Brazilian fighter Virna Jandiroba takes strong stance against Jair Bolsonaro as UFC veterans continue to support the former president
UFC strawweight fighter Virna Jandiroba has criticized fighters such as Jose Aldo and Deiveson Figueiredo for continuing to support disgraced former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.
Aldo has been in the hot seat with fans in recent weeks after it was revealed that the former featherweight champ was housing Bolsonaro at one of his homes in Orlando, Florida since the Christmas period.
Jair Bolsonaro had fled Brazil just days before he was due to step down as president, with many believing he was set to be arrested in a police probe on charges of corruption. Bolsonaro allegedly fled to the United States to escape arrest and has been staying in Aldo's home since December.
Having fled Brazil on the advice of his lawyers, soon to be ex-president Jair Bolsonaro is seeing in the new year at the Orlando home of former UFC fighter José Aldo.
One of Aldo's bedrooms is "minion" themed. https://t.co/AggGYqz3RS
Virna Jandiroba made headlines in 2021 when she defeated Kanako Murata via TKO. In her post-fight speech, she went viral as she called out the then-president, Jair Bolsonaro, for his failure in handling the COVID-19 pandemic as well as his extremist right-wing views.
In a recent interview with Bloody Elbow, the Brazilian shared some stern words towards the disgraced president once again and those who support him:
“Bolsonaro offends me and my people on several levels. It’s impossible for me to like him. I try not to criticize fighters individually, though. I believe it has a lot to do with being ignorant. I also think it flirts with the military concept. Martial arts were born from military tactics, so I think they flirt... People have been distorting the meaning of it along the way. Now they think people can sort things out by using force.”
Due to a doctor's stoppage at the end of the second round, Virna Jandiroba picks up the TKO win 🇧🇷
#UFCVegas29 https://t.co/yHjsp7Fr2V
Fans react to former UFC fighter Jose Aldo housing disgraced president Jair Bolsonaro
MMA fans have been giving Jose Aldo a hard time in recent weeks following the Brazilian UFC legend's decision to house Jair Bolsonaro at one of his residences.
MMA journalist Karim Zidan tweeted that whilst Bolsonaro was staying in one of Aldo's lavish houses, some of the Brazilian population were storming their congress due to the alleged corruption that took place whilst Bolsonaro was president:
"While Bolsonaro extremists storm Brazilian congress and the presidential palace, the former president is currently living in the home of ex-UFC champ Jose Aldo in Florida"
While Bolsonaro extremists storm Brazilian congress and the presidential palace, the former president is currently living in the home of ex-UFC champ Jose Aldo in Florida https://t.co/PTf8LyRFQZ
MMA fans have been reacting to the news, with one fan suggesting the decision by Aldo has made him lose all respect for the former UFC champ:
"Damn I just lost all respect for Aldo"
@ZidanSports Damn I just lost all respect for Aldo
Another fan suggested that fighters' political views play a major part in how much they enjoy MMA:
"It's gotten to the point that it's like hard to be a fan of the sport."
@ZidanSports It's gotten to the point that it's like hard to be a fan of the sport