Fans Rip ‘Cringe’ UFC White House Belt After Donald Trump Unveils It With Topuria, Gaethje, Gane, and Pereira
Yesterday, President Donald Trump met Ilia Topuria, Justin Gaethje, Ciryl Gane, and Alex Pereira in the Oval Office to unveil a custom championship belt for the upcoming UFC White House event, dubbed UFC Freedom 250. The gathering promoted the June 14 card on the White House lawn, which marks Trump’s 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of American independence. Trump placed the belt on his desk during a press appearance, where he called the fighters the best in the world and highlighted Gaethje as the lone American in the group.
Fans Call New UFC White House Belt ‘Cringe’ After Donald Trump Unveils Custom Title
The belt carries an American flag design with “UFC 250” branding and Roman numerals for 1776 underneath. The Spanish-Georgian Topuria defends his lightweight title against Gaethje in the main event, while the Brazilian aboriginal Pereira challenges France’s Gane for heavyweight gold in the co-main.
Trump shared renderings of a temporary arena that could hold thousands, predicting it as the largest event ever at the White House. Fighters faced off on the lawn afterward, with Pereira and Gane squaring up for the first time.
Fans jumped on social media right away, many calling the belt cringe or over the top. One wrote, “Nothing says, ‘decline of the empire,’ more than this. Disgusting and disgraceful.” Another pointed out, “Is Trump gonna make the winner of the fight give him the belt back?” Jake Schrader asked, “Was he awake for the unveiling?” Miguel Angel Gutierrez Jr. joked, “Nope 🙅♂️” while Richard Lemanski said, “The stripes makes it look like UFE.”
Some zeroed in on the fighters’ nationalities. Joshua Graham noted, “And not a single person up there is an American lol” before editing to spot Gaethje. Robert Donaghy added, “Of the current UFC champions only two are Americans and are not on this card.” Carlos Josue Diaz called it “Brazil, Spain & France… Seems like a world cup conspiracy.” Dave Ussery observed, “Only Cyril looks happy to be there. “
A few defended the look. Cando Kantu said, “Dayum that belt, still looks Tight !!” and Cane Crùz remarked, “That’s a pretty sweet belt, but what I notice is the size of Perieras goddamn hand!” Kyle Kitchens wondered, “Is it legit gold, silver and platinum?”
Others tied it to old Roman ideas, with Jesse Childs and Rodney Edwards both dropping “Give them bread and circuses.”
LowKick MMA on FaceBook stirred more talk, including $1.5 million “Partner Investment” tickets. Sentiment splits between those who see it as a gimmick, “What a joke,” one said, and hype for the fights, like “Crazy it’s gonna be wrapped around a Brazilian and a Spaniard.” Topuria even ribbed Trump in the room: “Why do you want to give the toughest challenge to a friend of yours?”
