If watching Brand Risk 14 left you feeling a bit greasy, you are not alone. Even new UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland left the event wishing he hadn’t been a part of the Influencer combat show.
Strickland ended up sitting in the commentary booth and spouting his patented blend of offensive and irreverent opinions during a fight between little people, a dude with no neck vs. a guy famous for his man boobs, and other such nonsense. “Tarzan” seemed to be having a good enough time during the show, but took to his Instagram as he left the venue to admit feeling gross over his participation.
“I’ve never been a part of anything so shameful in my life, and I hate myself,” Strickland said. “And I feel like less of a man after being here. Oh, God, why did I agree to this?”
Strickland said he only showed up to support his friends Nina Drama and Adin Ross.
“I had to get the f–k out of there, man,” he said. “Like, Nina’s my friend. I like Adin, but I’m like sick to my f–king stomach. That is f–ked up. This is the most f–ked up thing I’ve ever witnessed in my f–king life.”
“I’m ready to go home and look myself in the mirror after. I’ve never done anything so shameful in my life being a part of this. Sorry, guys. Was just trying to say hi to a friend, next thing you know, your dignity is gone.”
Mixed martial arts and freakshows have gone together since the early days of the sport, but this new strain of North American Influencer fighting is testing the gag reflex of even nihilists like Sean Strickland. Strickland has given everything to martial arts and has a specific reverence for it and its ability to change lives. We imagine athletes like him can only witness so many Brand Risk fights before starting to feel gross about what they’re witnessing.
As for the masses? There definitely seems to be an appetite for more Brand Risk events. For us, it doesn’t take much before we start craving a return to more legitimate fight content in the UFC Meta Apex.
