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Trump and UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida: Did Melania, Ivanka or Barron Trump attend?

Published

9 months ago

April 13, 2025

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Trump and UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida: Did Melania, Ivanka or Barron Trump attend?

President Trump walked into Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, for UFC 314 fight as Kid Rock’s ‘American Bad Ass’ was playing.

Other guests near Donald Trump’s VIP seats? Elon Musk, RFK Jr., his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, Kash Patel, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Byron Donalds.
Kai Madison Trump is the eldest child of Donald Trump Jr. and Vanessa Trump. She plays golf at the Benjamin School in Florida.
Elon Musk and his son, Little X, flew to Palm Beach, Florida, on board Air Force One with Trump a day before the UFC 314 fight in Miami.

The Super Bowl. The Daytona 500. NCAA wrestling championship finals. LIV Golf Tournament. Now UFC. President Donald Trump has made high-profile sporting events part of his legacy during his second administration.

At times, members of his inner circle, including the Trump family, accompanied Donald Trump to these big events. Below is information about the games, matches or competitions he attended and who sat in the VIP box with the commander-in-chief.

Did Trump attend UFC MMA fight in Miami, Florida?

At the UFC 314 fight Saturday, April 12, at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, Trump and three of his grandchildren, walked alongside UFC CEO Dana White for their big entrance into the arena. Kai Madison Trump, Donald Trump III and Spencer Trump, children of Donald Trump Jr. and ex-wife Vanessa Trump, walked out beside the president as part of his entourage. Kid Rock’s “American Bad Ass” was playing.

After the fight, Trump introduced Kai Trump to a group of reporters as “the fake news” aboard Air Force One on the way back to Palm Beach, Florida, and invited them to ask her questions.

Kai Trump will graduate from the Benjamin School in 2026, where she currently plays golf with Charlie Woods, son of golf legend Tiger Woods. Sam Alexis Woods, older sister of Charlie Woods and daughter of Tiger Woods and ex-wife Elin Nordegren, also attends the Benjamin School with Kai Trump. Last month, Tiger Woods announced his relationship via Instagram (or “Instagram official”) with Vanessa Trump, mother of Kai Madison Trump, Donald Trump III, Tristan Trump, Spencer Trump and Chloe Trump.

Was First Lady Melania Trump at UFC fight in Miami, Florida, with Donald Trump?

No, First Lady Melania Trump did not attend the UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida, on Saturday, April 12.

She also did not attend the 2025 LIV Golf Tournament festivities or activities the weekend of April 4, 2025, at any of her husband’s clubs, Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida, Trump International Palm Beach Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, or Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida.

Melania Trump also did not attend the NCAA Wrestling Championship final in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the 67th annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Super Bowl LIX (aka Super Bowl 59 or Super Bowl 2025) in New Orleans, Louisiana, with her husband, President Donald Trump.

Though Donald Trump has visited Florida 10 times since his second term started Jan. 20, 2025, Melania Trump has not accompanied him on Air Force One during any of those trips home, though a few special guests have such as Elon Musk and his son Little X, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and her father, Viktor Knavs.

Though his father and three of his children were at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, for the UFC 314 fight on April 12, 2025, Donald Trump Jr. did not attend, nor did his girlfriend, model and socialite Bettina Anderson.

Donald Trump Jr., eldest son of Donald Trump and the late Ivana Trump, attended LIV Golf Tournament festivities the weekend of April 4, 2025, and shared coverage from his VIP access to his Instagram followers.

Anderson, posted LIV Golf activity to her Instagram followers, too.

Donald Trump Jr. and Anderson did not attend the NCAA Wrestling Championship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, or the 2025 Daytona 500 in Daytona Beach, Florida. The pair did attend Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, the day they became “Instagram official.”

The couple has attended other high-profile events such as Donald and Melania Trump’s New Year’s Eve 2024 party at Mar-a-Lago and Inauguration Day festivities in Washington, D.C.

Was Ivanka Trump at UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida?

