President-elect Donald Trump walked out to a thunderous standing ovation Saturday evening before the start of the UFC pay-per-view card at Madison Square Garden, combining two things close to his heart: fierce fighting in the Octagon and New York City.

Trump was joined by UFC president Dana White and the pair took to their side seats for Kid Rock’s “American Bad Ass.” UFC aired a video package of Trump’s walk to the White House as fans stood and applauded. Trump, wearing a red tie, pumped his fist at the crowd as the video ended.

Trump also moved his clenched fists back and forth and briefly danced to the Village People’s “YMCA” just outside the cage.

Elon Musk, Trump’s pick to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., joined Trump and White in the Garden. Trump shook hands with the UFC broadcast team, including Joe Rogan. Rogan hosted Trump on his podcast.

The MSG crowd chanted “USA! USA!” just before the main card was about to start. After a year’s delay, Stipe Miocic gets his shot at a third heavyweight championship when he battles current champion Jon Jones in the main event of UFC 309.

A return to Madison Square Garden means revisiting the place where a comedian caused a stir at a Trump rally last month by comparing Puerto Rico to a “floating island of trash.” Still, Trump continues to enjoy visits to New York, where he lived for decades before moving to his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

Trump boarded his plane for the flight to New York, accompanied by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services after his new administration begins Jan. 20.

Trump’s son, Don Jr., was also at the fight.

The trip to New York, where Trump lived for decades before moving to his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, came after the newly elected president announced his choice for energy secretary in his incoming administration.

And it was also followed by Musk calling for more direct public input into the decision-making process for a new top position that Trump is still considering, the head of his new administration’s Treasury Department.

Trump said Chris Wright, CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, was his choice to lead the Energy Department. Wright is an outspoken advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking, a key pillar of Trump’s quest for American “energy dominance” in the global market.

Musk, meanwhile, mused about the yet-to-be-made choice for the newly-elected president’s Finance Minister – and invited people to use his social platform to contribute their thoughts.

“It would be interesting to hear more people weigh in on this so @realDonaldTrump can consider feedback,” Musk, who has already tapped Trump to co-lead a committee to increase the efficiency of government spending, posted on Saturday on the X social media platform he owns. .

Musk used the rest of his post to become the first participant in the public poll he proposed. He endorsed Howard Lutnick, the CEO of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald and co-chair of Trump’s transition team, ahead of Inauguration Day on January 20, 2025, over hedge fund manager Scott Bessent.

Musk said in his post that “Bessent is a business-as-usual choice, while @howardlutnick will actually effect change.”

“Business-as-usual is driving America bankrupt, so we need change,” he said.

Both Lutnick and Bessent have been mentioned as possible candidates to lead the Treasury Department. Bessent is considered the more conventional, business-friendly choice. He is skeptical of cryptocurrency, while Lutnick has suggested people could use it to pay their taxes.

Trump’s pick to lead his Health and Human Services Department, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., also endorsed Lutnick, writing on his own X account: “Bitcoin is the currency of freedom, a hedge against inflation for middle-class Americans .”

“Bitcoin will not have a stronger advocate than Howard Lutnik,” he wrote, misspelling Lutnick’s last name.

Here are five things to know about Sergio Gor, aide to President-elect Donald Trump and director of the Presidential Personnel Office during the Trump administration’s second term.

Trump has already announced many choices for the new administration in recent days, including his picks for secretary of state, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, and attorney general, former Florida representative. Matt Gaetz. The Treasury Department is the most important gap left to fill, but the newly elected president must also announce choices for other roles, including heads of the Education and Labor departments.

Separately, Trump said he had selected a member of his legal team and former federal prosecutor, Will Scharf, to be assistant to the president and White House staff secretary. Also Saturday, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson was at Mar-a-Lago to meet the president-elect before Trump flew to New York for the UFC showdown.

Aside from a day trip to Washington this week to meet with President Joe Biden for nearly two hours and separately address Republicans in the House of Representatives, Trump has been spending his time since his Election Day victory at Mar-a-Lago. The club hosts galas and conservative events throughout the week.

In addition to being a fan of the sport, the president-elect has been close to Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White for more than two decades.

White hosted a UFC fight in 2001 at Trump Taj Mahal, a former casino hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Trump has regularly attended UFC matches since then – including during his 2024 campaign. Trump has recently appeared at fights with famous entourages, including White, musician Kid Rock and former Fox News Channel host Tucker Carlson.

In 2018, during Trump’s first term, he and White starred in a UFC video that referred to the then-president as the “Combatant In Chief.”

As Trump has tightened his grip on the national Republican Party over the past nearly a decade, White’s personal political profile has grown exponentially. White spoke at the 2016 and 2020 Republican conventions, and when the party met in Milwaukee last July. He also addressed the crowd at Trump’s victory party in Florida in the early morning hours after Election Day.

“This is what happens when the machine comes after you,” White said at the time. “What you’ve seen over the years, this is what it looks like: I couldn’t stop him. He keeps moving forward. He doesn’t give up.”