As part of Pri Month, BBC Sport looks at why there is a lack of openly gay male MMA fighters and what needs to change.
Contents:
- LIST OF GAY UFC FIGHTERS (OUT & PROUD MEN & WOMEN)
- PRI MONTH: WHY ARE THERE NO OPENLY GAY MALE MMA FIGHTERS?
- ARE THERE ANY GAY UFC FIGHTERS? (GAY MMA FIGHTERS ALSO)
- A RANKED LIST OF THE BT GAY UFC FIGHTERS. ARE THERE ANY OPENLY GAY UFC FIGHTERS?
- FIRST OPENLY GAY MALE UFC FIGHTER?
- ARE THERE ANY OPENLY GAY FIGHTERS IN THE UFC (MALE & FEMALE)?
- GAY MMA FIGHTERS – IS IT A BIG DEAL?
- ANRSON SILVA SAYS THERE ARE LOTS OF HOMOSEXUALS IN MMA AND HE COULD BE GAY
- TWO OPENLY GAY FIGHTERS TO SQUARE OFF FOR TLE AT UFC 224 HISTORIC FIRST
- HOW E THERE ARE NO OPENLY GAY UFC FIGHTERS?
- OPENLY GAY FIGHTER ‘GOLN PRCS’ BATTL STIGMA, RRI PRI FLAG AHEAD OF TLE FENSE BRAZIL
- JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY
- JAGUARS’ KEV MAXEN IS FIRST MALE ACH TO E OUT AS GAY US MEN’S PRO SPORTS
LIST OF GAY UFC FIGHTERS (OUT & PROUD MEN & WOMEN)
Are there any gay UFC fighters? Here is a pilatn of male and female gay fighters the apex MMA promotn. * openly gay male ufc fighters *
From male and female gay UFC fighters to enuragg closet members to reveal their inty to the world, the MMA muny embrac Pri month a spectacular welg as the MMA is to LGBTQIA+ members, at the apex MMA promotn, rervatns persist regardg the acceptabily of members to the doubt LGBTQIA+ members abound the women’s UFC; is a different realy the UFC domated by article explor the realy of the LGBTQIA+ muny the UFC and also prents the list of male and female openly gay UFC fighters. Before we lve to our list of UFC gay fighters, the recurrg qutn regardg why no gay fighter exists the male divisn of the promotn has to be fairly answered.
In 2009 UFC print, Dana Whe was ptured a vio blog posted on the UFC webse which he took swiped at women and obsceny-lan vio was a rponse to a story by a longtime MMA reporter Loretta Hunt of, which he claimed rrectly reported on UFC polici and crentialg of managers and agents relatn to their vio stck the nerve of the members of the LGBTQIA+ muny, such as the Gay & Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn (GLAAD), who requted that Whe apologize.
PRI MONTH: WHY ARE THERE NO OPENLY GAY MALE MMA FIGHTERS?
* openly gay male ufc fighters *
Though Dana Whe apologized, this was the first major ht potg to a rocky relatnship between the UFC as well as Whe and the gay there were doubts about Whe and the promotn’s stance on gay fighters UFC, those doubts were effectively cleared Febary Whe revealed that should a UFC male fighter e out openly as gay, he would support such fighters and help wh any potential down the le, spe the reassurg words of Whe on supportg male UFC gay fighters, the UFC male divisns boast of no openly gay, however, is not a reflectn of anti-gay sentiments the fact, the UFC star Marc Diakie dubbed the Bonecsher, beme the first UFC star to appear a gay fact that no openly gay UFC star exist is not an issue unique to the MMA general, pecially male sports, do not have gay top-flight sports which generate lots of buzz and tert boast of few to zero athlet who openly intify as members of the gay muny This, th, is no issue peculiar to the UFC but to sports Complete List of Gay UFC Fighters 1.
ARE THERE ANY GAY UFC FIGHTERS? (GAY MMA FIGHTERS ALSO)
Are you wonrg if there are any gay UFC fighters? * openly gay male ufc fighters *
Amanda Nun The Brazilian MMA star is no stranger to the UFC or the world of mixed martial Nun is one of the most ement members of the gay muny the UFC but also bee she is credibly talented what she of May 2022, Amanda Nun currently holds the UFC Women’s Featherweight to fightg the UFC, Amanda Nun fought the Strikeforce promotns, where she effectively tablished herself as one of the tought MMA fighters the reputatn she created was tegral her short stt wh Invicta Fightg Champnships before she moved on to the UFC.
Raquel Penngton is one of the lbian UFC fighters who is vol about her revealed to fans ndidly how she me out as a lbian and also nveyed her thoughts on the stggl of beg a gay athlete.
