Donald Trump's UFC attendance: His standing ovation and awkward interaction with RFK Jr.'s wife

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Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States in January 2025. Since the beginning of his second term in office, the businessman-turned-politician has been making headlines, whether for his politics or his personal life. While he has been rather busy, Donald Trump still finds the time to attend events for his own pleasure. Indeed, he is still pictured going golfing on the weekends.

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More recently, the President went to the UFC 314 in Miami, accompanied by his granddaughter Kai. The event led to an awkward interaction being caught on camera.

Donald Trump attends UFC 314 with his granddaughter

On Saturday 12 April 2025, Donald Trump was filmed walking into the UFC 314 in Miami alongside his oldest granddaughter Kai, a future professional golfer who recently stressed out her Secret Service protection detail. The President was welcomed by a warm standing ovation, shaking hands with supporters sporting MAGA hats.

Donald Trump immediately greeted podcast host Joe Rogan, who sat on his right during the tournament, as well as the head of DOGE, Elon Musk, who sat on his left with his son X, despite the boy's mother Grimes begging him to keep their children out of the spotlight. The President was also accompanied by several members of his government, such as health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, FBI director Kash Patel, director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and White House communications aides Steven Cheung and Taylor Budowich. Other members of the Republican Party also attended the event, such as US senator Ted Cruz and Secretary of State Marc Rubio.

The President's awkward interaction caught on camera

However, the President's attendance of the UFC 314 in Miami is not the only reason he made headlines. Indeed, Donald Trump had an awkward encounter with Robert F Kennedy Jr's wife, actress Cheryl Hines. As the President made his way to his seat at the Kaseya Center in Miami, he was filmed hugging his health secretary, while leaving his wife hanging. Cheryl Hines is seen holding out her hand for the President to shake, but he visibly ignores her and walks on. The encounter, filmed and broadcast live in the arena, went viral almost immediately, as the actress is seen shrugging it off.

However, as per NY Post, online photos show the President in conversation with Hines later on and he even appeared to be holding her hand.

Cheryl Hines has been married to Robert F Kennedy Jr since 2014. She is the politician's third wife, after Emily Black and the late Mary Richardson. She rose to fame thanks to her role on Curb Your Enthusiasm, and many fans compared the awkward encounter to a possible stunt on the show. One comment read:

Cheryl Hines getting blown off for a handshake by President Trump is just missing the Curb theme music.

Video goes viral with social media users claiming Trump ‘snubbed’ RFK Jr’s wife Cheryl Hines at the UFC 314.

However, Trump appeared to not see her hand for the handshake and later went back to greet her and her husband. pic.twitter.com/RLoDJVGs3V
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) April 13, 2025