eric Dane when they first met before they later developed an unexpected friendship; pictured in January

Shepard said he ‘ended up loving him so much’ prior to Dane’s death in February at age 53 after battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); pictured in June 2025

‘It was on. And we walked outside to a fist fight in the driveway of an AA meeting,’ he recalled before explaining that other people ended up breaking up the fight. 

Over time, Shepard said he started to understand him as he learned more about Dane while sharing stories in AA meetings. 

‘God bless both of us. We kept coming back to the same meeting,’ he said. ‘Over the course of the next two years, I found myself starting to kind of relate to him. I heard his story.’ 

He continued: ‘His father shot himself in his house when he was a little boy. And his mom came upstairs and said, “I’ll tell you what happened if you promise that you won’t cry.”

‘So that little boy held onto that. And then that little boy grew up without a dad, like I grew up without a dad, and he was so in search of masculine validation, and it took all these shapes that I hated. That I’m sure he hated in me.’ 

Shepard recalled the turning point happened when Dane shared his honest thoughts about him during one particular meeting.

‘I remember he had his share one time and I said, “I can’t believe I’m gonna say this, but that’s one of my favorite shares I’ve ever heard.”

In a recent interview, he recalled meeting Dane in the same AA meeting and admitted he ‘thought he was a bit of a bully’ at first

He recalled how they almost got into a ‘fist fight’ before other people broke them up. Over time, he said he ‘came to fall in love’ with Dane as he gushed about his late friend

Shepard shared his admiration for his late friend and opened up about watching Dane battle ALS, calling it the ‘bravest thing he’d done’; pictured in Brilliant Minds still

Dane previously revealed that he experienced symptoms of ALS about a year and a half before receiving his diagnosis in April 2025. He died at age 53 in February; pictured in September 2025

‘Maybe a week or two later, one of his shares, he said, “I can’t believe I’m gonna say this, but I think I’ve come to fall in love with Dax.” And then we became friends.

‘I came to fall in love with a very scared man trying and hoping he had become a man, and I related,’ he said. ‘I ended up loving him so much.’ 

During the interview, Shepard also opened up about dealing with the loss of his friend and gushed about the Grey’s Anatomy star.

In April 2025, Dane was diagnosed with ALS – ‘a nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord,’ according to the Mayo Clinic.

Dane previously revealed that he experienced symptoms of ALS about a year and a half before receiving his diagnosis. He died at age 53 nearly two months ago. 

‘For a person who was so hellbent on being hyper-masculine and incredibly fit, to have agreed to become the face of this disease, completely diminished, I found to be the bravest thing he’d done in all these pursuits of manliness.’ 

According to a CNN report, China is gearing up to supply Iran with advanced air defense systems in the coming weeks. This move follows a series of military and missile capability strikes on Iran by the U.S. and Israel over the past month.

The report, based on insights from three individuals with knowledge of recent U.S. intelligence, suggests that China might disguise the shipment’s origins by routing it through intermediary nations. Two of these insiders emphasized the possibility of such subterfuge.

Responding to inquiries from CNN about these intelligence findings, President Trump warned that if “China does that, China will have big problems, OK?” He did not clarify whether he had discussed the matter with Chinese President Xi Jinping, with whom he is slated to meet in early May.

This meeting, originally planned to address tariff issues after the Supreme Court invalidated the president’s tariffs, was rescheduled due to the ongoing tensions with Iran.

Sources informed CNN that Beijing plans to deliver Man-Portable Air-Defense Systems (MANPADS) to Iran. These shoulder-launched missile systems are designed to counter threats from low-flying aircraft.

A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington told CNN that China has “never provided weapons to any party” involved in the conflict with Iran. They urged “the U.S. side to refrain from making baseless allegations, maliciously drawing connections, and engaging in sensationalism; we hope that relevant parties will do more to help de-escalate tensions.”

Previous intelligence reports have indicated that China, along with Russia, has been supporting Iran with its presence and alliance with the Middle Eastern country.

Trump earlier this month referred to China, Japan and South Korea as countries that could send troops to the region to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“Let South Korea, you know, we only have 45,000 soldiers in harm’s way over there, right next to a nuclear force — let South Korea do it,” Trump said at a Wednesday Easter luncheon prior to his address to the nation on April 1. “Let Japan do it. They get 90 percent of their oil from the strait. Let China do it.”