Will Trump return to Madison Square Garden for a surprise visit after a controversial meeting?

President-elect Donald Trump is expected to attend UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.

There were a lot of metal barricades and extra security around the Garden prior to the Knicks’ 124-122 win over the Nets Friday night at the Garden. This will be the first UFC event since Trump unseated Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 election.

“I think anything is possible,” Dana White, Trump’s friend and UFC CEO, told TMZSports with a smile on his face. “He’s a big fan. Who knows? He could come in.”

Trump held a Nazi-style rally at the Garden last month with a showcase of speakers: a racist comedian who trashed Jews, Latinos and blacks; a possibly drunk disbarred former mayor of New York City under indictment who just lost everything in a civil lawsuit for lying about the 2020 election for Trump; an unhinged Christian nationalist who called Kamala Harris “the antichrist”; a crazy former WFAN sports talk radio host whose career imploded with a drug addiction; and much more.

Saturday’s event is about sports, not politics. Jon Jones defends his heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic in the headliner, while Charles Oliveira takes on Michael Chandler in a lightweight rematch.

Trump is close friends with White and attended the UFC 302 mixed martial arts event in Newark in June.

TMZ noted that: “In the early days of White’s UFC ownership, when states (like New York – which now loves the UFC) and venues refused to host MMA fights, Trump offered up his casinos in Atlantic City… when the promotion was struggling to make ends meet.

“When DJT decided to run for president ahead of the 2016 election, DW stood by Trump’s side and spoke out on behalf of his good friend early and often.”

White also said that Trump and Conor McGregor receive the biggest ovations at UFC events.

“If you think about fighter strikes, when a fighter walks up to the (Octagon) – I mean, the two biggest ones that actually shake the arena are President Trump and Conor McGregor, two of the biggest fight stoppages ever,” White said.

It remains to be seen what kind of reception he will receive on Saturday.

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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter covering Seton Hall and NJ college basketball for NJ Advance Media. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and check out his website at ZAGSBLOG.com.