12/5/2023 0 Comments Female mma commentator![]() Of course, being a woman hasn't exactly helped. We all went through it - it's not just because she's female." You have to earn your spot and do such a good job that next time, they'll ask for you. Says veteran cutman Rudy Hernandez, who's been working for UFC since 2005 and has mentored Valentine: "When you're the new person, nobody wants you to wrap their hands or work their cuts. Hurting them in the fight to get a win is cool and all, except you then have to live with that." "And outside the Octagon, you need to pick up your kids, pick up a pencil, drive a car. You strike," says Joe Stevenson, a veteran mixed martial artist and trainer, who has come to trust Valentine with his and his fighters' most precious weapons. "In our sport, not only do you eat with your hands. And, she knows, these mixed martial artists' hands are their livelihoods - they're all just a bad wrap and a broken finger away from losing their jobs. Her brown hair pulled tightly back in a ponytail, she looks much younger than her 30 years. Valentine knows the issue isn't always her gender. Other times, they'll hem and haw and question her until their coach or cornerman steps in and politely asks if someone else, a man, is available. She just looks at the fighter and tells them that she is going to wrap their hands. ![]() She's wearing the black cargo vest of a UFC cutman, so she doesn't need to introduce herself. ![]() Undeterred, she quickly launches into her pitch. If she doesn't know the combatant - which, with an ever-shifting Ultimate Fighting Championship roster of more than 400 competitors, is often the case - they are almost always initially taken aback. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserĪfter six years of approaching fighters in the locker room before their matches, Swayze Valentine can tell within a matter of seconds whether or not she's welcome. ![]()
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