WATCH LIVE: UFC Freedom 250 holds press conference ahead of fight White House on Trump’s birthday

WASHINGTON (AP) — From afar, it looks like there’s more to a UFO than the UFC.

UFC Freedom 250 holds a press conference at 8:30 PM EST at the Lincoln Memorial. Watch the live stream in the video player above.

This may be the type of alien device that transported aliens to the White House to force a meeting with the American leader.

He watches: A sneak peak of the UFC octagon at the White House

But get closer and you’ll see the circumference of the eight-sided cage, 30 feet (9 meters) in diameter and precisely shaped, like the mixed martial arts league’s signature octagon.

That is, stop! An upside-down sign on its edge, with mesh sides and padded corners emblazoned with the logos of various sponsors: Morgan & Morgan, Bud Light, Dodge Ram, Corona Extra and Polymarket, which bills itself as the world’s largest forecasting market.

Looming over the horizon is “The Claw,” a four-sided mass that rises more than 90 feet (27 m) in the air and features lights, speakers, thick snakes of wire and four large screens so fans not seated next to the octagon can follow the cage fight below.

Read more: Judge rules Trump can stage UFC fights on the South Lawn of the White House this weekend

Think more of the four-sided metal thing trying to catch stuffed animals at a video arcade than of house cats – hence the extraterrestrial vibes.

Surrounding all of this are risers filled with gray folding chairs that form a temporary arena expected to hold more than 4,000 people for the seven UFC fights being held Sunday to celebrate President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

“Very attractive to many people”

For non-UFC fans, all of this can be confusing under any circumstances. But the temporary plaza covers almost the entirety of the White House’s South Lawn, where Marine One typically lands to ferry the president for out-of-town trips and where groups of children crowd the lawn during the Easter Egg Roll each spring.

More than $60 million and tens of thousands of man-hours were poured into building the arena, according to a court filing from the National Park Service, which oversees the South Park and has challenged a lawsuit aimed at blocking the event.

Read more: The lawsuit aims to prevent a UFC fight on the South Lawn of the White House on Trump’s birthday

The White House says the UFC is covering the costs, although the filing states that seven agencies — including the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Aviation Administration — “dedicated significant resources and manpower.”

Fighters, their entourage and assorted support staff are expected to man the corridor and part of the West Wing when they are not fighting. But they will enter the arena via curtained walkways with access to the Octagon.

They, in addition to regular attendees of Sunday’s spectacle, will have stunning views of the White House Executive Residence and the historic Truman Balcony on one side, and the towering Washington Monument on the other. It will all be highlighted by swirling floodlights, and perhaps even sweat and blood pouring from fighters attacking each other.

The packed pre-event schedule includes a press conference at the Lincoln Memorial with UFC president Dana White and the fighters on Friday night.

There is also a ceremonial weigh-in for fighters on Saturday at the Ellipse, a park near the White House, where organizers expect more than 120,000 visitors to watch Sunday night’s proceedings on big screens after winning free tickets in a lottery.

Stunt athlete Travis Pastrana is also scheduled to perform a potentially death-defying backflip on a dirt bike on the White House lawn as part of the pre-parade extravaganza.

Trump has described the octagon and its claw as “very attractive to a lot of people.” He even suggested that the temporary structure might become permanent, like the Eiffel Tower, which he noted was originally built as part of the 1889 Universal Exposition but was never removed.

Read more: Trump likens the White House’s UFC cage to the Eiffel Tower and says: “We’ll probably never take it down.”

Only the president knows how serious this proposal is.

Battles will continue rain or shine – despite the lack of cover

Work on the arena began on May 20 and continued for weeks. As reporters toured Thursday, construction sounds could be heard — especially sanding and hammering. Giant cranes were carrying materials into the sky, though that was for the $400 million ballroom Trump is building nearby, not the UFC bout.

The remaining grassy lawn around the plaza, on the other sides of the White House, was outfitted with additional floodlights. But the grass that normally grows between the White House and the beginning of the plaza’s risers is now gone, and all that’s left is dusty dirt that will need to be resurfaced when this is all over, unless the president really decides to leave the plaza permanently.

There is also a large Freedom 250 logo standing between the White House and the plaza. Nearby, crews removed tables and yellow patio umbrellas from Trump’s renovated Rose Garden, and power-washed that space, as well as columns leading to the Oval Office, in preparation for the fights.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has signed a cooperation agreement with the UFC that will see the two organizations provide combat training, health and diet regimens, while promoting teamwork and leadership among youth around the world.

“We’re very polarized,” Rubio said. “There are only a few things that bring people together in one place at one time, united by their interest in one thing. We need more of those things.”

Later Thursday, crews began testing the sound system, unleashing deep rumbling sounds — and sometimes disturbing bass tones — throughout the West Wing. During a later event in the Oval Office, the music coming from the lawn was loud enough that the 1970s hit “Boys are Back in Town” played in the background as Trump spoke.

Sunday’s event starts at 8pm ET. As darkness falls, crews will illuminate The Claw in red, white and blue, and the mass of lights will provide projections that make it appear as if the entire structure has been enveloped in a rotating stars-and-stripes pattern.

The weather forecast indicates that the weather will be hot and humid, with the possibility of thunderstorms. The underside of The Claw Tower features a top cover that will keep the fighters reasonably dry in the event of rain – and Trump will also likely watch from a protected, covered area.

But everyone will almost certainly get wet.

Wyatt has vowed that even intense lightning — when The Claw might make an obvious target for the Spikes — won’t stop the show.

“I don’t care if it snows,” White said.