Ex-MMA star Nate Marquardt sparks backlash over tweet about two men kissing during commercial

Nate Marquardt, a former mixed martial arts star who competed in UFC and Strikeforce, received backlash on social media over the weekend when he tweeted about watching a commercial featuring two men kissing.

Marquardt called the commercial “disgusting.” He apparently tuned in to ESPN to watch Erin Blanchfield defeat Jessica Andrade via submission and Zac Pauga defeat Jordan Wright via decision.

“Wow disgusting commercial watching @ESPNPlus with my kids and have to tell them to look away so they don’t see two men kissing,” he tweeted.

The 43-year-old Wyoming native defended himself in subsequent tweets as his remarks made the rounds across social media. He wrote he was “standing up against evil in the media.”

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“It is not hateful to say that homosexuality, pedophilia, or fornication is disgusting,” he added. “It’s not loving to be silent when the culture praises things that lead people to Hell (1Cor 6:9-11). It’s not hateful, but loving to protect children from this world’s evil demented propaganda.”

He would later spar with those who dismissed his remarks and was labeled as “homophobic” and a “hateful bigot.”

Marquardt was a welterweight champion in Strikeforce and fought in the last Strikeforce bout in 2013, where he lost via decision to Tarec Saffiedine.

Marquardt was 36-20 in his MMA career. He last fought in 2021 in XXMA 3: Vice City against Valdir Araujo and lost via TKO. He last fought in UFC in November 2017.

He retired after his August 2021 fight against Michael Cora but briefly returned two months later to take on Valdir Araujo. He hasn’t fought since.