Donald Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, did not attend the UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida, on April 12, 2025, nor did she attend the 2025 LIV Golf Tournament at Trump National Golf Club in Miami, Florida, or the 2025 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Ivanka Trump did attend Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans and stood next to her father in the VIP box, posting about her trip via Instagram Story and her Instagram feed. She gave her 8.2 million followers a peek of her window-seat view (with a prompt to turn the sound up) aboard Air Force One. A former senior adviser to Donald Trump during his first term in office, from 2017 to 2021, Ivanka Trump, who’s married to Jared Kushner, brought their youngest son, Theodore James Kushner, to the Super Bowl.

Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are parents to three children, Arabella Rose Kushner, Joseph Frederick Kushner and Theodore James Kushner.

Was Eric Trump at UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida?

Eric Trump, youngest child of Donald Trump and the late Ivana Trump, did not attend the UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida, on April 12, 2025. Of all of his children, Eric Trump has accompanied his father to most of the high-profile sporting events in this story.

For example, Eric Trump did play golf the weekend before the UFC fight alongside the pros in the LIV Golf Pro-Am Tournament at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida, teaming up with Gov. Ron DeSantis. Florida’s first lady Casey DeSantis and their son, Mason DeSantis, attended LIV Golf events. Fox News host Lara Trump, wife of Eric Trump, posted photos of the couple and their children at LIV Golf festivities. Lara and Eric Trump also sported matching lavender purple outfits for LIV Golf at Trump National Doral Golf Club, according to her Instagram feed: “(Two purple heart emojis) We didn’t even plan it!”

Eric Trump also attended the 67th annual Daytona 500 in Daytona Beach, Florida. With him were his wife, Lara Trump, former chair of the Republican National Convention, and their two children, Luke Trump and Carolina Trump. Carolina stood on the racetrack with her famous grandfather.

Eric and Lara Trump also attended Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Feb. 9, 2025, along with his father, his sister Ivanka Trump and her son Theo Kushner, and brother Donald Trump Jr. with three of his children and girlfriend Bettina Anderson.

Was Tiffany Trump at UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida?

Tiffany Trump, daughter of Donald Trump and model Marla Maples, did not attend the UFC 314 fight at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, on April 12, 2025.

She also did not attend any 2025 LIV Golf Tournament activities or festivities at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami the weekend of April 4, 2025, the NCAA Wrestling Championship final in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on March 2025, the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Feb. 16, 2025, or Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Feb. 9, 2025.

Tiffany Trump and her husband, businessman Michael Boulos, are expecting their first child. The couple’s last public appearance at a Trump family event was during Donald Trump’s primetime address to Congress on March 4, 2025. Before that, it was on Inauguration Day, when her father was sworn in as the 47th president of the U.S.

Was Barron Trump at UFC fight in Miami, Florida?

Barron Trump, sole child of Donald and Melania Trump, did not attend the UFC 314 fight in Miami, Florida, on April 12, 2025.

He also was not at any of the golf clubs that bear his last name during the 2024 LIV Golf Tournament weekend in Florida (Trump National Golf Club in Miami, Trump National Doral Golf Club or Trump National Golf Club in West Palm Beach).

The youngest son of Donald Trump also did not travel to Caesars Superdome stadium in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, or to Daytona Beach, Florida, Feb. 14, 2025, for the 2025 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, or to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for the NCAA Wrestling Championship final in March 2025. The 19-year-old, 6-foot-9-inch-tall Barron Trump, a freshman at New York University’s Stern School of Business, last made a public appearance when his father was sworn in at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., for Inauguration Day (Jan. 20, 2025).

Who is Kai Madison Trump? Where does Kai Trump go to school? Where will Kai Trump go to college?

Kai Madison Trump, Donald Trump’s oldest grandchild, is the daughter of Donald Trump Jr. and Vanessa Trump. She’s the oldest of five children and a year younger than her uncle, Barron Trump (Donald Trump Jr.’s half-brother).

