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Daily Mail
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE White House invites MAGA-friendly UFC fighters to generate buzz at Trump's big military parade
Former UFC fighters Tim Kennedy and Luke Rockhold have been invited by White House officials to join Donald Trump at his big military parade this weekend. Trump is staging the event in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US Army on Saturday, which also happens to mark his 79th birthday. While forecasted thunderstorms are threatening to literally rain on his parade - with a Pentagon source confirming that it will be canceled or postponed in the event of lightning - the president will have two ex-MMA stars alongside him to generate a buzz if it indeed goes ahead. Kennedy, an American soldier as well as a retired mixed martial artist, and former UFC Middleweight champion Rockhold are on a list of over 30 celebrities set to attend after receiving personal invites from the White House. Both men will be there to both drum up support for Trump, who is of course good friends with UFC President Dana White, and celebrate the history of the US Army, something Kennedy is very familiar with himself after spending over two decades in the military. Earlier this week the 45-year-old took to Instagram in his army uniform to give fans a sneak preview of the parade setup, saying in a video: 'This is an amazing opportunity, this is a once in a lifetime chance to see and celebrate American soldiers and their service.' Ex-UFC stars Tim Kennedy (left) and Luke Rockhold (right) were invited by White House chiefs He later added: 'Check it out this Saturday. Support the greatest nation that ever existed.' Kennedy, who won 18 of his 24 professional MMA bouts, is a well-publicized Trump supporter and even joined the president in Oval Office back in April as part of a special event to honor US veterans. Rockhold, meanwhile, recently reached out to Trump with a plea after his good friend and fellow ex-MMA fighter Cain Velasquez was sentenced to five years in prison for the attempted murder of a man he believed had molested one of his relatives. In his own career, the 40-year-old won 16 of his 22 contests and captured the UFC's middleweight crown in 2015. Ahead of Saturday's parade, A Pentagon source confirmed to the Daily Mail that if there's lightning in the area it will have to be canceled or postponed. A White House spokesperson pressed that some show would go on. 'Any changes to the Army Birthday Parade will be announced by the Department of Defense of America 250 Commission. No matter what, a historic celebration of our military servicemembers will take place!' deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said to the Daily Mail. The Weather Channel's current forecast for Saturday in Washington calls for cloudy skies in the morning with thunderstorms developing later in the day. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tim Kennedy (@timkennedymma) Instead of doing a traditional daytime parade, organizers decided to have it kick off down Constitution Ave. at 6:30 p.m. The parade itself will only last an hour - with a concert planned directly afterward followed by a fireworks display over the National Mall. Trump has long wanted to have a military-style parade, after seeing France's Bastille Day festivities, which also marked the U.S.'s 100th anniversary of entering World War I, in July of 2017. During his first term he was dissuaded from holding one over cost concerns.
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Michael Bisping reacts as ex-rival who blinded him gets Hall of Fame induction
While the former middleweight champion believes his ex-foe is a 'cheater' - he insists he deserves all the plaudits following his UFC Hall of Fame induction Michael Bisping has stated that his ex-rival, Vitor Belfort, is deserving of his spot in the UFC Hall of Fame. The pair famously fought back in 2013 when the Brazilian fighter blinded Bisping with a head kick that detached his retina. The British fighter underwent surgery and now uses a prosthetic eye. Despite this setback, he went on to have a successful career in the ring, picking up the middleweight title in 2016 after defeating Luke Rockhold. Bisping retired in 2017 following consecutive losses to Georges St-Pierre and Kelvin Gastelum. With a professional record of 30-9, the 'Count' has victories over notable names such as Anderson Silva, Dan Henderson, Matt Hamill, Chris Leben and Dan Miller. Belfort's career was not without controversy, as he legally used testosterone-replacement therapy [TRT] throughout his time in the UFC. The former light-heavyweight champion was recently welcomed into the UFC Hall of Fame in recognition of his impressive achievements in the octagon. Upon hearing the news from UFC boss Dana White earlier this month, the 48-year-old was visibly moved and broke down in tears. Bisping still believes his rival is a 'cheat' when reacting to the reward - despite giving him some praise. 'When we were in Des Moines, Paul Felder had a little piece for the (video) package where we speak about the greatness of the people getting inducted into the Hall of Fame. They said, 'We won't ask you Mike, for obvious reasons.' I said, 'You know what? I don't care. I'll do it,'' he told MMA Junkie. He continued by acknowledging the fighter's achievements despite personal grievances: "When you look at it and remove all the emotions from it, the man was the UFC heavyweight champion of the world at 19. He then became the light heavyweight champion. He almost became the middleweight champion. He's the closest thing we've had to a three-weight champion. He added: "I lost an eye because of this guy. He can stick his Hall of Fame up his a**. But he does deserve it. You can't deny what he did inside the octagon. You just can't deny it. If that's not a Hall of Fame career, I don't know what is. Whether you like it or not, he deserves it.' Belfort, known for winning the light-heavyweight championship against Randy Couture in 2004, faced many big names during his MMA career, including Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva, Tito Ortiz, Alistair Overeem, Dan Henderson, Luke Rockhold, and Jon Jones. With a professional record of 26-14-1, he retired in 2018 following a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida.