Tecia TorrPhoto: @teciatorrOne of the current gay fighters UFC who is openly lbian, Torr, is no stranger to the MMA star, who is one of the top-rated stars the UFC female strawweight divisn, began her MMA reer over a ago and has tablished herself as a ntenr for the UFC Strawweight ’s major troductn to the sport started October 2012 when she ma her promotnal but the Invicta Fightg stt at Invicta was short, as her potential ught the attentn of the UFC, who offered her a place the ele December Torr was one of the first 11 women signed to the UFC strawweight divisn and also was a st member The Ultimate Fighter realy show. Concln There you have —the list of the openly gay fighters there are no openly gay male UFC fighters, the promotn, through s print Dana Whe has ma known how supportive they will be should any male MMA fighter tak the brave step of g the current members of the LGBTQ muny the UFC, there has been mostly no difference their reers pared to their straight Out The Intertg Articl on BiglySports:Top 20 Hottt Female UFC Fighters Of All TimeHow Much Do UFC Rg Girls Make?
A RANKED LIST OF THE BT GAY UFC FIGHTERS. ARE THERE ANY OPENLY GAY UFC FIGHTERS?
There is an creasg number of openly gay UFC fighters, both male and female. They have shattered barriers and bee role mols for the LGBTQ muny. * openly gay male ufc fighters *
"Until there's more people [like Mola] who are vol wantg to create a welg environment, there's gog to be barriers for LGBT athlet - pecially LGBT gay male athlet. "'It's crazy how much we hi who we are'Smh (left) is creded wh beg the first man to e out profsnal MMAThe ntrast between the men's and women's divisns of the MMA is stark, wh Amanda Nun, Liz Carmouche and Molly McCann three of several openly gay female McCann, who tailed her story of g out on the BBC's LGBT Sport Podst, believ gay male fighters are held back by stereotyp. "I remember at my gym, there were guys who qutned themselv and 's like 'well whatever, if you are [gay] then you are, no problem', " said McCann.
"I n pretty much guarantee if straight men knew there was a gay man [ the gym] this day and age that we're now, most of them wouldn't re. In this article, we’ll look at the plete list of gay UFC fighters, why there aren’t any gay male UFC fighters and the plete list of openly gay male MMA fighters.
Dpe this, while MMA and the UFC likely have some gay male fighters, they’re unwillg to e out as gay bee of the stigma surroundg beg gay martial arts and sports overall. This is pecially te for male UFC fighters, where there hasn’t been a sgle male fighter to e out as gay such a macho sport.
FIRST OPENLY GAY MALE UFC FIGHTER?
Washgton Duarte beme the first openly gay man to e out durg his MMA reer Brazil. * openly gay male ufc fighters *
There are no openly gay male UFC Fighters bee they’re sred to e out a sport where beg gay is looked down upon and feme, and where onle abe is so mon. Whe has repeatedly apologized, and 2011 Whe said about gay fighters, “I wish they’d e out”, and “If you’re an athlete the UFC and you are gay, I uld re ls.
ARE THERE ANY OPENLY GAY FIGHTERS IN THE UFC (MALE & FEMALE)?
Among today's champns, trailblazers, fan-favor, and hot prospects are openly gay women * openly gay male ufc fighters *
So, spe Whe beg scere his apologi, gay male UFC fighters may look at that those remarks 2009 and have some doubt their md when they thk about g out as gay – pecially when ’s the head of the promotn sayg those thgs.
GAY MMA FIGHTERS – IS IT A BIG DEAL?
Jaguars assistant Kev Maxen has bee the first male ach major Amerin men's pro sports to publicly e out as gay, tellg he ma the cisn bee he didn't want to hi who he is any longer. * openly gay male ufc fighters *
Also, gay male athlet have plenty of evince om other sports that attus toward them are negative and the issue is still very polarizg. The NFL and NBA prevly operated unr the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy, seeg homosexualy as a distractn om the game and keepg many gay athlet the closet. There were ments like, “Man you support gay people, you’re gonna burn hell” – showg ’s no wonr that gay fighters are aaid to e out when a heterosexual fighter showg support for them gets this much abe.
In a 2011 terview, Anton Rodrigo Nogueira said “I have no prejudice agast gays, but I wouldn’t tra wh someone who’s gay”. Other UFC fighters have e unr scty for homophobic ments, such as Donald Cerrone, Josh Thompson, and Sean Strickland, who for the most part have gotten away wh their remarks.
