Is a photo showing the White House South Lawn torn up and under construction for the UFC Fight Night ring in early June 2026 authentic? No, that's not true: The image of the White House lawn with the grass torn out and a large outdoor stadium was rated as likely AI-generated. Photos of the construction available from reputable photo agencies do not show the level of damage depicted in the image as of early June 2026.
The claim appeared in a June 4, 2026, post on X account @glenn_tunes (archived here). It opened:
77 MILLION VOTED FOR THIS 🙄 YOU GUYS MUST BE SO PROUD🤦
This is what the image looked like on X:
(Image source: Post by @glenn_tunes on X.)
The White House will host a UFC fight on June 14, 2026 -- President Donald Trump's birthday -- on the South Lawn. The photo on the right does not accurately depict the construction of the UFC ring on the White House South Lawn in early June.
Online detection tool Hive Moderation rated the image on the right as 94.8% likely AI-generated, as this screenshot shows:
(Image source: Hive Moderation.)
CNN published a Getty Images photo (archived here) on May 31, 2026 with the caption, "Work continues on a structure for the upcoming UFC fight that US President Donald Trump will host as part of the 250th anniversary of the United States on the South Lawn of the White House, on May 31. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)." The photo does not match the one in the X post.
(Image source: Article on CNN.com)
A photo available on the Getty Images website (archived here) taken June 2, 2026, also does not show the level of construction or damage as the one in the X post. The caption on the image reads, "WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 2: Construction continues on the South Lawn of the White House for an upcoming UFC match on June 3, 2026 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump is hosting a UFC match on the White House grounds in honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images)"
(Image source: Getty Images.)
Other fact checks
This claim was also investigated by Snopes.com.