She was born and mostly raised in New York, but now lives in Jupiter, Florida, with her mom and siblings: Donald Trump III, Tristan Milos Trump, Spencer Trump and Chloe Sophia Trump.

Kai Trump attends high school at The Benjamin School in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and will graduate in spring 2026. In fall 2024, Kai Trump had committed early to stay in Florida and play golf at the University of Miami after high school graduation.

During the Republican National Convention in July 2024, Donald Trump’s oldest granddaughter, Kai Madison Trump, became the first of his grandchildren to talk about what it’s like to have one of the most famous people in the world as a grandfather.

In her speech, Kai Trump mostly focused on the side of Trump that no one sees, calling him a “normal grandpa.”

Who was with Trump at UFC 314 in Miami, Florida?

At the UFC 314 fight at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, here’s who sat with President Donald Trump in the VIP seats:

Elon Musk, SpaceX and Tesla CEO who leads the Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE
X Æ A-12 Musk or “Little X” Musk, son of Elon Musk and singer Grimes
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Health and Human Services Secretary
actress Cheryl Hines (“Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “A Bad Moms Christmas”), wife of RFK Jr. In a viral video, Trump was seen “ignoring” a handshake from Hines when greeting RFK.
FBI Director Kash Patel
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz
Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard
Florida congressman Byron Donalds

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Florida

Flying taxis? They could be coming to Florida by the end of the year

Published

20 minutes ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Flying taxis? They could be coming to Florida by the end of the year

Hate driving in Florida traffic? A flying taxi can elevate that problem. Electric aircrafts could used in Florida’s skies in 2026.

Tired of the constant traffic and congestion clogging Florida’s roads?

In the words of the great Dr. Emmett Brown (Back to the Future fame), “Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need roads.”

Florida is on its way to be the nation’s first state to offer commercial Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). Essentially, that means state officials are paving the (air)way for passengers to take flight taxis, including electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL), from one city to another in record time.

The country’s first aerial test site should be operational within the first part of 2026. It’s at Florida Department of Transportation’s SunTrax testing facility in Polk Couty between Tampa and Orlando along the almost-always congested Interstate-4.

“Florida is at the forefront of emerging flight technology, leading the nation in bringing highways to the skies with Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), an entirely new mode of transportation,” according to a press release from the Florida Department of Transportation. “FDOT’s strategic investments in infrastructure to support AAM will help us become the first state with commercial AAM services.”

When will flight taxis be available in Florida?

Sometime in early 2026, the new Florida AAM Headquarters at the SunTrax Campus will be operational. By the end of the year, it will be fully activated and ready to deploy profitable commercial services for passenger travel.

Air taxi company Archer Aviation announced in Dec. 2025 that it will provide flights between Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and Miami international airports possibly as early as this year.

The company also plans to pick up and drop off passengers at the Boca Raton Airport, the Witham Field airport in Stuart, Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport and Miami Executive Airport.

Phase one of Florida air taxis: Four sections of the state

Part A: I-4 corridor, Orlando to Tampa, Orlando to the Space Coast, Orlando to Suntrax and Tampa to Suntrax.
Part B: Port St. Lucie to Miami
Part C: Tampa to Naples/Miami to Key West
Part D: Pensacola to Tallahassee

Phase two of Florida air taxis: Four more sections

Part A: Daytona Beach to Jacksonville
Part B: Sebring out east and west
Part C: Orlando to Lake City/Tampa to Tallahassee
Part D: Jacksonville to Tallahassee

What Florida airports are interested in commercial flight taxis

Boca Raton Airport (BCT)
Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport (FLL)
Lakeland Linder International Airport (LAL)
Miami Executive Airport (TMB)
Miami International Airport (MIA)
Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (OPF)
Orlando Executive Airport (ORL)
Orlando International Airport (MCO)
Palm Beach International Airport (PBI)
Peter O Knight Airport (TPF)
Sebring Regional Airport (SEF)
Tallahassee International Airport (TLH)
Tampa International Airport (TPA)
Vero Beach Regional Airport (VRB)

Michelle Spitzeris a journalist for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. As the network’s Rapid Response reporter, she covers Florida’s breaking news. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://floridatoday.com/newsletters.

