MMA interviewer Nina-Marie Daniele — aka Nina Drama — has had enough of “soft” fight fans continuously harassing her…
MMA interviewer Nina-Marie Daniele — aka Nina Drama — has had enough of “soft” fight fans continuously harassing her online.
Days after longtime UFC play-by-play man Jon Anik voiced his displeasure over the increasingly toxic fanbase, the 35-year-old model-turned-journalist delivered a lengthy post on social media slamming “keyboard warriors living in their mom’s basement” who routinely attack her with “hate and sexual harassment.”
“In my opinion, the MMA community is one of the softest communities in all of sports! If you guys received 10% of the hate and sexual harassment I get on a daily basis I guarantee 99.9% of you wouldn’t make it on the internet,” Daniele wrote on X. “You gotta understand that I come from the fashion industry… the most brutal industry there is… so do you think a couple of keyboard warriors living in their mom’s basement could upset me?
“Lmao, NO! I don’t fear the internet. I don’t turn off my comments. I DO block people but that’s a whole different story LOL. This generation is so soft! Harden up!!” (h/t Sportskeeda MMA).
In my opinion the MMA community is one of the softest communities in all of sports! If you guys received 10% of the hate and sexual harassment I get on a daily basis I guarantee 99.9% of you wouldn’t make it on the internet… BUT I understand, in the sickest way possible, that by… pic.twitter.com/WdoApqnJ4V
Nina-Marie Daniele Takes on Mean-Spirited MMA Twitter Community
Daniele wasn’t quite done there. She also took a moment to take on the rising number of MMA Twitter influencers, those often responsible for the barrage of mean-spirited memes directed at fighters online.
“The worst type of MMA personalities are Twitter MMA influencers! Most try to get views by making fun of fighters, mean memes of fighters and the organizations,” Daniele stated. “And wonder why no one wants to work with you …. You can call me corny or cringe but you won’t catch me making mean spirited jokes or putting others down. Some of you need to do better. Y’all are unhappy and it shows
The worst type of MMA personalities are Twitter MMA influencers! Most try to get views by making fun of fighters, mean memes of fighters and the organizations. And wonder why no one wants to work with you …. You can call me corny or cringe but you won’t catch me making mean…
Many fans on social media came to Daniele’s defense, commending her for speaking out and her ability to ignore all the “freaks, weirdos, and creeps” online in pursuit of something she loves to do.
The competition is over: We found Canada’s greatest UFC fan, and it’s not the supermark who got “UFC Halifax” tattooed on his arm. It’s the big-timer shown above, who spent the entirety of UFC Fight Night 54 dancing his doughy white ass off. My favorite bit comes around the 1:23 mark, where you can see that 1) His fellow Canadians are very supportive of his passion, and 2) yes, there is a sleeping child in the building, which makes sense considering how boring the card was. Also, 2:13-2:18…somebody get me a GIF of that, pronto.
The competition is over: We found Canada’s greatest UFC fan, and it’s not the supermark who got “UFC Halifax” tattooed on his arm. It’s the big-timer shown above, who spent the entirety of UFC Fight Night 54 dancing his doughy white ass off. My favorite bit comes around the 1:23 mark, where you can see that 1) His fellow Canadians are very supportive of his passion, and 2) yes, there is a sleeping child in the building, which makes sense considering how boring the card was. Also, 2:13-2:18…somebody get me a GIF of that, pronto.
A couple of videos came to our attention today, both of them shot by MMA fans whose devotion to cage-fighting has begun to bleed into their surroundings. One is high-budget, one is low-budget, but they’re both — in their own special ways — kind of creepy. (We’ll let you decide which obsessed fan is scarier in the comments section.)
First up, the “Cave of MMAn” featured above, in which a longtime Ultimate Fighting mark shows off what has to be the most elaborate UFC fandom HQ ever built on a private residence. You will see…
– A Star Wars-style text-crawl intro, letting us know that we’re about to enter some serious geek territory.
– A chain-link Octagon, which doubles as an outdoor deck, an Octagon-themed bar (“The Octobar”), and a Octagan-themed coffee table.
– An entry portal that features TapouT decals on glass and a gloved fist punching through the side of the house.
– The phrases “NEVER LEAVE IT IN THE HANDS OF THE JUDGES” and “AS REAL AS IT GETS” stenciled near the ceiling.
– An actual Octagon canvas on the floor, which appears to be the real deal, judging by the visible blood-stains.
A couple of videos came to our attention today, both of them shot by MMA fans whose devotion to cage-fighting has begun to bleed into their surroundings. One is high-budget, one is low-budget, but they’re both — in their own special ways — kind of creepy. (We’ll let you decide which obsessed fan is scarier in the comments section.)
First up, the “Cave of MMAn” featured above, in which a longtime Ultimate Fighting mark shows off what has to be the most elaborate UFC fandom HQ ever built on a private residence. You will see…
– A Star Wars-style text-crawl intro, letting us know that we’re about to enter some serious geek territory.
