The UFC tried to pay tribute to the Queen but the Las Vegas crowd booed and chanted USA! USA! USA! instead
- The UFC paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II during a live event Saturday in Las Vegas.
- The longest-reigning British monarch died on Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
LAS VEGAS — The UFC paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II during a live MMA event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The 96-year-old, the longest-reigning British monarch, died on Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Her image was displayed on the big screen in the middle of UFC 279 at a 20,000-capacity arena that is minutes away from the world-famous famous strip, alongside a caption that read: "In memory of Queen Elizabeth II. 1926 - 2022."
Instead of a moment's silence, though, some in the crowd booed and instigated a "USA! USA! USA!" chant.
The UFC — a market-leading promotion in the combat sports space — also tweeted a tribute, but Twitter users were unable to comment as the UFC's social media channel appeared to remove this function.
People quote-tweeted jokes, instead.
It wasn't the only USA chant on the night as fight fans also cheered for Kevin Holland during his unsuccessful attempt to challenge Khamzat Chimaev, who obliterated him with ease in the co-main event.
MMA icon Nate Diaz submitted Tony Ferguson in the headlining fight, before announcing that he'd leave the UFC with the win and test free agency — likely in a boxing bout against Jake Paul or, maybe, Conor McGregor.
Elsewhere on the card, Daniel Rodriguez scored a slim win over Li Jingliang, Johnny Walker submitted Ion Cutelaba before getting thrown out of the arena with hardly any clothes on, and Chris Barnett sealed one of the most chaotic wins of the summer when he came back from the brink to finish Jake Collier.
The UFC remains in Las Vegas for a Contender Series event Tuesday at the Apex before hosting a UFC Fight Night show at the same arena Saturday.