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Officials withheld evidence on Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ funding, environmental groups say

Published

12 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Officials withheld evidence on Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ funding, environmental groups say

ORLANDO, Fla. — Federal and state officials withheld evidence that the Department of Homeland Security had agreed to reimburse Florida for some of the costs of constructing an immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” according to environmental groups suing to shut down the facility.

The Everglades facility remains open, still holding detainees, because an appellate court in early September relied on arguments by Florida and the Trump administration that the state hadn’t yet applied for federal reimbursement, and therefore wasn’t required to follow federal environmental law.

The new evidence — emails and documents obtained through a public records request — shows that officials had discussed federal reimbursement in June, and that the Federal Emergency Management Agency confirmed in early August that it had received from state officials a grant application. Florida was notified in late September that FEMA had approved $608 million in federal funding to support the center’s construction and operation.

“We now know that the federal and state government had records confirming that they closely partnered on this facility from the beginning but failed to disclose them to the district court,” said Tania Galloni, one of the attorneys for the environmental groups.

An appellate panel in Atlanta put a temporary hold on a lower court judge’s ruling that would have closed the state-built facility. The new evidence should now be considered as the judges decide the facility’s permanent fate, Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity, said in court papers on Wednesday.

A federal judge in Miami in mid-August ordered the facility to wind down operations over two months because officials had failed to do a review of the detention center’s environmental impact according to federal law. That judge concluded that a reimbursement decision already had been made.

The Florida Department of Emergency Management, which led the efforts to build the Everglades facility, didn’t respond to an emailed inquiry on Thursday.

Florida has led other states in constructing facilities to support President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Besides the Everglades facility, which received its first detainees in July, Florida has opened an immigration detention center in northeast Florida and is looking at opening a third facility in the Florida Panhandle.

The environmental lawsuit is one of three federal court challenges to the Everglades facility. In the others, detainees said Florida agencies and private contractors hired by the state have no authority to operate the center under federal law. They’re also seeking a ruling ensuring access to confidential communications with their attorneys.

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Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform Bluesky: @mikeysid.bsky.social

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Florida lawmaker files hands-free driving bill ahead of 2026 legislative session

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Florida lawmaker files hands-free driving bill ahead of 2026 legislative session

TALLAHASSEE – Florida lawmakers are once again trying to crack down on distracted driving, this time with a proposal that goes further than the state’s current law.

Senate Bill 1152, filed ahead of the upcoming legislative session, would make it illegal for drivers to hold a phone while operating a motor vehicle. Drivers could still use GPS, make phone calls, or use navigation apps, but only through hands-free technology such as Bluetooth or built-in vehicle systems.

That restriction would apply even when a vehicle is stopped at a red light or in traffic. The bill defines “handheld” use broadly, including holding a phone in one or both hands or bracing it against the body.

Supporters say Florida’s existing law, which primarily targets texting while driving, doesn’t fully address the many ways drivers use their phones behind the wheel and can be difficult for law enforcement to enforce consistently.

The bill also includes privacy protections. Law enforcement officers would not be allowed to search or confiscate a driver’s phone without a warrant.

State officials say distracted driving remains a serious and persistent problem across Florida.

By the numbers:

The most recent available data for a single year shows nearly 300 people were killed and more than 2,200 others suffered serious injuries in crashes involving distracted drivers in 2024. A crash happens in Florida about every 44 seconds, and roughly one in seven crashes involves a distracted driver, according to state data.

Advocates point to other states with hands-free laws, saying those states have seen declines in deadly crashes after similar measures were adopted.

READ: Trump calls for ban on Wall Street buying single-family homes, citing affordability concerns

What’s next:

The bill will be taken up during the 2026 legislative session, which begins Tuesday, Jan. 13. It must pass committee hearings and full votes in both chambers before going to the governor.

If approved, the law would take effect Oct. 1, 2026.

The Source: This story is based on the filed text of Senate Bill 1152 and data from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

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