Pro Football Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher remarked that people no longer hesitate to show their support for President-elect Donald Trump, a trend increasingly visible across the sports world. Numerous athletes, particularly in the NFL and UFC, have been seen imitating Trump’s signature dance in their celebrations. The trend gained significant traction over the weekend at UFC 309, where the president-elect attended the event alongside UFC President Dana White and several of his Cabinet nominees, notes Fox News.
“People were scared for a while. You don’t want people to talk bad about you, how we’ve been talked about the last four years if you’re a Donald Trump supporter,” Urlacher said on Fox News Channel’s “Jesse Watters Primetime.” “I think now, no one’s scared anymore. It’s nice to see these guys coming out and everyone who’s a silent Trump supporter – he under polls always. … I think they’re just excited now that he got the job done, and he’s gonna get the job done the next four years.” The former Chicago Bears star linebacker added he believed that pure excitement about Trump’s return to the White House and his presidency over the next four years has “taken over.”
Urlacher has long been an outspoken supporter of Trump. He also voiced his support for San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa when Bosa faced criticism for wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat during a postgame interview earlier this month. In 2021, Urlacher posed for a photo with Trump in the Oval Office, with his Bears jersey prominently displayed on the Resolute Desk. “This was a once in a lifetime experience! Got to hang in the Oval Office with President Trump and my family. He could not have been any nicer or accommodating to all of us. Also thanks to Jeff and Nick for the amazing tour of the WH,” he captioned his Instagram photo. Trump also pardoned his brother, Casey Urlacher, before he left office in 2021.
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Other notable sports figures including UFC fighters and race car drivers have also come out publicly in support of the president-elect. Former NASCAR and Indy racer Danica Patrick stood firm against criticism from the left in September for her support of Trump, taking to social media to express her views. Clearly frustrated by the attacks, Patrick has used her posts on X to assert her stance. On Sunday, she shared a video of her encouraging a crowd to vote for Trump, countering the criticism with a bold statement: “I love America. Let’s make it great again.”
In the video shared by Real America’s Voice, Patrick is heard telling a crowd of Trump supporters that she “will not be judged for wanting America to be great again.” She also recounted the backlash she faced from left-wing social media users after it was revealed that she had attended a Turning Point USA event late last year. “My story starts in December of last year,” Patrick told the crowd. “I was going to the event in Phoenix called AmFest — has anyone heard of that, did anyone go? Charlie Kirk does an incredible job with Turning Point. Great human being. Great American. And the line-up of speakers was just so stellar, and I thought, ‘this looks fun. I’m local.’ So, I said to my dad, ‘Hey, dad, you want to go,’ because he’s been into politics since forever. And he said, ‘You know what. You should bring your sister,’” Patrick continued from the stage.
“So, my sister flew out. We had a great time. I posted a bunch of pictures. And I’m not going to lie; red is my favorite color. I don’t wear it because I’m Republican I wear it because it is my favorite color it just works well,” she continued. “So the photos definitely had a color theme. And I posted the photos, and I said, ‘I love America; let’s make America great again.”
“People didn’t like that,” she explained. “People looked at me like I was some radical, right-wing, MAGA. Right? Like MAGA’s got this awful connotation with so many people,” she added. “And you know what? All it did was light a fire. I was like, I will not be judged for living in America, being an American, being a proud American, saying I love America, and wanting to make America great again. I won’t be judged for it. In fact, instead of quieting down, I’m going to get louder.”
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I WILL NOT BE JUDGED FOR BEING A PROUD AMERICAN – @DanicaPatrick pic.twitter.com/dOMUhRYJTB
— Real America’s Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) September 22, 2024
Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.