ANRSON SILVA SAYS THERE ARE LOTS OF HOMOSEXUALS IN MMA AND HE COULD BE GAY
On the other hand, the UFC and MMA have been vol their welg of gay fighters, pecially Dana Whe who most know don’t re about people’s sexual orientatn – he’s only foced on promotg the bt fighters and the bs si of the MMA. Gay male UFC fighters received a huge boost of nfince and support when the UFC celebrated pri month for the third time 2022.
He’d prevly participated gay pornography and let the UFC know about this when applyg, and they accepted him for the show.
Dakota mataed he was heterosexual, but this unequivolly shows that the UFC wel gay male UFC fighters, and what they offer as a fighter is the only thg that matters. In 2013, former UFC fighter, Rashad Evans, me out support of gay marriage, sayg on the issue, “ ‘I’m a UFC fighter, a macho-type sport, ” he explaed. “I am a heterosexual guy a tough macho sport, which is exactly the reason I feel a duty to say I support gay marriage and gay rights.
TWO OPENLY GAY FIGHTERS TO SQUARE OFF FOR TLE AT UFC 224 HISTORIC FIRST
Overall, homosexualy the UFC and MMA is an extremely polarizg topic, and while there have been fighters supportg the LGBTQ muny, ’s anyone’s gus as to when there’ll be the first openly gay male UFC fighter. The most high-profile gay UFC fighter is Amanda Nun, due to her domance and beg the first gay UFC champn and only the third double champn behd Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier. Amanda has been openly gay ever sce she first turned to profsnal MMA 2008, but has spoken of her stggl g out as a child.
Alongsi her wife, Na Nun, another former UFC fighter, they’re both seen as role mols wh the LGBTQ muny and always want to help people e out as gay and not hi who they tly are. Jsi turned profsnal 2011 and was already an openly gay fighter as she’s never felt the need to hi who she tly is. In her 2013 UFC but, she lost agast Liz Carmouche, which was the first time UFC history that two openly gay fighters had fought.
While Jsi Andra don’t speak too much on the subject as she’s all bs, she once revealed how gay women fight harr bee they feel they’re beg judged. Liz Carmouche was the first openly gay UFC fighter when she fought the UFC’s first female bout agast the gural bantamweight champn, Ronda Roey, at UFC 157 January 2013.
HOW E THERE ARE NO OPENLY GAY UFC FIGHTERS?
Not only was Liz the first openly gay UFC fighter, but she had also long been a proud voice for the LGBTQ muny, exprsg her thoughts and challeng of beg a gay MMA athlete and former gay mare where she spent 5 years. Amazgly, 2021 Molly published a short-illtrated book lled ‘Be Te To You’, discsg her cisn to e out as gay, as well as helpg young people discs their sexualy and have self-acceptance about .
OPENLY GAY FIGHTER ‘GOLN PRCS’ BATTL STIGMA, RRI PRI FLAG AHEAD OF TLE FENSE BRAZIL
Raquel Penngton was volved UFC history when she fought agast Amanda Nun at UFC 224, May 2018; beg the first UFC tle bout to feature two openly gay UFC fighters.
Durg her time on the show, Penngton shared to her hoemat her g out story and what was like to be gay MMA, wh the news beg well received and posive. Controversial to say the least, but she always ma clear throughout her reer that she was gay and didn’t re what people thought; ultimately providg a platform for others to e out. The first male MMA fighter to e out as gay was Shad Smh 2008, where he was also the first gay male athlete across Ameri’s biggt 5 sports (MMA beg the fifth).
JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY
It’s the stereotype of gay men that they want to fight you bee of a sexual preference, rather than wantg to be the bt martial artist and ttg their skills agast an opponent. After retirement, Shad Smh received backlash as was found out that he’d appeared gay adult films before enterg to MMA, which is somethg he’d never disclosed. Washgton Duarte is the first openly gay male MMA fighter to e out Brazil, wh a somewhat qutnable nickname, ‘The Ltle Goln Prcs’.
While Brazil seems mon for women to e out as gay, much like the UFC, ’s a lot harr for men to e out bee of the stigma surroundg . It’s wily known that a Brazilian fighter actually left his hometown after gettg knocked out by Washgton, explag he was too embarrassed after losg to a gay man. And while there have been some gay male MMA fighters, none of them have ever been the limelight and have therefore remaed mostly unheard of.
JAGUARS’ KEV MAXEN IS FIRST MALE ACH TO E OUT AS GAY US MEN’S PRO SPORTS
However, wh their bravery, they’ve paved the way for a gay male UFC fighter, but when this will happen, no one knows. It’s gog to take an extreme amount of urage for the first gay male UFC fighter to e out bee we’ve seen the abe Jeff Mola received 2022 by merely supportg the Pri lors on his Venum shorts.