– A chain-link Octagon, which doubles as an outdoor deck, an Octagon-themed bar (“The Octobar”), and a Octagan-themed coffee table.
– An entry portal that features TapouT decals on glass and a gloved fist punching through the side of the house.
– The phrases “NEVER LEAVE IT IN THE HANDS OF THE JUDGES” and “AS REAL AS IT GETS” stenciled near the ceiling.
– An actual Octagon canvas on the floor, which appears to be the real deal, judging by the visible blood-stains.
– UFC action figures — perhaps every one that’s ever been produced — hanging on the walls, along with framed event posters and other assorted memorabilia, much of it autographed.
– A separate corner devoted to Arianny and Brittney, particularly their Playboy appearances.
– A Brian Ebersole fight playing on the TV. Jesus, this guy really is a hardcore fan.
– An end-credits shout out to “Bonnie, for just letting me do my thing.” #adorbz
So yeah, this one’s a little more rustic. You can tell that Terry has less resources than MMAn Cave Guy, but his obsession is far more focused. And his Diaz Fight Barn really covers all the bases. It features…
– The phrase “WAR DIAZ” carved into a spray-painted wooden plank.
– A torn-up speed-bag, and a heavy-bag in pretty good shape.
– Some anti-Dana White fan art.
– Every page of every magazine article ever published about each Diaz brother, taped onto the walls. (“That’s how I fucks with them, homey, you know, all day. Got Nate Diaz givin’ Sirone [sic] a shot fuckin’ rieet in the jah, there, oof. Pretty.”)
– A weight-bench set-up. The narrator immediately declares “fuck that thing.”
So, clearly the first guy wins in terms of quantity/quality of his items, and time spent on his obsession. But answer me this — who would you rather sit next to at a WAR MMA show?
By the time that this is published, the ceremony that will make Stephan Bonnar an official member of the UFC Hall of Fame will be underway. Bonnar’s resume includes an 8-7 UFC record, a flawless 0-0 record in UFC title fights, two failed drug tests and the significance of his TUF Finale bout against Forrest Griffin – a fight so important to UFC history that it has its own Wikipedia page. Bonnar also is on good terms with Dana White, which is arguably the most important criterion for induction into what is supposedly the UFC’s highest honor.
Regardless of how you feel about Bonnar’s induction, that last sentence should make you feel uncomfortable. A company that already has trouble convincing non-fans that it isn’t glorified professional wrestling selects people into its hall of fame the same way that the WWE does – by allowing one person to dictate who is worthy of the honor. Both halls have some debatableinductions. Both halls have some notableomissions. Neither hall is taken seriously by most fans of either sport.
While many articles have been written about how Bonnar’s induction highlights everything that’s wrong with the UFC Hall of Fame selection process, pretty much none of them offered any solutions. Below you’ll find a few suggestions to fix the hall, as well as reasons that they may not work. Let’s start off with the most obvious fix…
(Well? Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)
By the time that this is published, the ceremony that will make Stephan Bonnar an official member of the UFC Hall of Fame will be underway. Bonnar’s resume includes an 8-7 UFC record, a flawless 0-0 record in UFC title fights, two failed drug tests and the significance of his TUF Finale bout against Forrest Griffin – a fight so important to UFC history that it has its own Wikipedia page. Bonnar also is on good terms with Dana White, which is arguably the most important criterion for induction into what is supposedly the UFC’s highest honor.
Regardless of how you feel about Bonnar’s induction, that last sentence should make you feel uncomfortable. A company that already has trouble convincing non-fans that it isn’t glorified professional wrestling selects people into its hall of fame the same way that the WWE does – by allowing one person to dictate who is worthy of the honor. Both halls have some debatableinductions. Both halls have some notableomissions. Neither hall is taken seriously by most fans of either sport.
While many articles have been written about how Bonnar’s induction highlights everything that’s wrong with the UFC Hall of Fame selection process, pretty much none of them offered any solutions. Below you’ll find a few suggestions to fix the hall, as well as reasons that they may not work. Let’s start off with the most obvious fix…
Let the Journalists Vote
Why it would work – Because that’s pretty much what every legitimate Hall of Fame does. It may not make too much of a difference as to who gets inducted (more on that in a second), but at least then we’ll be able to take the hall seriously.
Why it wouldn’t work – Or will we? If the only journalists who are allowed to vote are those who are on good terms with the UFC – and unwilling to do anything to jeopardize this – the results will inevitably be just as biased as those adorable “official UFC rankings.”
Let the Fans Vote
Why it would work – Because halls of fame are for the fans in the first place, so why not let them decide who they want in them? Also, current UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz seems to believe it would work. Via MMA Junkie:
“I think [the Hall of Fame selection process] should be a fan vote,” Ortiz said. “That’s what it should really come down to. The fans should consider how much they’ve known the person, how much they’ve watched them fight and so forth and just how much the fighter had significance in the sport in general. I think that’s the answer.”
