Trump cheered (and booed) at UFC match in New York City
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When President Trump arrived Saturday night at an Ultimate Fighting Championship match in New York City, the crowd reaction was a bit more hospitable than the one he received at World Series Game 5 last Sunday in Washington.
Tara LaRosa, a mixed martial arts fighter from New Jersey, tweeted video of a section of the Madison Square Garden crowd where the response seemed mostly favorably for the president.
USA Today reported the president received "a mixed reaction" from the Garden crowd, and Newsday of Long Island's Mark La Monica tweeted the reception was "nothing like at Nats game."
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Nevertheless, many users on Twitter were promoting a "Trump was booed" narrative, which Donald Trump Jr. disputed.
"Despite the bulls--- from blue checkmark Twitter," Trump Jr. wrote, "when we walked into the arena it was overwhelmingly positive. @danawhite said it was the most electrifying entrance he seen [sic] in 25 years of doing this." He was refering to Dana White, the UFC president.
"Despite the bulls--- from blue checkmark Twitter, when we walked into the arena it was overwhelmingly positive."
TRUMP TRAVELING TO NEW YORK CITY TO ATTEND UFC FIGHT ON SATURDAY: REPORT
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President Donald Trump and UFC president Dana White arrive at Madison Square Garden to attend the UFC 244 mixed martial arts fights, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019, in New York. (Associated Press)
President Trump was in midtown Manhattan for UFC 244, with the main event featuring two American mixed-martial arts fighters, No. 3-ranked Jorge Masvidal, with a record of 34-13, against No. 7-ranked Nate Diaz, at 21-11.
The match ended abruptly in favor of Masvidal on a technical knockout after the third round, when a doctor called it off over a gash that opened over Diaz's right eye.
Trump is a longtime fan of MMA and received support from White at the 2016 Republican National Convention.
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"State athletic commissions didn't support us, arenas around the world refused to host our events," White said at the time. "Nobody took us seriously. Nobody ... except Donald Trump. Donald was the first guy that recognized the potential that we saw in the UFC and encouraged us to build our business."
"Nobody took us seriously. Nobody ... except Donald Trump."
President Trump -- accompanied by U.S. Reps. Mark Meadows and Kevin McCarthy, and sons Eric Trump and Donald trump Jr. -- waves at Madison Square Garden while attending the UFC 244 mixed martial arts fights, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019, in New York. (Associated Press)
Trump’s return to New York came during the same week he revealed he was changing his primary residency to Florida, claiming he’s received poor treatment from New York’s politicians and has tired of paying “millions of dollars” in taxes to the city and state.
President Donald Trump watches Derrick Lewis fight Blagoy Ivanov, right, at UFC 244 at Madison Square Garden, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019, in New York. (Associated Press)
Outside the Garden, protesters carried signs with messages including, "Headlock Him Up!," and “Trump/Pence out now!”
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Last Sunday in Washington, the boos were clearly louder than cheers for the president at Nationals Park for Game 5 between the visiting Houston Astros and hometown Washington Nationals.
But after the Nationals won the World Series in Houston three nights later, Trump tweeted a message of congratulations to the champs, suggesting he harbored no hard feelings after the harsh welcome.
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It was unclear if President Trump planned to attend Sunday morning's running of the New York City Marathon.
Fox News' Sam Dorman contributed to this story.