Donald Trump must be pleased! The UFC’s White House event is beginning to look every bit as ambitious as advertised. As construction continues on the South Lawn, a massive open-air arena is rising in front of one of the most recognizable buildings in the world.
Early images from Washington, D.C. show a structure that dwarfs a traditional UFC setup and has already become visible from various points around the city.
Massive Structure Takes Shape Over the South Lawn
At the center of the project is a towering framework known as “The Claw,” a custom-built rig designed to support the production elements surrounding the Octagon.
The structure stands 90 feet tall, making it noticeably higher than the White House itself, which measures roughly 70 feet. On the ground, the installation stretches 120 feet by 120 feet, covering a significant portion of the South Lawn.
The area is typically reserved for some of the White House’s most recognizable outdoor activities, including Marine One operations and annual public events. For UFC’s planned card, much of that space has been transformed into a large-scale sporting venue.
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UFC Conducted a Full Test Build Before Moving to Washington
According to Sports Business Journal, the rig was developed by Belgian event production company Stageco.
Before arriving in the nation’s capital, the structure underwent a complete assembly and teardown in Warwick Township, Pennsylvania. The rehearsal allowed UFC officials and production crews to evaluate the build process and identify any final adjustments.
“No. 1, [it] was to make sure that we understood how the build would go. We got the timing down on how long it would take to build it out,” Craig Borsari, UFC’s executive vice president, executive producer and chief content officer, told SBJ.
“It also was to be sure that the lighting fixtures that we wanted to place inside the claw arms in the trussing were going to be able to be mounted the way we intended, and that they would be able to be moved the way we need them to move, so we did that.”
“… It was just a really good time for us to get the teams together to look at it, make any final tweaks and then put [the pieces] on the trucks to send them to DC to build them for real starting on the 20th.”
More Than an Arena
The fight-night setup is expected to accommodate roughly 5,000 spectators surrounding the Octagon. The scale of the production has drawn comparisons to major outdoor concert events rather than a standard UFC show.
Plans also include large viewing areas beyond the immediate arena footprint. Fans gathering at the White House Ellipse and along the National Mall are expected to have access to video boards displaying the action, creating space for an estimated crowd of up to 85,000 people.
As construction progresses, the venue is already becoming one of the most talked-about elements of the historic UFC event. Still, there is some controversy. UFC president Dana White expressed concerns about potential insect issues, and this was echoed by veteran comentator Joe Rogan, who also not a fan of over fighting outside.