Broadly generalizing here – the average Gen Z boy’s adolescence was largely shaped by one of two potential interests: Video games or sports. That is not to say a synthesis of the two is not possible; “NBA2k” and “Madden” still remain two of the Goliaths of the gaming industry and likely will retain such success because of such an intersection. However, most young boys probably spent much of their childhood either outside playing a sport or inside playing a video game. Most of the media they consume, especially as the first generation raised more on YouTube than the television, will likely revolve almost exclusively around one of these two interests. Obviously, the masculine youth’s obsession with sport and gaming in general is nothing new. But never before have the digital ramifications of these fixations been so blaring as these boys become men.
In December of 2023, the two prime welterweight fighters in the world took the stage for a pre-fight press conference just two days before the event. The challenger, the Jamaican-born Leon Edwards, was a vocal advocate of progressive movements like BLM and gun control (the latter is especially poignant considering his father was shot and killed at a club when Edwards was just 13). To his right sat the American defending champion, Colby Covington, adorned in a cheap colonial jacket he must’ve borrowed from an off-Broadway production of “Hamilton”, topped off with a powdered wig barely supporting the nonexistent moral weight of the bright red MAGA hat that had become a staple in his public appearances. An outspoken Republican and avid Second Amendment proponent, Covington’s patriotism was fully displayed in a harmless, friendly taunt towards Edwards, promising to take him to the “seventh layer of hell”, where they would say ‘what’s up’ to Edwards’ father.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) differs slightly from more traditional sports rooted so deeply in American culture as it fully embraces the brutish masculinity of combat. Sure, football can be aggressive and violent at times, but this violence is regulated within the confines of sportsmanship. Hockey allows fights technically, but both parties are penalized in spite of it. Even boxing limits the scope of its self-indulgent violence (keep it above the belt). In the UFC, you will come ready to witness the sheer brutality of man, you will cheer gleefully as men beat each other senseless for sport, roaring and applauding for every right hand to the head, kick to the shin, jab in the stomach and you will leave disappointed if the loser is not left beaten and bloody with one of his eyes poked out.
In a sport largely consisting of (and catering to) white men in particular, it shouldn’t be shocking to anybody that the UFC has been a massive perpetuator of right-wing ideology, candidly since its inception, but more recently and concerningly in the Trump era. A viewer base composed of undereducated, hypermasculine, angry white men becomes very useful for political gain when the time comes around. Dana White, a longtime friend of Trump, understood this very well, placing the candidate and his associates (friends, family, Musk) cage-side frequently in the midst of the 2024 election.
Deafening applause broke out whenever he was shown on the Jumbotron, just loud enough to drown out the still ongoing cries of right-wing sports fans whining because their football/basketball/baseball team made a social media post celebrating Pride Month. The “Shut Up and Dribble” rhetoric endlessly parroted by these same fans in the wake of the racism many NBA players spoke out against in the midst of the BLM movement has all but dissipated since the cultural pendulum swung right. “Keep Politics out of Sports!” suddenly becomes null once the prevailing political force (the one they like) is so deeply ingrained in the very sport they love.
Not every UFC fan is right-wing, obviously. And despite the dissenting tone of this article, I don’t really think combat sports are the worst thing in the world. From the unflinching brutality of gladiator combat to the medieval violence of jousting, the voyeuristic human (masculine) obsession with blood sport and the public exhibition of barbarity has existed forever. However, in a digital, profit-driven age, the accessibility of such a spectacle becomes concerning when the consequences are this dire.
As the sport continues to skyrocket in popularity, rivaling more mainstream sporting staples at times, there grows a percentile of young boys suddenly thrust into a world of bloodshed, violence, racism, hatred, and worst of all, JD Vance. And as this generation grows up with the first ever virtual case of CTE, fueled by testosterone and shitty tattoos, the political ramifications will grow more tangible as this culture of oafish masculinity chokeholds itself on the necks of susceptible young men, not letting go until Dana White and friends pinch every last dollar from your wallet of morality.
The average UFC fan should not be allowed to vote.
