Gay male ufc fighters

From male and female gay UFC fighters to encouraging closet members to reveal their identity to the world, the MMA community embraces Pride month in a spectacular manner. These are the UFC veterans with the most fights in the organization wit some having more success than others. Cachoeira's UFC record was De Paula's last MMA fight happened at UFC on January 2nd, Cachoeira was accused by her ex-girlfriend of assault.

Yes, there is plenty of gay UFC fighters, however, they’re all female. MMA promotions and the UFC promote pride month and openly support gay fighters; encouraging them to come out. The contrast between the men's and women's divisions of the MMA is stark, with Amanda Nunes, Liz Carmouche and Molly McCann three of several openly gay female fighters.

Being an openly gay athlete in a sport like MMA takes a lot of courage to say the least. Though the vast majority of the MMA community is completely accepting, such as UFC Dana White who has voiced his support of LGBT fighters multiple times, some are not. Why are there no openly gay male MMA fighters? It's a question which could in part be answered by the way UFC star Jeff Molina was treated earlier this month.

Molina, who is heterosexual, wore a special UFC kit supporting Pride during his win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov, but received abuse on social media. However, actions like the American's help create an environment in which athletes could come out and be supported, according to sport unity group Athlete Ally. This article contains content provided by X. Shad Smith is one of the very few male professional MMA athletes to have come out.

Smith, who retired from the sport earlier this year, inadvertently revealed his sexuality when speaking to a stranger at the age of Smith left is credited with being the first man to come out in professional MMA. I think sometimes it might be seen as you don't want to be seen as weaker and give other people the upper hand in persecution of you. Taylor agrees, pointing to how athleticism is stereotyped.

By virtue of being athletic, women coming out conforms to a stereotype, while men coming out rejects a stereotype. Smith points to the perception fighters should be 'macho', and encourages athletes to just be themselves. It's so unnecessary to hide who we are, you're beautiful no matter what - you're a human being. Smith says the reaction he got from the MMA community was key to his positive experience in coming out.

Both team-mates and promotions alike were supportive of his sexuality.

gay mma fighters reddit

Nothing but awesome, every single one of them," said Smith. McCann believes if a male fighter was to come out today, there would be a similarly positive reaction from the MMA community. Taylor agrees, pointing to the tight-knit culture of combat sports which can help create a welcoming environment. Our Falklands War: Unflinching personal experiences of a short but brutal war.

Image source, Getty Images. By Paul Battison. This X post cannot be displayed in your browser. View original content on X. Accept and continue. End of X post by Jeff Molina. Image source, Instagram. Smith left enjoyed a year career in MMA. Related topics. Mixed Martial Arts.