Even though he dominated in the Octagon for eight years and struck fear in the hearts of many of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s lightweights, it seems the UFC ring card girls aren’t scared to clap back at the Khabib Nurmagomedov on recent comments about their use in the sport.
The undefeated, now-retired, former lightweight champion made headlines a few weeks back during a press conference for his purchase of an MMA promotion in his native Russia. During that presser, “The Eagle” had much to say about the long-held tradition of ring card girls in combat sports and their “useless” purpose.
Look, I don’t want to offend anyone,” Nurmagomedov started by saying. “Ring girls are the most useless people in martial arts. What is their function? You can show that it is the second round on the screen. Do they develop a sport? Or do they help people to see that it is the second round now? What are they doing? Tell me, please. I realize that is history. History knows many mistakes. We read history to avoid mistakes of the past in the future. If we look in history, it says they are useless. That is my personal opinion.
UFC ring card girls clap back at Khabib Nurmagomedov
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Well, the famous ladies of the UFC’s round card-carrying game have finally responded to the Dagestani greats comments. The most famous of them all in Arianny Celeste took to her Instagram using audio from popular ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, and informed the MMA world in a video that the ladies “don’t care” about any negative talk on their vocation.
The long-time Octagon ring card girl also went in-depth about Nurmagomedov’s comments in the video’s caption when she said:
“I’ve work over 15 years in this industry and learned it’s easier just to simply NOT CARE.,” she wrote. “For 15 years we have been more than just ring girls – we have dedicated time in promoting UFC and showing love and time to our die-hard fans through touring the world and personal appearances. And while the world is very different right now, I can still feel that energy and love every time we have a show with an audience. It’s taken me 15 years of hard work, dedication, and time to be:
A badass independently wealthy female. A real estate investor and owner of not just 1 but 3 homes/properties one located in LA -which is expensive AF. And a female who is not afraid to take risks and build for my future. You can call us useless, but to people like me who have worked this hard, it slips right off my shoulders. My life is too good to be unhappy You don’t have to like me, but you will respect me. Last but not least, please tell me why reporters and have nothing better to talk about than the ring girls? There has to be way better things to ask about!! Next subject.”
Fellow UFC ring card girls Luciana Andrade, Red Dela Cruz, Vanessa Hanson, Camila Oliveira, and Brittney Palmer also showed support and solidarity on the post. Andrade, an eight year veteran of the promotion also expressed her in-depth opinion in the video’s comments, saying:
“People spend way too much time and energy arguing over others’ lives and choices. UFC is both sport and entertainment, and brand ambassadors (aka ring girls) serve not just to inform rounds but to represent the brand when and where needed. I’ve been proudly/happily working as an OG for almost 8 years now and can only thank UFC for all the doors that keep being open to me. I also LOVE to keep proving haters wrong – yes, it’s possible to be a model while also studying, working and investing in other areas.
I had people calling me stupid (remember the do nothing b*tches era? Women supporting women didn’t always exist in this industry) while I was literally using this opportunity and income to pursue a Masters in Law, learn other languages, improve myself. Sometimes you just have to laugh. If one thing, all this exposure, free hate and lots of judgement made us all grow thicker skin – it’s 2021 and I refuse to let people *try to* control my life, personal decisions and/or tell me what I should do for a living.”
What are your thoughts on Nurmagomedov’s comments? Are they unfair, or do you agree?
