UFC enforces social media comments ban after MGM Grand crowd boos Queen Elizabeth II's tribute announcement

The UFC imposed a ban on social media comments after fans at the MGM Grand Garden Arena booed a dedicated tribute to Queen Elizabeth II.

The promotion paid tribute to the late monarch before the pay-per-view portion of the UFC 279 card. A photo of the Queen was posted up on the jumbotron along with the years of her birth and death.

Instead of giving Her Majesty a minute of silence, however, the capacity crowd of 18,000 people booed and chanted, "USA, USA." Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal took to Twitter to report:

His report was corroborated by MMA journalist Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, who was also in attendance for the event.

Later, the UFC posted the same graphic of Elizabeth II on Twitter. However, the company didn't take its chances this time. To seemingly prevent another storm of negative responses from fans, the company turned off the replies section of its social media tribute.

UFC personalities pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II

The recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II elicited various reactions from the world of mixed martial arts.

On Thursday, the monarch passed away at the age of 96 years old at her Scottish estate, Balmoral. She came to the throne in 1952 and reigned for the next 70 years.

News of her passing sent shockwaves across the globe. Several MMA personalities mourned her death and paid their tributes on social media.

Dana White expressed his condolences by posting an image of a young Queen Elizabeth II on Twitter with the caption, "RIP." White's sentiments were echoed by MMA fighters Cris Cyborg, Mike Perry, Terrance McKinney, Megan Anderson, and Marion Reneau.

Surprisingly, the only UFC champions from England, Michael Bisping and Leon Edwards, didn't comment on the matter. Paddy Pimblett, the hottest rising star from Britain, also stayed silent amid the Queen's passing.

About the author

Writing out of the red corner from the Philippines, Rafael has been entrenched in the world of mixed martial arts for the past five years.

He kickstarted his journalistic career with Rappler.com and had continued covering the world's most violent sport for the newspaper Manila Bulletin. He joined Sportskeeda MMA in 2021 and has garnered over 9 million reads.

The combat journalist is also a television sports reporter for the Manila-based network PTV 4.

In his spare time, Rafael trains in boxing and has sparred with MMA pros Rabin Catalan and John Tirona (he obviously got obliterated).

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