Nate Marquardt, a former mixed martial arts star who competed in the UFC and Strikeforce, received backlash on social media over the weekend when he tweeted about seeing a commercial showing two men kissing.
Marquardt called the commercial «disgusting». Apparently, he tuned in to ESPN to watch Erin Blanchfield defeat Jessica Andrade via submission and Zac Pauga defeat Jordan Wright via decision.
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Nate Marquardt punches James Te Huna during UFC Fight Night at Vector Arena on June 28, 2014, in Auckland, New Zealand. (Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
«Wow disgusting commercial watching @ESPNPlus with my kids and I have to tell them to look away so they don’t see two men kissing,» she tweeted.
The 43-year-old Wyoming native defended himself in subsequent tweets when his comments made the rounds on social media. He wrote that he was «confronting evil in the media.»
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Nate Marquardt faces Cezar Ferreira during UFC Fight Night on November 11, 2017 in Norfolk, Virginia. (Brandon Magnus/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
«It is not hateful to say that homosexuality, pedophilia or fornication are disgusting,» he added. «It is not loving to be silent when the culture praises things that lead people to Hell (1Cor 6:9-11). It is not hateful, but loving to protect children from the insane evil propaganda of this world.»
He later sparred with those who rejected his comments and was labeled a «homophobic» and a «hateful bigot».
Marquardt was a former Strikeforce welterweight champion and fought in Strikeforce’s last fight in 2013, where he lost a decision to Tarec Saffiedine.
Marquardt went 36-20 in his MMA career. He last fought in 2021 at XXMA 3: Vice City against Valdir Araujo and lost via technical knockout. He last fought in the UFC in November 2017.
Nate Marquardt has his hands bandaged before his fight against Vitor Belfort during UFC 212 at Jeunesse Arena on June 3, 2017 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
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He retired after his August 2021 fight against Michael Cora, but returned briefly two months later to take on Valdir Araujo. He hasn’t fought since.