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Donald Trump has celebrated his 80th birthday by holding an Ultimate Fighting Championship cage fight on the South Lawn of the White House. The event was attended by over 4,000 people and broadcast live by Paramount Skydance. There are two notable subplots here. One is how the president has attempted to harness sport to burnish his image. The other is the remarkable transformation of UFC from parking lot pariah to cultural mainstay. In 1996 Republican senator John McCain likened UFC to “human cockfighting”, helping to spark bans in 36 states. Trump helped legitimise the franchise by hosting several fights at his properties in the early 2000s, when it struggled to find venues. Today it is worth $15bn, with over 700 fighters.
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