Sergio Ramos: The Football Hero Who Confused UFC Fans
Sergio Ramos is a name that is synonymous with football. The former Real Madrid and Paris Saint Germain defender is a World Cup winner and has won numerous domestic and international titles throughout his career. However, when he appeared at UFC Jacksonville on Saturday, some American fight fans were left confused.
Ramos was joined by Barcelona forward Ferran Torres as they sat front row to cheer on Ilia Topuria in Florida. Topuria put on a career-best performance and called for a shot at the featherweight title. He also expressed a willingness to face Max Holloway, but only if it means they headline an event in Spain – a country the UFC has never visited in its 30-year history.
While Ramos proved to be something of a lucky charm for Topuria, his appearance caused confusion and debate among some MMA fans. When Ramos was shown on the TV broadcast, confused American fight fans took to Twitter in their droves to question why such a fuss was being made.
One fan simply commented: ‘Who?’ Another tweeted: “No idea who this is sadly” A third wrote: “Is this the guy who is married to Shakira?”
While US fight fans scratched their heads during Ramos’ UFC cameo, Europeans hailed him as probably the biggest sports star to ever attend a Fight Night event. Irish MMA journalist Sean Sheehan asked his followers: “Is this is most famous sportsperson to ever watch a UFC fight night event?”
As football fans offered up Brazilian legend Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney as potential alternatives, American commentators were quick to point out that NFL quarterback Tom Brady regularly attends events. Naturally, this started a huge debate about who is more famous, which seemed to be ended when one fan pointed out that Ramos has 59.1 million Instagram followers compared to Brady’s 13.9 million.
Despite that, the debate continued and another Twitter user tried to end the argument by hilariously asking their parent to settle things. “I did the most scientific analysis I could: I asked my Mam,” they tweeted. “The answer is Mike Tyson. She’s never heard of Tom Brady, Sergio Ramos, Shaq, or LeBron James.”
Again, the effort was ignored and MMA fans are still arguing about Ramos’ place among the most famous people to attend a UFC Fight Night show.
In conclusion, Sergio Ramos may have confused some American fight fans with his appearance at UFC Jacksonville, but he remains one of the biggest sports stars in the world. His presence at the event highlights the growing crossover between football and MMA, and it will be interesting to see if more football stars follow in his footsteps in the future.