Why it wouldn’t work – How’s this for irony: Ortiz doesn’t think that Bonnar deserves to be in the hall of fame, but thinks that allowing the fans to induct their favorite the most worthy fighters is the solution. If you’re even slightly familiar with the voting process for the NBA All Star Game, then this requires zero explanation. If you aren’t familiar with it – and were too lazy to click the two links in this section – then let’s just say that guys like Bonnar would only be more likely to be inducted into the hall if the fans were allowed to vote.
Mark Cuban’s Weighted Fan Vote
Why it would work – The problem with letting the people vote on the Internet is that anyone with an unhealthy obsession with an athlete and too much free time can significantly affect the outcome, regardless of how often they even watch the sport. In an attempt to fix this, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban offered a solution – count votes cast in arenas during events twice as much as Internet votes. This not only rewards fans who are loyal enough to buy tickets to events, but also helps ensure that votes from educated fans aren’t immediately cancelled out by votes from people looking to troll the election. Win/win.
Why it wouldn’t work – At best, counting arena votes twice as much as Internet votes is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound; if you’re trolling an election online, you aren’t just voting once. At worst, keep in mind that it’s estimated that as much as 60% of a sporting event’s live gate comes from casual fans, which means that the Affliction clad oaf who thinks Brock Lesnar is the best fighter on the planet would now havetwice as much influence on the outcome as the hardcore MMA fans watching the event from home.
Use Statistics
Why it would work – If the current problem facing the UFC Hall of Fame is human bias, then adding even more humans to the mix isn’t going to fix anything. Let’s just take a look at the stats – Win/loss record, takedown percentage, strikes landed; etc. – and let the numbers determine who really belongs in the hall of fame.
Why it wouldn’t work – The fighter who has landed the second-most strikes in UFC history, the third-most takedowns and left the organization with a 14-3-1 UFC record isn’t a member of the UFC Hall of Fame. Is this proof that we need to use statistics to determine who should be in the hall?
Whoever’s in charge of giving away free UFC tickets to hot chicks has really upped their game lately. (God bless you, pervert.) Last week we had the bounce-tastic “Girl in the White Dress,” who entertained us between fights at UFC on FOX 4. And on Saturday at UFC 150, it was the eye-catching blonde shown above — either Melissa Debling or her long-lost twin sister — whose glorious rack nearly distracted us from the vile ginger neckbeard situation happening directly behind her.
But Girl in the Red Dress wasn’t the only memorable seat-filler this weekend. Check out two more ladies trying to make love to the camera at UFC 150 (with varying levels of success) plus a couple gifs from the actual fights, after the jump…
Whoever’s in charge of giving away free UFC tickets to hot chicks has really upped their game lately. (God bless you, pervert.) Last week we had the bounce-tastic “Girl in the White Dress,” who entertained us between fights at UFC on FOX 4. And on Saturday at UFC 150, it was the eye-catching blonde shown above — either Melissa Debling or her long-lost twin sister — whose glorious rack nearly distracted us from the vile ginger neckbeard situation happening directly behind her.
But Girl in the Red Dress wasn’t the only memorable seat-filler this weekend. Check out two more ladies trying to make love to the camera at UFC 150 (with varying levels of success) plus a couple gifs from the actual fights, after the jump…
As if the mutants at the ‘UFC on FOX’ press conference in Los Angeles weren’t scary enough, last month’s UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida presser at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto proved to be another example of why the fan-question portion of these things should probably be eliminated. First of all, it’s Keith Kizer, not Steve Kizer. And whether Kizer and Steve Mazzagatti are lovers is really nobody’s business except their own.
The next fan asks Dana if Jon Jones would be getting a superfight with Anderson Silva after he gets through Lyoto Machida — while Machida is right there in the room with him. Christ, just because Lyoto doesn’t speak English that well doesn’t mean he can’t hear it. Closing out the segment, the third question is about Steven Seagal, and the last one is a guy begging for an internship. And you know there was some goof in line for the mic who went home pissed off because he couldn’t ask Dana who he thought would win in a fight between Alistair Overeem and Grand Gigas Malus. Step it up, guys.
As if the mutants at the ‘UFC on FOX’ press conference in Los Angeles weren’t scary enough, last month’s UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida presser at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto proved to be another example of why the fan-question portion of these things should probably be eliminated. First of all, it’s Keith Kizer, not Steve Kizer. And whether Kizer and Steve Mazzagatti are lovers is really nobody’s business except their own.
The next fan asks Dana if Jon Jones would be getting a superfight with Anderson Silva after he gets through Lyoto Machida — while Machida is right there in the room with him. Christ, just because Lyoto doesn’t speak English that well doesn’t mean he can’t hear it. Closing out the segment, the third question is about Steven Seagal, and the last one is a guy begging for an internship. And you know there was some goof in line for the mic who went home pissed off because he couldn’t ask Dana who he thought would win in a fight between Alistair Overeem and Grand Gigas Malus. Step it up, guys.
