Former President Donald Trump arrived at the UFC 302, a mixed martial arts event held in Newark, New Jersey, to “thunderous applause” from the crowd, days after his conviction.
As Trump was seen walking to his seat with Dana White, the president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), he stopped to shake hands with several people in the crowd and received a round of applause from the crowd.
Trump’s appearance at the UFC 302 match at the Prudential Center between Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier comes after a Manhattan jury found him guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree related to payments made to adult entertainment star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.
President Donald Trump is in the building! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸#UFC302 | LIVE on TNT Sports & discovery+ pic.twitter.com/5GxqLnWbzI
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) June 2, 2024
Zach Gelb, the sports radio talk show host of the Zach Gelb Show shared a video on X showing people all around the crowded arena cheering as Trump walked out.
Here is Donald Trump walking out to watch UFC 302 at Prudential Center. pic.twitter.com/hL57HBpTff
— Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) June 2, 2024
Podcaster and UFC commentator Joe Rogan commented that the “round of applause” Trump was receiving from the crowd was “staggering.”
Joe Rogan on commentary during Donald Trump’s entrance at #ufc302 in New Jersey 🔥
“The round of applause he’s getting right now is pretty staggering”pic.twitter.com/x3XiMAyL89
— Andrew Surabian (@Surabees) June 2, 2024
“Donald Trump arrives at UFC 302 to thunderous applause,” one person wrote in a post on X. “Crowd is electric as the man makes his way into NJ’s Lightweight Championship bout. Trump loves the UFC and the UFC fans love Trump.”
Donald Trump arrives at UFC 302 to thunderous applause.
Crowd is electric as the man makes his way into NJ’s Lightweight Championship bout.
Trump loves the UFC and the UFC fans love Trump. pic.twitter.com/YLDZWEl4nd
— Malcolm FleX (@Malcolm_fleX48) June 2, 2024
Video footage from the event showed the crowd chanting, “F**k Joe Biden,” moments after Trump received a standing ovation from the crowd.
The crowd could also be heard chanting, “We love Trump” during the fight.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump attends UFC 302 at Prudential Center on June 01, 2024 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Moments after Donald Trump takes his seat at tonight’s UFC fight in Newark, the audience breaks out into a spontaneous “Fuck Joe Biden” chant. pic.twitter.com/8Op4hx7pUz
— Shawn McCreesh (@ShawnMcCreesh) June 2, 2024
The round of applause Trump received from the crowd comes as he is attending an event in the heavily blue state of New Jersey.
At the beginning of May, more than 100,000 people were reported to have attended a Trump rally in the beach town of Wildwood, located in New Jersey.
A poll conducted by Emerson College Polling/PIX11/the Hill in March found that Trump was polling behind President Joe Biden by single digits in New Jersey. Forty-six percent of people surveyed said they would vote for Biden, while 39 percent said they would vote for Trump.
Trump has previously told Breitbart News in an interview in January that he would “make a heavy play for New York, heavy play for New Jersey, heavy play for Virginia, heavy play for New Mexico, and a heavy play for a state that hasn’t been won in years, Minnesota.”