Which A-List Celebrities Declined the President’s UFC Bash? Inside the Stars Who Skipped the Invite

Thousands of fans gathered at the White House on Sunday for President Donald Trump’s UFC-themed birthday celebration, though several high-profile celebrities who were invited did not attend.

UFC president Dana White told TIME Magazine last month that invitations had been sent to a star-studded list that included Adam Sandler, Guy Ritchie, Tom Brady, Jared Leto, Mario Lopez, Jason Statham and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

None of those celebrities ultimately appeared at the Freedom 250 event.

Even so, the crowd still featured a number of prominent Trump supporters and well-known public figures who took in the fights on the White House’s South Lawn.

Among those in attendance were billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, NHL brothers Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, comedians Tony Hinchcliffe and Shane Gillis, and influencer Logan Paul.

Country star Zac Brown also took part in the festivities, performing “The Star-Spangled Banner” shortly before a formation of jets roared overhead to the sound of AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck.”

There were also some surprise guests, including Poland’s right-wing president Karol Nawrocki and British heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury, who was pictured wearing a ‘Trump for prime minister’ hat. 

‘It’s been a long time, but boy oh boy am I happy to be here for this historic event. Freedom, at the White House, and it’s Donald Trump’s birthday,’ Fury told Paramount+ announcer Jon Anik. 

Of the 4,300 seats available for spectators, 1,200 were reserved for active-duty service members from various branches of the armed forces, as the event was used to promote a number of charities benefiting both veterans and 9/11 heroes.

US Navy veteran Royce Williams, who fought in the Korean War and shot down four Soviet fighter jets, was also given an honor as he escorted fighter Michael Chandler into the Octagon for his bout against Mauricio Ruffy – who wound up defeating him with a TKO in the first round. 

Among the crowd were many top White House officials who made grand entrances to the event – including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Vice President JD Vance, House Speaker Mike Johnson and FBI director Kash Patel – who brought his country singer girlfriend Alexis Wilkins – were also seen enjoying the spectacle.

Homeland Security adviser Stephen Miller was joined by his wife, Katie, just 11 days after she gave birth to the couple’s fourth child.

Members of the Trump family got some of the best seats in the house, with Barron perched right behind his mother and father.

Melania’s father, Viktor Knavs, attended the celebration and was positioned in the audience close to his daughter. 

Other Trump family members who gathered for the celebration were Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner, their sons Joseph and Theo Kushner, as well as Donald Trump Jr, his new wife, Bettina Trump, Eric and Lara Trump with their daughter Carolina, Tiffany Trump, and her husband, Michael Boulos, and granddaughter Kai Trump.

The festivities came to an end when Justin Gaethje won the lightweight championship and thanked the president, who donned a white ‘USA’ cap for the evening’s final event.

Gaethje carried an American flag and thanked military members after his bloodied battle with Georgian-Spaniard Ilia Topuria in the co-main event ended around 1am ET.

Then, it was Trump’s turn to enter the spotlight. The president made his way into the cage alongside First Lady Melania as pyrotechnics sparkled from the structure above, dubbed ‘the Claw’. 

Dazzling fireworks lit up the sky above the White House in red, white and blue as chants of ‘USA’ rang out from the crowd to toast Gaethje’s victory. 

Trump greeted Gaethje again as he and Melania shook the fighter’s hand. The president then patted Gaethje on the shoulder before engaging the fighter in a lengthy conversation. 

When the fight night finally came to a close early Monday morning, the Trump family was seen gathering around Gaethje, with Ivanka’s son, Joseph, holding one of the championship belts.

The family was also seen beaming in a photo Ivanka shared to social media as they circled the commander-in-chief in the Octagon.

Forecasted rain held off for the night, allowing the fight card to get underway shortly after the original scheduled 8pm start.

As the festivities came to an end, many declared the Freedom 250 event a success – with President Trump boasting on his Truth Social page that the night was ‘PERFECT.’ 

But the night was not without controversy, with fighter Joe Hokit bizarrely telling the crowd, ‘Michelle Obama is a man.’

Another fighter, Sean Strickland, had to be escorted out of the event by US Secret Service and other law enforcement following his mocking comments about Jeffrey Epstein. 

First Son Eric Trump also faced backlash on Monday after ‘fake’ leaked messages between him and former fighter Daniel Cormier asking if any of the White House fights were ‘rigged’ went viral.

The controversy started when former fighter Daniel Cormier’s X account posted messages that appeared to be from President Trump’s middle son. 

In the supposed correspondence, Eric Trump asked if any of the fighters appearing at the UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House’s South Lawn were injured, or if Cormier planned to place any bets. 

It immediately sparked rampant ‘cheating’ concerns on social media.

‘I’m probably going to get a lot of flak for bringing this to light, however I refuse to stay silent,’ Cormier wrote in a caption posted with screengrabs of Eric Trump’s supposed messages. 

‘The UFC is a sport that I am deeply passionate about. I will not tolerate this type of insider behavior. Shame on anyone trying to ruin this beautiful event.’

The one-time fighter has since deleted the post and told DC-based journalist Nicholas Ballasy that his account had been hacked.

‘They’re not real,’ Cormier said of the Eric Trump posts. ‘I can’t believe you guys believed that, like, who believes something like that?’ 

‘I got hacked or something,’ Cormier added, talking to Ballasy as he departed the White House at the conclusion of the UFC event early Monday morning.

The journalist then asked, ‘So you didn’t post it?’

‘Why would I do that?’ Cormier said, getting into his car. 

Cormier posted a similar sentiment on his X account.  

On his own social media accounts, Eric Trump made clear the messages were bogus. 

‘This is completely fake! I have never reached out to Daniel. In fact, this is scary,’ he posted Sunday night as the fights were getting underway. 

The event drew more than 4,000 spectators to the White House’s South Lawn

UFC CEO Dana White now says such a spectacle at the White House will never occur again.

‘It was an amazing experience, this was a one-of-one,’ he said. ‘It will never happen again.’

He explained that the headaches over the weather for a rare outdoors show, the logistics of building the stage on the White House South Lawn and staging events at federal landmarks were logistical nightmares.

Then, there were the soaring costs associated with having an event at the White House. 

The UFC boasted of spending $60 million on UFC Freedom 250, which wasn’t expected to turn a profit due to the tickets awarded to service members and the free watch party at the Ellipse abutting the White House’s South Lawn.

Meanwhile, Washington DC, spent an estimated $10 million to $12 million on security for the event. A city spokesman told ESPN that the city does not expect to be reimbursed by the UFC. 

‘I can’t afford it,’ White admitted. ‘I’ll never do the Sphere again and we’ll never do this again.’